Applications: other countries
Examples of use of administrative data in other countries
In this section we list some examples of use of administrative data in countries other than France.
For a summary of European experiences of the use of population registers as a source of demographic statistics, see the article of Poulain & Herm (2013) Poulain-Herm-Central-Population-Register_en.
The research data center of the German Federal employment agency provides several datasets containing personal and household information on employees. A comprehensive list can be found here.
The National Register ensures the recording, storage and communication of information related to the identification of citizens. The information recorded is: surname, first name, sex, place and date of birth, nationality, place of residence, occupation, marital status, household composition. It is therefore a central database in which are stored:
- all Belgians residing in Belgium;
- all Belgians residing abroad who are registered in the population registers kept in Belgian diplomatic missions or consular posts abroad;
- all foreigners residing in Belgium who are admitted or authorised to settle or reside in the Kingdom;
- all foreigners (and members of their families) who declare themselves refugees or who apply for recognition as refugees.
The Labour market and social securty register aggregates socio-economic data from Belgian social security institutions. For the period from 2010 onwards, it covers the entire population included in the national register.
Deboossere_Gadeyne (2005) : A comparison of migrant groups according to their emographic and socioeconomic characteristics [FRA]
Herm_et_al. (2014) : A study on the higher mortality risk of people in istitution [ENG]
Lusyne_et_al. (2001); Guilbault_et_al. (2007) : Two studies on the impact of widowhood on mortality [ENG]-[FRA]
Since 2013, the Spanish national statistical institute carries the Continuous Household Survey. This survey yearly collects individual and household characteristics for a sample of the Spanish resident population.
ONS-LS contains linked census and life events data for a 1% sample of the population of England and Wales. Some examples of use of these data:
· Wallace, M., & Kulu, H. (2014). Low immigrant mortality in England and Wales: a data artefact?. Social Science & Medicine, 120, 100-109.
· Wallace, M., & Kulu, H. (2016). Corrigendum to “Mortality among immigrants in England and Wales by major causes of death, 1971–2012: A longitudinal analysis of register-based data”[Soc. Sci. Med. 147 (2015) 209–221]. Social Science & Medicine, (148), 59.
· Wallace, M. (2016). Adult mortality among the descendants of immigrants in England and Wales: does a migrant mortality advantage persist beyond the first generation?. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 42(9), 1558-1577.
· Wallace, M., & Kulu, H. (2018). Can the salmon bias effect explain the migrant mortality advantage in England and Wales?. Population, Space and Place, e2146.
Since 1996 Statistics Netherlands has been developing the System of social statistical datasets, which today combines and integrates register and administrative data. Recently, the Dutch Central Statistical Institute is also using new big data sources. For more information on the Dutch system, take a look to the following articles :
register-based social statistics
Michielin_et_al. (2008) : A study on spatial mobility according to the distance between child's and parent's residences [ENG]
Fejten_Van Ham (2007) : A study on the effect of divorce on couples' spatial mobility [ENG]
Nordic countries have a long tradition of collecting and using register data. Here we provide a non-exhaustive list of data sources and some examples of their use. For more information, see Nordic coutries UN.
Denmark:
Danish Health Register (danish register_health)
Danish Income Register (danish register_income)
Norredam_et_al. (2011) : Various registers can be matched with the population register for a wide range of studies on migrant health, employment and education [ENG]
Drefahl (2010) : An analysis of the impact of age difference between spouses on their survival [ENG]
Koskinen_et_al. (2007); Drefahl (2012) : Two examples of analysis of mortality risks by living arrangement [ENG]
Finland:
Martikainen_Valkonen (1996) : A study on the impact of widowhood on mortality [ENG]
Martikainen_et_al. (2005) : A study on mortality and causes of death by conjugal status [ENG]
Nihtila_Martikainen (2008) : A study on the impact of conjugal history and widowhood on the risk of institutionalization [ENG]
Herttua_et_al. (2008) : A study on alcohol-related mortality [ENG]
Van Hedel_et_al. : A study on young adulthood transitions and health [ENG]
Maki_Martikainen (2012) : A study on the link between unemployment and suicide [ENG]
Iceland:
Norway:
The Norwegian tax administration manages the National Registry which forms the basis for the tax register, the electoral register and population statistics.
Two exemples of reconstruction of migration trajectories linked to the migrants' demographic and economic characteristics [FRA] Baccaïni_Courgeau (1996a) ; [ENG] Baccaïni_Courgeau (1996b)
Courgeau_Baccaïni (1997) : An example of use of register data for a multi-level analysis [FRA]
Grundy_Kravdal (2010) : An analysis of the impact of age at of first birth and parity on mortality, by cause of death [ENG]
Kravdal_et_al. (2012) : An analysis of the impact of the marital and fertility history on mortality [ENG]
GGS Norway : An example of match between primary (survey) and secondary (register) data sources.
Sweden:
Everstsson_Boye (2018) : An article on the transition to parenthood for same-sex and opposite-sex couples.
Mulder_Malmberg (2011) : An analyis of the effect of a couple’s divorce in terms of subsequent spatial mobility [ENG]
Malmberg_Pettersson (2007) : An analysis of the distance between children and their elderly parents [ENG]
GGS Sweden : An example of match between primary (survey) and secondary (register) data source.
The principal aim of the Swiss Household Panel (SHP) is to observe social change, in particular the dynamics of changing living conditions and representations in the population of Switzerland.
It is a yearly panel study following a random sample of private households in Switzerland over time, interviewing all household members mainly by telephone.
The SHP constitutes a unique longitudinal database for Switzerland and is supported by the Swiss national science foundation. The survey covers a broad range of topics and approaches in the social sciences.
Data collection started in 1999 with a sample of 5,074 households containing 12,931 household members. In 2004 a second sample of 2,538 households with a total of 6,569 household members was added; and since 2013 the SHP contains a third sample of 4,093 households and 9,945 individuals.
The ADRF (Administrative Data Research Facilities) Network is an evolving grassroots effort among researchers and organizations who are seeking to collaborate around improving access to and promoting the ethical use of administrative data in social science research. They connect US-based administrative data holders, users, and intermediaries and engage with privacy leaders and other stakeholders to transform this emerging field.
The Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has been a leader in administrative data harmonization in the US. TechnicalReport_MSPFlessons their technical report on their state-level administrative data system and a talk NAS Workshop May 2016 Noyes to the National Academy of Science on the data system.