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In my last post, I reviewed five observations. Because of changes in American society, 1) the Census Bureau’s methods of data collection are costing more money to produce the same statistical information, but 2) the demands are increasing for more statistical information from businesses, governments, and the public, and 3) there are new data collection technologies that are being invented constantly, 4) there are new sources of digital data from Federal program agencies, the internet, and economic transactions, but 5) in the medium run the Census Bureau is not likely to have more fiscal resources to take advantage of these. My conclusion: the current methods used in the Census Bureau are unsustainable in the medium run.
All of these appear to be within our reach, given pockets of developments that have occurred in different Bureau programs recently. We need to consolidate these practices for the benefit of all the programs as they move to mixed-mode designs. One area needing direct and quick attention is the collection and analysis of cost data so that wise tradeoff decisions about mode switches can be made. Another development area is management information systems permitting the real-time administration of mixed-mode surveys.
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