Offical Statistics

Question 1

Practical strengths (3)

Answer 1

1. Comparisons.
2. Shows trends and patterns over time collected at regular intervals meaning you can identify correlations and suggest possible cause and affect relationships.
3. Free source of quantitive data the state has power to force individuals which will overcome the problem of non-response. The non-response rate is 5% for example with the census the state has the resources to do this.g

Question 2

Practical issues (3)

Answer 2

1. Definition change for example unemployment changed over 30 times between 1980 to early 1990s unemployment stats aren’t comparing like for like
2. Government create their own purpose it may not therefore be available for interested topic.
3. Miss matches between sets of statistics may be impossible to establish the degree of correlation between ill health and unemployment precisely.

Question 3

Ethical issues (2)

Answer 3

1. Durkheims dehumanise of suicide victims use scientific stats in cold scientific matter he’s therefore using it to dehumanise victims sens statistics shouldn’t be used for this
2. Reputational damage use of organisations unpublished statsmay raise ethical issues

Question 4

Ethical strengths (2)

Answer 4

1. Detached: won’t encounter same ethical issues that observers an interviewers may.
2. No deception: no harm no laws will be broken.

Question 5

Theoretical strength (1)

Answer 5

1. It’s representative:
   - Will provide a better bias for making generalisation and testing hypothesis
   - It will cover a large sample Care will be taken with sampling procedures
   - The statistics gathered by compulsory registration for example, birth and death statistics will likely to be covering virtually all cases and therefore be extremely representative

Question 6

Theoretical issues (1)

Answer 6

1. Interpretivists: argue that official statistics don’t measure what they claim to therefore lacking validity.
   - For example soft statistics compiled from administrative record records may represent record of decisions made by these agencies rather than valid picture soft statistics therefore neglect unknown dart figure of recorded cases.
   - Another example is truancy statistics in school which may be manipulated to make themselves look better.

Question 7

Introduction

Answer 7

• Quantitive
• Gathered by government or other official bodies
• Birth, deaths, marriages, et cetera
• 10 year census: whole UK population
• Secondary data
  -Positivists favour as their high reliability and representative
• Interpretivist reject as they lack validity and are socially constructed