Statistical Disclosure Control – Balancing Data Confidentiality and Data Quality

Manchester University is hosting SDC expert Larry Cox from the US National Institute for Statistical Science from 1^st-15^th November.

He is running a course whilst he is in Manchester: Statistical Disclosure Control – Balancing Data Confidentiality and Data Quality

Date: 6-7 November 2013

For more info: http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/courses/ida1/sdc.html

Manchester Statistical Society Meeting: The Quality of Data

The quality of data in Britain

 

Tuesday 15 January 2013 at 5.30pm (refreshments available from 5.15pm)

Jil Matheson

National Statistician, Head of the Government Statistical Service & Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority

Manchester Statistical Society

Questioning Social & Economic Issues

 President: Dr Philip Lund

http://www.manstatsoc.org/

Britain has a rich history of data that has been used to inform and influence public debate for many years. Our views around what we mean by ‘quality’ have been built on this tradition of data. But with mountains of data now being generated every day, are our traditional measures of quality still the right ones to use? The public increasingly only sees statistics through the media - so how can they know the quality of what they see, and how does this affect their trust in statistics? Statisticians need to consider where we fit in to this new world of data and how we respond to the challenges that it presents us.

 

Jil Matheson was appointed National Statistician, Head of the Government Statistical Service and Chief Executive of the UK Statistics Authority in September 2009.

The meeting will be held at the Manchester Cathedral Visitor Centre, 10 Cateaton Street, Manchester M3 1SQ, starting at 5.30 and ending about 7pm.

Please notify your intention to attend by Friday 11 January 2013 at the latest. Bookings received after this date may not be accepted.

Please send an email to brian.robson@manchester.ac.uk if you are likely to attend.

Introduction to UK Survey Data for studying Attitudes

Thursday 6 December 2012
Basement Lab, Humanities Bridgeford Street building, University of Manchester

This one-day workshop introduces the UK survey data that are available for re-analysis and teaching via the Economic and Social Data Service website. The focus of the workshop will be on data related to attitudes but many of the issues covered are applicable to other areas. The day is appropriate for those with little or no experience of the data.

Participants will learn about the data available, considerations when using the data, the research potential of the data, how to register for and access data and where to go for help. There will also be hands-on computing sessions in SPSS to explore and start analysis using the British Social Attitudes Survey and the British Household Panel Survey.

The meeting is free to attend and lunch will be provided. To view the programme and book a place please go to www.ccsr.ac.uk/esds/events/2012-12-06/

Data Horizons Questionnaire

This survey is an exploratory study of social science data users and those involved in data support services.

As part of the ESRC funded Digital Social Research programme, a team at Manchester University is conducting a scoping review of the changes in the data environment and the innovations that will be necessary to use social science data in the future.

Alongside the well documented expansion in the quantity of data, categorical shifts in the type and form of that data are happening and will continue to do so. Understanding the form that these shifts will take in the short, medium and long term, what the resultant data will look like and how we might use them is vital for the planning and development of the social science resource base and for the training of the next generation of social science researchers.

Please complete this short scoping questionnaire. https://selectsurveys.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/TakeSurvey.aspx?SurveyID=DATA_HORIZONS

All responses will be treated confidentially.

It should only take 15 minutes to complete and your input is very important.

You will also be entered into the prize draw for £50 of book vouchers.

Using multilevel models and MCMC methods and applying them to the Health Survey for England using the new STAT-JR package

Wednesday 11 - Friday 13 July 2012
Humanities Bridgeford Street Building, University of Manchester

This workshop is jointly organised by ESDS Government and e-Stat, a quantitative node for the ESRC Digital Social Research programme which brings together academics working in statistics and computer science.

Prerequisites: a working knowledge of multiple regression and the basics of sample design. Some previous knowledge of multilevel modelling, for example attendance at our workshop in 2010, would be beneficial.

Cost: the workshop fee is £95. Bookings will not be confirmed until payment is received.

The focus of this three day workshop is on the use of new statistical software, STAT-JR for fitting complex statistical models. We will focus on multilevel modelling where the multilevel structure is determined by the sample design, in particular on the way the methods can be applied to the Health Survey for England. This structure will then be used to examine the extent to which variables such as height, weight and BMI are clustered by household and area and whether any of this variability can be accounted for by background variables such as social class and educational qualifications.

The first day will provide a general introduction to the dataset and the STAT-JR software package. On the second day we will give sessions on Bayesian statistics and MCMC methods that the package uses and then describe its application to continuous multilevel models. On the third day we will finish by describing its use on binary response models and give a brief demonstration of an alternative E-book interface to the software. The workshop will be a mixture of lectures and practical sessions using the software on the datasets provided.

To view the programme and book a place please go to http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/esds/events/2012-07-11/

An Introduction to the International Passenger Survey

Friday 29 June 2012
Basement Computer Lab, Humanities Bridgeford Street Building, University of Manchester

A one-day workshop to introduce the International Passenger Survey to those with no or little knowledge of the IPS.

The workshop is free to attend and lunch will be provided. To view the programme and book a place please go to http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/esds/events/2012-06-29/