Ministry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Perception of official statistics publications in the public?

An international compatible example: Equal Pay Day

Session 9: Statistical LiteracyQ2014

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Transmission risks

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Official statistics

dissemination

End-user

Journalists

Scientists

PoliticiansStakeholders

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Administration(Ministries)

Even if nobody is ill-natured ..... High transmission risks

What is our responsibility towards the end-user?

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Data / Statistical literacy

• User• Preconditions for understanding

• Knowledge about the topic• Knowledge about statistics

• Output: Publication conditions• enough time? / space? difficult especially in tv-news• “Make it as easy as possible but not easier!” Nils Bohr? Albert

Einstein?• High competence needed

• Dissemination Official Statistics • Do we presuppose to much knowledge?• Indicators …

• must be understandable (GDP!?)• construct “reality” grounded on a theory pinpoint on the

scope• get a link to the cognitive structure of the user

• Didactical challenge depending on the statistical literacy of the counterpart, recommendation: high scientific standards of the staff

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Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Preconditions for understanding

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Question Scientific hypothesis

Statisticalhypothesis

Operational

hypothesis

Statisticalanalysis

Data retrieval

Interpretable questions:

Starting out with:

Do men and women earn the same amount of money?

Dependent variable – amount of money (in a year / life span?)

Independent variables – individual ones – highest examination, age, working years, regional ones, economic sector, …

Classifications for education examination (ISCED), regional and economic sectors, bargaining arragements, etc.

Null hypothesis (no difference), alternative hypothesis (difference)

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Example - Equal Pay Day Reporting in Germany

Public perception in Germany

• Gap is a result of discrimination against women

• NSI-Destatis reporting 18.3.2014[1]

• adjusted and unadjusted pay gap• Methodology: calculation takes individual variables into

account (age, gender, working hours, branches, education, …)

• press releases and methodological report (2006)• Results:

• Job characteristics make the difference• Pay gap as result of discontinuity, e.g. baby leave• unadjusted gap: 22% (2010, 2012)• adjusted gap: 7% (2010)

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1] https://www.destatis.de/DE/PresseService/Presse/Pressemitteilungen/2014/03/PD14_104_621.html [18.5.2014]

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Official statistics

dissemination

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Example - Equal Pay Day Reporting in Germany

Trend-setting media: TV

• ARD (public tv 21.3.2014) • Tagesschau – prime time[1] : 22 % less money than men in

average – that is the reality for women in Germany. … Even if women work as much and as good as their male colleagues their payment is obviously less.

• ZDF (public tv 21.3.2014) • Heute– prime time[2] : only 22% mentioned• “Volle Kanne”[3] (Morning tv 9:00) – very differentiated,

expert from university

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1] https://www.tagesschau.de/multimedia/video/video1381148.html [18.5.2014] 2] http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/beitrag/video/2117492/Equal-Pay-Day#/beitrag/video/2117492/Equal-Pay-Day [18.5.2014]3] http://www.zdf.de/ZDFmediathek/beitrag/video/2117564/Equal-Pay-Day-Gleiches-Geld-fuer-Frauen#/beitrag/video/2117564/Equal-Pay-Day-Gleiches-Geld-fuer-Frauen [20.5.2014]

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Example - Equal Pay Day Reporting in Germany

Trend-setting media – Radio

• Public Radio – Bayern 5[1]

• Mentioning the calculation method of the NSI• … but “discredit” the approach of the German Institute for

Economic Research DIW (“only several thousand persons taken into account”, the NSI million of persons” )

• Mixes up adjusted and unadjusted results

• Public Radio – Radio Bremen[2]

• Interview with Gender commissioner, quite differentiated

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1] http://www.br.de/nachrichten/equal-pay-day-aktionen-2014-100.html [18.5.2014]2] http://www.radiobremen.de/gesellschaft/themen/equalpayday120.html [20.5.2014]

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Example - Equal Pay Day Reporting in Germany

Trend-setting media – Newspaper• Süddeutsche Zeitung[1]

• Discusses NSI and DIW• Footnote: result of adjusted gap

• FAZ[2]

• Quotes the NSI (unadjusted) – but fragmentary – on purpose

• Frankfurter Rundschau[3]

• Quotes the NSI (unadjusted) – but fragmentary• Quotes Economic institutes with lower gaps

• Tagesspiegel[4]

• Quotes the NSI and the Institute for Employment Research IAB• Unadjusted and adjusted

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1] http://www.sueddeutsche.de/karriere/equal-pay-day-tage-umsonst-1.1918514 [18.5.2014]2] http://www.faz.net/aktuell/beruf-chance/equal-pay-day-verdienstunterschied-kleiner-als-vermutet-11694273.html [18.5.2014]3] http://www.fr-online.de/arbeit---soziales/equal-pay-day-bis-die-ungleichheit-behoben-ist,1473632,22174752.html [18.5.2014]4] http://www.tagesspiegel.de/wirtschaft/equal-pay-day-der-kleine-unterschied/9634764.html [18.5.2014]

Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Example - The Equal Pay Day Reporting in Germany

Parties – reported only unadjusted• SPD (Social Democratic Party; minimum wage debate)• CDU (Christian Democratic Union; minimum wage

debate)• FDP (Free Democratic Party, link to NSI)• GREEN Party• The Left Party• Trade unions

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Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann

Amt für Statistik Berlin-BrandenburgMinistry of the Interior and Sports Berlin

Summing up

Media reports: “Equal Pay Day”• TV - fragmentary • Radio - less differentiated• Newspaper – quite differentiated

Challenge for the end-user to understand• … when relying on public tv and radio

NSI dissemination – recommendations (Germany)• should be the guarantor to focus the topic from all sides

available (with data from official statistics)….• more anticipation of possible usage

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Prof. Dr. Ulrike Rockmann