La mesure des inégalités. Un point de vue de statisticiens

[eng] The example of inequalities among incomes makes it possible to present a critical analysis of the technical paraphenalia statisticians have to measure inequalities. The ratio between the meansof various social groups, the coefficients of dispersions or the synthetic indicators of concentration give various possibilities to describe the gaps between incomes among one population, or two subpopulations, in various ways. The least precaution to take is to define the concepts as well as the units between which comparisons are being made, with precision. If general reports can usually be established, the diversity of points of view as well as the existence of various instruments of measure do not always give the possibility to get the same appraisal of the range of inequalities. . Things get more complex when, coming to the various fields of social life, one tries to establish a scale of « standards of living », to compare the « ways of living ». The fields which are more qualitative than incomes raise special problems. But above all, the combining of various indicators concerning various fields is technically more difficult and even raises fundamental questions : how to build only one scale of reference, how to reckon the comparative «weights» of various fields ? . Last, beyond the problems of measure and combinations, thinking about the difference between inequalities as they are and inequalities as they are felt, about the notion of justice (which that of inequality implicity refers to), about the necessary conflicts and cooperations and on the specificity of the groups, which cannot always be reduced to inequalities, all this leads to the conclusion that to understand social reality on must go beyond the perspective of inequalities. [fre] L'exemple des inégalités de revenus permet une présentation critique de l'arsenal technique dont disposent les statisticiens pour mesurer les inégalités. Rapports de valeurs moyennes entre divers groupes sociaux, coefficients de dispersion ou indicateurs synthétiques de concentration, les possibilités de description des écarts de revenus au sein d'une population ou entre sous-populations sont multiples. Une précaution élémentaire est de définir avec précision les concepts ainsi que les unités entre lesquelles portent les comparaisons. Si des constats d'ensemble peuvent être généralement établis, la diversité des points de vue possibles et des instruments de mesure ne permet pas toujours d'obtenir des appréciations concordantes de l'ampleur des inégalités. . Les choses se compliquent lorsque, abordant les divers domaines du champ social, on cherche à établir une échelle des «niveaux de vie», à comparer des «modes de vie». Les domaines plus «qualitatifs» que les revenus posent des problèmes particuliers. Mais surtout, l'agrégation de différents indicateurs portant sur des domaines variés est d'une difficulté technique accrue et soulève même des questions de principe : comment construire une échelle unique de référence, comment calculer les « poids» relatifs des différents domaines ? . Enfin, au-delà de ces questions de mesure et de cumuls, des réflexions sur les différences entre inégalités réelles et inégalités perçues, sur la notion d'équité (à laquelle se réfère implicitement celle d'inégalité), sur les nécessaires coopérations et conflits entre groupes sociaux et sur les spécificités de ces groupes, lesquelles ne sont pas toujours réductibles à des inégalités, conduisent à la conclusion que la compréhension de la réalité sociale doit dépasser la problématique des inégalités.

La mesure des inégalités. Un point de vue de statisticiens

[eng] The example of inequalities among incomes makes it possible to present a critical analysis of the technical paraphenalia statisticians have to measure inequalities. The ratio between the meansof various social groups, the coefficients of dispersions or the synthetic indicators of concentration give various possibilities to describe the gaps between incomes among one population, or two subpopulations, in various ways. The least precaution to take is to define the concepts as well as the units between which comparisons are being made, with precision. If general reports can usually be established, the diversity of points of view as well as the existence of various instruments of measure do not always give the possibility to get the same appraisal of the range of inequalities. . Things get more complex when, coming to the various fields of social life, one tries to establish a scale of « standards of living », to compare the « ways of living ». The fields which are more qualitative than incomes raise special problems. But above all, the combining of various indicators concerning various fields is technically more difficult and even raises fundamental questions : how to build only one scale of reference, how to reckon the comparative «weights» of various fields ? . Last, beyond the problems of measure and combinations, thinking about the difference between inequalities as they are and inequalities as they are felt, about the notion of justice (which that of inequality implicity refers to), about the necessary conflicts and cooperations and on the specificity of the groups, which cannot always be reduced to inequalities, all this leads to the conclusion that to understand social reality on must go beyond the perspective of inequalities. [fre] L'exemple des inégalités de revenus permet une présentation critique de l'arsenal technique dont disposent les statisticiens pour mesurer les inégalités. Rapports de valeurs moyennes entre divers groupes sociaux, coefficients de dispersion ou indicateurs synthétiques de concentration, les possibilités de description des écarts de revenus au sein d'une population ou entre sous-populations sont multiples. Une précaution élémentaire est de définir avec précision les concepts ainsi que les unités entre lesquelles portent les comparaisons. Si des constats d'ensemble peuvent être généralement établis, la diversité des points de vue possibles et des instruments de mesure ne permet pas toujours d'obtenir des appréciations concordantes de l'ampleur des inégalités. . Les choses se compliquent lorsque, abordant les divers domaines du champ social, on cherche à établir une échelle des «niveaux de vie», à comparer des «modes de vie». Les domaines plus «qualitatifs» que les revenus posent des problèmes particuliers. Mais surtout, l'agrégation de différents indicateurs portant sur des domaines variés est d'une difficulté technique accrue et soulève même des questions de principe : comment construire une échelle unique de référence, comment calculer les « poids» relatifs des différents domaines ? . Enfin, au-delà de ces questions de mesure et de cumuls, des réflexions sur les différences entre inégalités réelles et inégalités perçues, sur la notion d'équité (à laquelle se réfère implicitement celle d'inégalité), sur les nécessaires coopérations et conflits entre groupes sociaux et sur les spécificités de ces groupes, lesquelles ne sont pas toujours réductibles à des inégalités, conduisent à la conclusion que la compréhension de la réalité sociale doit dépasser la problématique des inégalités.

Mortality rate in children caused by traffic accidents according to geographical regions : Brazil, 1997 - 2005 Mortalidade de crianças por acidente de trânsito segundo região geográfica : Brasil, 1997 a 2005

Fatal injuries in children caused by motor vehicle accidents represent a common situation in many countries worldwide. The present study addresses the mortality rate in children as vehicle passengers in Brazil, from 1997 to 2005. To evaluate mortality rates, the number of deaths was collected from the National Mortality Information System (SIM) and the population size was obtained using the Brazilian Bureau Census (IBGE) data available at DATASUS. Mortality rates were estimated in three-year periods and analyzed according to age groups (younger than 1 year old, 1-4 years old, 5-9 years old) and geographical regions using a 95% confidence interval. Overall results showed mortality rates of 5.68, 7.32 and 6.78 (per 1,000,000) for the 1997-1999, 2000-2002 and 2003-2005 periods, respectively for the whole country. Children younger than 1 year old had a mortality rate of 10.18 (per 1,000,000), which was higher than for the other age groups. For the period analyzed, the highest rates were observed for the Mid-West and South regions of Brazil, with rates of 13.88 and 11.47 (per 1,000,000), respectively. These results show the risk of fatal injury in children caused by motor vehicle accidents and may contribute to the establishment of educational campaigns aiming injury prevention in children as vehicle passengers.<br>Lesões fatais em crianças causadas por acidentes de trânsito representam um problema em muitos países. Este estudo analisou a taxa de mortalidade em crianças passageiras de automóveis menores de 10 anos de idade no Brasil, entre 1997 e 2005. Para isso, o número de mortes foi obtido diretamente no banco de dados do Sistema de Informação sobre Mortalidade (SIM) e os dados da população são projeções intercensitárias a partir censo demográfico do Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) disponíveis pelo site do DATASUS. Foram calculadas, para os triênios compreendidos no período em estudo, as taxas de mortalidade por acidente de trânsito entre crianças passageiras de automóveis segundo faixa etária (menor que 1 ano, 1 a 4 e 5 a 9) e região geográfica. Os resultados mostraram taxas de mortalidade de 5,68, 7,32 e 6,78 (por 1.000.000), respectivamente, para os períodos 1997-1999, 2000-2002 e 2003-2005 para todo o Brasil. Crianças menores de 1 ano de idade apresentam taxa de mortalidade de 10,18 (por 1,000,000), maior que as observadas para as outras faixas etárias. Para o período 1997-2005, as maiores taxas foram observadas nas regiões Centro-Oeste e Sul, representando, respectivamente, 13,88 e 11,47 (por 1.000.000). Tais resultados mostram a situação de risco da criança em relação a acidentes de trânsito como passageiras de automóveis e contribuem para a elaboração de campanhas educativas de prevenção de lesões