'Dying to be Noticed' Gender: Work and Death Registration in New Zealand

Statistical information is often used for the basis of resource allocation in social policy. This paper discusses the historical and present day categorisation of women's work as it applies to the census and death registration. From a feminist/policy perspective, I will explore the relationship between 'official' representation and its power for the construction of particular social/political/economic identities. I will argue that the historical legacy of categorisation and construction of identity which persists in 'official' data collections continues to shape and influence policy parameters and decisions about the 'worth' of women's work, particularly unpaid work. Within the context of the current political and economic climate, the implications of continuing to inadequately represent the unpaid contributions of women will also be examined

'Dying to be Noticed' Gender: Work and Death Registration in New Zealand

Statistical information is often used for the basis of resource allocation in social policy. This paper discusses the historical and present day categorisation of women's work as it applies to the census and death registration. From a feminist/policy perspective, I will explore the relationship between 'official' representation and its power for the construction of particular social/political/economic identities. I will argue that the historical legacy of categorisation and construction of identity which persists in 'official' data collections continues to shape and influence policy parameters and decisions about the 'worth' of women's work, particularly unpaid work. Within the context of the current political and economic climate, the implications of continuing to inadequately represent the unpaid contributions of women will also be examined

Rubrics: A Method for Surfacing Values and Improving the Credibility of Evaluation

Background: The challenges of valuing in evaluation have been the subject of much debate; on what basis do we make judgments about performance, quality, and effectiveness? And according to whom? (Julnes, 2012b). There are many ways identified in the literature for carrying out assisted valuation (Julnes, 2012c). One way of assisting the valuation process is the use of evaluative rubrics. This practice-based article unpacks the learnings of a group of evaluators who have used evaluative rubrics to grapple with this challenge. Compared to their previous practice, evaluative rubrics have allowed them to surface and deal with values in a more transparent way. In their experience when evaluators and evaluation stakeholders get clearer about values, evaluative judgments become more credible and warrantable. Purpose: Share practical lessons learned from working with rubrics. Setting: Aotearoa (New Zealand). Intervention: Not applicable. Research Design: Not applicable. Data Collection and Analysis: Not applicable. Findings: They have found that while evaluative rubrics look beguilingly simple they are hard to do well. However, when done well, evaluative rubrics can substantially increase the use and credibility of evaluation.Keywords: Rubrics; values; valuation; stakeholder; validity; credibility; utilit

Anomalies of collection : a study of the validity and value of ethnic data : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in Social Policy at Massey University

From the outset the task was to investigate the validity of ethnic mortality data collection and suggest ways it could he improved. This began with a concern about an anomaly between the hospitalisation rates for young Maori involved in road accidents and the reported official road mortality rates for these same young Maori. The hospitalisation figures suggested Maori were over-represented and the mortality rates suggested Maori were under-represented. Using a sample of those who died on the road in 1990, the ethnic data collected by police was compared with ethnic data collected by funeral directors, the responses of next-of-kin and the ascribed ethnicity taken from a search of death notices. Major differences of ethnic classification were revealed, particularly between next-of-kin and police and funeral directors, raising serious questions about the validity of the two official sets of data. An assessment of the validity of the two sets of data was made by linking an historical analysis of the concepts and definitions of race and ethnicity with a qualitative study of the ethnic data collection practices of police and funeral directors. The final ethnic data sets were revealed to be a construction of the 'commonsense' conceptual understandings of race and ethnicity held by police and funeral directors being applied to the practices of collection and classification. These concepts, understandings and practices contained a variable mixture of historical paradigms and discourses. On the basis of validity as it is understood by statisticians, both official collections could reasonably be judged invalid. However, the deeper issue underlying this finding concerns the value of ethnic statistics. Their value lies in their use for justifying resource allocation and distribution between different ethnic groups. Ethnic data and its collection cannot be viewed outside the politics of resource allocation and the project of improving ethnic data is firmly located in this context

Rubrics: A Method for Surfacing Values and Improving the Credibility of Evaluation

Background: The challenges of valuing in evaluation have been the subject of much debate; on what basis do we make judgments about performance, quality, and effectiveness? And according to whom? (Julnes, 2012b). There are many ways identified in the literature for carrying out assisted valuation (Julnes, 2012c). One way of assisting the valuation process is the use of evaluative rubrics. This practice-based article unpacks the learnings of a group of evaluators who have used evaluative rubrics to grapple with this challenge. Compared to their previous practice, evaluative rubrics have allowed them to surface and deal with values in a more transparent way. In their experience when evaluators and evaluation stakeholders get clearer about values, evaluative judgments become more credible and warrantable. Purpose: Share practical lessons learned from working with rubrics. Setting: Aotearoa (New Zealand). Intervention: Not applicable. Research Design: Not applicable. Data Collection and Analysis: Not applicable. Findings: They have found that while evaluative rubrics look beguilingly simple they are hard to do well. However, when done well, evaluative rubrics can substantially increase the use and credibility of evaluation.Keywords: Rubrics; values; valuation; stakeholder; validity; credibility; utilit

What Does it Take to do Evaluation in Communities and Cultural Contexts Other Than Our Own?

Background: This paper builds on the growing body of evaluation literature around the importance of culture and cultural context in evaluation (e.g. Greene, 2005; Hood, Hopson and Frierson 2005; Hopson, 2009; Kirkhart, 1995 and 2005; La France, 2001). Purpose: The place of language, culture, cultural context, and leadership roles in evaluation is explored through consideration of the question, “What does it take to do evaluation in communities and cultural contexts other than our own?”  Setting: Not applicable. Intervention: Not applicable. Research Design:  Not applicable. Findings: Attention to the location of power and privilege in evaluation, and to community engagement and ‘sense-making’ processes are the conversational starting points to begin to explore what it takes to do evaluation in communities, where the language, culture, and cultural context are different from one’s own.  Keywords: culture, context, diversity, power, indigenous communities, communities of color, values, ethics, cultural competence, validit