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Social Statistics and Social Change

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Summary

Although it is customary to regard the statistical product of modern nation-states as being composed of two broad categories, social statistics and economic statistics, this paper emphasizes the links rather than the dividing lines between statistical programmes. It traces the attempts of three statistician economists to classify and quantify “national accounts” and “vital statistics” and show the interrelationships between the two. Their efforts suggest certain guidelines for today’s statisticians: apply the art of classification to create order out of chaos, know your users’ requirements, possess objectivity and impartiality and finally, let your deductions follow your facts, not precede them.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Australian Statistician, PO Box 10, ACT 2616, Belconnen, Australia

    Ian Castles

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  1. Ian Castles
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Castles, I. Social Statistics and Social Change. Journal of Population Research 4, 93–105 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03029409

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03029409

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