Sociological Survey Methodology: Interpreting Employment and Unemployment Data

Caucasus Research Resource Centers -Armenia Arsen Aslanyan CRRC-Armenia Program Manager March 19, 2008 Yerevan, Armenia Sociological Survey Methodology: Interpreting Employment and Unemployment Data A Program of Eurasia Partnership Foundation [email_address]

Surveys as Data Collection Tools

How the respondents are selected?

How and when are the data gathered?

How the data are archived?

How the data are analyzed and presented?

Nuances of commenting survey data.

Sampling: Strategies, Frames and Procedures From whom and how you gather the data :

What is a Sample?

A sample is a finite part of a population whose properties (knowledge, opinion, attitudes, behaviors, etc.) are studied to gain information about the whole.

Sampling Frame - A list of all the units (individuals, households, etc.) in the population from which the sample is taken.

Samples and Sampling Strategy

The degree to which your sample mirrors the population from which it comes will depend to a large extent on your sampling strategy.

Why is this important?

The sampling strategy is the way in which you select units from the population for inclusion into your study.

The CRRC Data Initiative (DI) Surveys

The Data Initiative (DI) is a cross-border effort initiated by the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC) to collect data on a wide variety of social, political and economic indicators in the South Caucasus (SC).

The DI survey has been conducted in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia annually since 2004.

While the survey in 2004 was conducted in the capitals of the SC countries, the survey of 2005 encompassed also an internal region per country and, since 2006 it included all the regions of the mentioned countries.

The DI 2004-2007 Survey Samples

The CRRC Data Initiative (DI) Survey Methodology The surveys in all countries have been implemented using a unified sampling methodology – multistage cluster sampling with preliminary stratification . To be able to compare various geographic areas in the SC countries, the CRRC centers in 2007 introduced preliminary stratification of the sampling frames, which included 9 strata: North-East, North-West, South-East, South-West, each of them having both urban and rural areas, and the capital cities.

The Preliminary Stratification in Armenia

The CRRC Data Initiative (DI) Survey Methodology Sampling Frame . While the CRRC centers in Georgia and Azerbaijan have been using Census data (addresses of surveyed households) as sampling frames, the CRRC-Armenia used the database of Armenian household electricity users as a frame to sample households for the interview . Clusters of about 500 households were formed in each strata based on geographical proximity, and 50 households were randomly sampled in each selected cluster for interviewing . Respondents: In parallel with/after the household interview, an individual interview was conducted with one adult member in the household, randomly selected using the last birthday method.

The Survey Instrument

The survey instrument – questionnaire was developed by the teams of researchers from three SC countries.

The survey gathers information about:

household characteristics (more than 80 questions on household size, socio-demographics of household members, economic status/conditions, as well information on current/past migrant members) and

individuals sampled within those households (about 160 questions on their employment, education, health, political views, social capital, etc.)

The average time for completing either household or individual interview was about 30 minutes.

The Fieldwork in Armenia

Fieldwork period: September-October 2007

Staff: 11 fieldwork supervisors, 100 interviewers

Response rate: 78%

Datasets (in SPSS format) and relevant documentation are available at: www.crrccenters.org

Armenian Labor Force Respondents (18+ years old) were asked the following question: Who is there? “ Do you consider yourself to be employed (having a job)? This employment may be part-time or full-time, you may be officially employed, informally employed, or self-employed, but it brings you monetary income.”

Those who did not have a job, were asked the following: “ Which of the following best describes your situation?” [those who have a job]

What comprises the Economically Active Population? Those who are employed (have a job) + Those who are unemployed and looking for a job (active job seekers) = Economically Active Population 922 individuals in the sample 361 individuals in the sample 922+ 361= 1283 individuals in the sample Unemployment level = 361/ (361+ 922) = 28%

How many job seekers are in our sample? 361 ? (According to their self reports) OR 49 ? (those, who are registered at state and/or private agencies, including those who are “ Unemployed and interested in a job, but currently NOT looking for a job ”)

Always ask! How the unemployment level is estimated? If we estimate the unemployment level according to the respondents’ self reports on employment, then Unemployment level = 361/ (361+ 922) = 28% If we estimate the unemployment level using the number of job seekers registered at state and/or private agencies, then Unemployment level = 49/ (49 + 922) = 5%

Armenian Labor Force: Who is there? The employed and unemployed by age groups ( % within age groups)

Armenian Labor Force: Who is there? The employed and unemployed by sex ( % within sex):

Armenian Labor Force : Who is there? The employed and unemployed by settlement types ( % of total respondents):

The Employment and Unemployment by Educational Levels of Respondents

The Employment and Unemployment in the Capitals of the South Caucasus during 2004-2007 Always check the questionnaire!

Unemployment: Closer Look at the Duration

Employment in Armenia by Sectors (% within community type)

Employment in Armenia by Branches (% of respondents by strata)

Migration : % of household members who have been abroad for more than 3 months during 1991-2007 and returned home

Migration : Destination countries for those who have been abroad for more than 3 months during 1991-2007 and returned home

Migration : How did former migrants support their households back home? (% of returned migrants)

Migration : % of HHs having at least one member abroad as of October 2007