Thursday, June 28, 2018

CTADS 2017 PUMF Availabilty

Question:
A researcher is interested in when the PUMF will be available for the 2017 version of the Canadian Tobacco, Alcohol, and Drugs Survey (CTADS).

Given that the data release for the 2015 version was November 2016, I expect that it won’t be until the Fall, but would like to have an official response.

Answer:
Subject matter has informed us that the CTADS 2017 PUMF will be released in the Fall of 2018. Likely sometime in early November, but the date has yet to be confirmed. 

Friday, June 22, 2018

Survey of Household Spending

Question:
The Survey of Household Spending on nesstar ends at 2009.

The Survey of Household Spending at CHASS ends at 2009

The Survey of Household Spending at ends at 2011

The Survey of  Household Spending in the RDCs ends at 2015.

How can someone at an institution that does not have a RDC get the newest data?

Answer:
A lot of the data tables are now available in CANSIM. Interesting comparison, I think for a couple years we were still getting aggregate data from DLI for the SHS so we kept loading in . But that stopped in 2011.

The (formerly) CANSIM tables go up to 2016. You can access them from this page - https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/surveys/3508.

Here is an inventory http://bit.ly/shs-edm of the Excel tables from the Survey of Household Spending found in the former CANSIM tables.  See column C.  (Table provided by University of Ottawa). 

Rural or Urban DAs

Question:
I've got a researcher trying to classify low-level Census units (DAs or DBs) by rural or urban status. I fear I'm missing something obvious in trying to help him.

Are all POPCTRs and RAs delineated along DA boundaries? I can't find any indication of this in the documentation but, when I visualize DA and POPCTR boundaries in GIS software, this appears to be the case. However, I've only eyeballed a few areas and haven't done an exhaustive analysis.

If the rural/urban split does follow DA boundaries, is there a convenient way to classify the DAs without resorting to GIS? I haven't been able to figure this out the DA Profile data tables. I also note that the GAF classifies DBs as being urban or rural.

Answer:
I recently encountered this as well. I found that a number of DAs have both urban and rural parts so it is not possible to classify all DA’s as urban or rural. I had to use GIS to do this. DBs on the other hand, as you found, can be classed as urban or rural.

Tuesday, June 19, 2018

WDS Server VS EFT Site

Question:
Is there a description somewhere to explain the difference between what is on the WDS server and the EFT site?

Answer:
Essentially (long story short), the “EFT” (we refer to it as the FTP, or FileZilla and/or IPSwitch) houses ALL of our data. The WDS will only store the aggregate data files (so essentially just the Excel documents and Beyond 20/20 tables), whereas Nesstar contains the PUMFs.

CANSIM 252-0075 to CANSIM 252-0081

Question:
Would the data for the years 1977-97 be available by police detachment?  It is for 1998-2016.

Answer:
I’ve inquired with subject matter and they have provided me with the B2020 table for the UCR1 data (from 1977 to 1997). Due to some modifications of the survey, there is a break in the comparability of data between the years ’97 and ’98, so there is mandatory reading material as well to explain the adjustments. I will add this to the WDS and the EFT (FTP/FileZilla!) shortly and will let you know where it can be found!

Friday, June 15, 2018

Stats on Employment of Victims of Domestic Abuse

Question:
Can anyone help me to find statistics regarding employment services (employability, those working fulltime or part-time, and services to help them find employment, etc.) for victims of domestic violence in Canada? This can range to include any and all stats related to employment for men or women or children who are affected by domestic abuse.

Answer:
I have contacted various Subject Matter divisions and we do not seem to collect data primarily on domestic violence. However, I have navigated Nesstar and found the following surveys that might be of interest.

The GSS Victimization datasets capture information on the experiences of victimization:

-          General Social Survey, Cycle 13, 1999 [Canada]: Victimization Main File
-          General Social Survey, Cycle 18, [Canada] 2004: Victimization, Main File
-          General Social Survey, Cycle 23, 2009 [Canada]: Victimization, Main File
-          General Social Survey, Cycle 28, 2014 [Canada]: Victimization, Main File

Upon perusing the contents of the General Social Survey, Cycle 28, I found the following variables/variable groups that might be of interest:

Variables/Variable groups related to victimization:
Variable CEX_040C: Childhood victimization - Relations between adult and respondent (physical included)
Variable CEX_065C: Childhood victimization - Relations between adult and respondent (sexual included)
Variable CEXTALK: Childhood victimization - Talked to someone
Variable group: NCP: Likelihood neighbours would call the police
Variable group: VST: Criminal victimization screening: Total

Variable groups related to employment: 
Variable group: WET: Work activities - Employment type
Variable group: WHW: Work activities - Hours worked
Variable group: WLY: Work activities - Last year employer information

Additionally, the Violence Against Women Survey, 1993 [Canada] dataset includes a large repertoire of data  on victimization. It also includes a variable group related to employment: Variable E4: Respondent worked full-time or part-time.

Finally, we can also refer you to Public Safety and Justice Canada. Public safety has been responsible for the policies and victims programs in Canada; it can be found on their website. Justice Canada has what they call the Victim Services Directory, which lists all the services available. You should be able to find some major resources in the list. At Justice Canada, you can contact the policy centre for victim issues at: pcvi-cpcv@justice.gc.ca.

Tuesday, June 12, 2018

LGBTQ+ refugees or immigrants in Canada

Question:
I’m working with an experienced researcher who is seeking any data which might cover the experiences, perceptions, health status (or anything even related) of LGBTQ+ refugees or immigrants in Canada.

I have looked at the Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS), and the General Social Survey (GSS) in Nesstar. Both do have a variable related to sexual identity, and also immigration/citizenship status, but I think, to access this data (specifically the sexual identity data), my researcher would need to apply to an RDC. Please let me know if I’m wrong about that!

I’ve searched various Canadian data repositories, Google (of course), relevant organizations and associations (e.g. Canadian Council for Refugees, Rainbow Refugee), and scoured the cited sources in many related articles. So far I’ve found lots of relevant information, but no actual data or statistics.

Any suggestions or ideas would be very welcome.

Answer:
Certain GSS cycles(Cycle 29, 27 SI, for example) do ask sexual orientation of the respondent as well as landed immigrant status, with available responses of:
Heterosexual
Homosexual
Bisexual

I took a look to see if the variables are available in the PUMF, unfortunately they are only available in the analytical dataset.  So yes, the client would need to access the RDC’S or request custom tabulations from us, at a cost.”

As well, in regards to the CCHS dataset, subject matter has replied with the following (similar answer):
“We might be able to provide a custom tab for the client. We won’t have data on refugees but we could cross Immigration with sexual orientation. This will come at a cost.”

Friday, June 8, 2018

Annual Survey of R&D

Question:
I have another researcher who’s looking at business expenditures in R&D in Saskatchewan. The CANSM tables he’s using are derived from the RDCI survey, but some of the information he needs is xed out . Is there a way for him to access these figures without breaching confidentiality?

Answer:
In the event the client would like to access results from an analytical program using the RDCI data, they could make a research proposal request through the Canadian Centre for Data Development and Economic Research (CDER). Please note there is a cost involved. 

Direct access to the microdata is not possible in order to preserve the confidentiality of the respondent data.

Wednesday, June 6, 2018

National Cannabis Survey

Question:
I have a few researchers who are very interested in the National Cannabis Survey. Any information on if/when/where the data will be accessible would be greatly appreciated!

I know it’s a very new survey, but do we know if there is a possibility of PUMFs/RDC access for the National Cannabis Survey? Bonus if there is a vague timeline I can pass along to the researcher?

Answer:
We inquired with the Subject Matter area responsible for the National Cannabis Survey (NCS). At this time, there are no plans to develop a PUMF for the NCS. However, we have ensured that the team is aware of the level of interest. 

Monday, June 4, 2018

R&D Stats

Question:
First, the researcher would like to know if detailed information from RDHES or HERD is available. He’s especially interested in the type of research being done.

Second, he’d like to know if the current version of UCASS includes department codes or field of expertise information. The old version which ended in 2011 included 2-digit CIP codes, but that appears to be missing now, unless it’s been suppressed.

Answer:
In regards to your first question, Subject Matter has informed us that such detail is unfortunately not available from RDHES or HERD.

In regards to your second question, we have received the following response: 
“UCASS collects department codes at the 2 digit CIP level, and subject taught codes at the 4 digit CIP level.  This information is available from 1970 to 2010 and 2016.  We are currently working on filling in the years that the survey was cancelled (2011 to 2015)  but this information has not yet been released.”