Toronto
Region Statistics Canada Research Data Centre
(Toronto RDC)
Newsletter Number 9 – Spring 2008
The Toronto RDC is a secure social science research facility located at
the University of Toronto that offers researchers from many academic
disciplines an opportunity to analyze large-scale, longitudinal
Statistics Canada microdata in a well-equipped computer lab setting.
The Toronto RDC is a partnership among Statistics Canada, the
University of Toronto, York University and Ryerson University.
Statistics Canada’s RDC Program is a national initiative to make
Statistics Canada microdata more directly available to researchers
across the country.
For information about applying for access to the Toronto RDC, please
see “RDC Proposal Submission Process” near the end of this newsletter.
Contents:
1. Latest News
2. Presentations
3. Dataset Holdings
4. Hours of Operation
5. Health Reports
Re-launched
6. York University’s
Summer Program in Data Analysis (SPIDA)
7. Conferences
8. Opportunities
with Statistics Canada
9. RDC Proposal
Submission Process
10. Contact Us
1) What’s new at the
Toronto RDC?
Number of Research Projects Continues
to Rise
The number of research projects at the Toronto RDC has reached 300,
with 109 of these projects currently active. These projects
involve over 430 graduate students and faculty members from the
University of Toronto, York University, Ryerson and other universities.
The Toronto RDC continues to be a leading centre for health, social
science and economic research.
Michael Baker Accepts another 3-Year
Term as Academic Director
The Toronto RDC’s Academic Director, Professor Michael Baker, has
accepted another 3-year term as Academic Director. In his first
three years, Michael has worked hard to secure stable funding for the
Toronto RDC, and has been a strong proponent of the RDC Program and the
Toronto RDC in his involvement with the RDC Program’s National
Coordinating Committee.
Census Data Now Available
For the first time, data from the 1996 and 2001 Census long forms are
available for research in the Toronto RDC. These datasets contain
detailed responses to the census long form, which is given to 20% of
the Canadian population and contains questions on language, ethnicity,
mobility, employment, religion, education and housing. Census
data from other years is either already available or will become
available in the future.
Funding for the RDC Network
In the fall of 2006 the RDC Network was awarded a new 4 year, 4 million
dollar grant from the Leading Edge Fund of the Canada Foundation for
Innovation (CFI). Additionally, funding has been provided by
SSHRC and CIHR to help support research in the RDC Program. Work
has begun to connect all the RDCs via a secure wide area network, and
to create metadata documentation which will allow researchers to easily
access information contained in datasets stored at the RDCs.
Most Toronto RDC use is by Graduate
Students
The Toronto RDC continues in its role in promoting student training and
advancement; over half of all time spent by researchers in the Toronto
RDC since its opening has been by graduate students working on their
own dissertation or on other projects as research assistants.
Staffing at the Toronto RDC
The Toronto RDC is staffed by both Statistics Canada and University of
Toronto staff and faculty members. For Statistics Canada, Angela
Prencipe and Byron Lee continue in their positions as Analysts.
In the fall of 2007, Tina Hotton Mahony returned from maternity leave
to resume her duties as an RDC analyst.
For the University of Toronto, Michael Baker, Susan Murphy and Dave
Haans continue on in their roles of Academic Director, Manager, and
Research and Computing Consultant, respectively. Additionally, we
would like to welcome Isobel Medel as the Toronto RDC’s new
Administrative Assistant, whose role is to help the analysts with their
administrative tasks. Welcome, Isobel!
2) Presentations at
the Toronto RDC
Please see the Events
page on our website for the latest information on all our presentations
and workshops.
Upcoming Events
a) Some Survey Data
Sets Available from Statistics Canada’s Social and Aboriginal
Statistics Division
Tuesday April 1st, 2008, 1pm to 4:15pm, Room 230, FIELDS INSTITUTE, 222
College St., 2nd Floor
Members of the Social and Aboriginal Statistics Division at Statistics
Canada will provide a series of 20 minute presentations on some of our
key data sets. These rich sources of social data are or will soon be
available for researchers to use within Statistics Canada’s Research
Data Centres Program. Additionally, a representative from one of
Statistics Canada’s refereed journals, Perspectives on Labour and
Income, will discuss publishing opportunities at Statistics Canada.
The presentations will be of interest to researchers and graduate
students in the social sciences. Please feel free to attend one or more
of the presentations. The presenters will be available to answer any
questions you have on the surveys. A representative of the Toronto
Regional Statistics Canada Research Data Centre will also be on hand to
answer any questions you might have on how to apply to the Research
Data Centres Program.
RSVP: Please contact Dave Haans (dave.haans@utoronto.ca)
to confirm your attendance.
Please specify if you will be attending all of the presentations or
particular sessions:
http://sites.utoronto.ca/rdc/events.html
The Toronto RDC would like to thank the Fields Institute for providing
the venue for this presentation.
b) Brown-Bag Lunch
Talk Series, 2007-2008
The Brown-Bag Lunch Talk Series is in its third year and has featured
presentations by researchers focusing on one or more aspects of their
research at the Toronto RDC. The Brown-Bag Lunch Series seminars
take place from October to April of each academic year in the Toronto
RDC’s Conference Room.
If you would like an opportunity to present or discuss your RDC
research in an informal, collegial setting the Brown Bag series
provides, please contact Dave Haans (dave.haans@utoronto.ca) or
Angela Prencipe (toronto.rdc@utoronto.ca)
for more information.
c) Introductory SAS
Workshop
The Intro SAS Workshop is given twice a year in the spring and fall and
is meant to introduce RDC researchers to the SAS System, giving them
both the basics and a large number of tips and techniques that prove
handy in the Toronto RDC’s research environment. For more
information, please contact Dave Haans at dave.haans@utoronto.ca.
d) Practical
Bootstrap Estimation Workshop
Toronto RDC staff are currently working on a Practical Bootstrap
Estimation Workshop. Bootstrap estimation is a process by which
repeated samples are taken and a more accurate estimate of standard
error and confidence intervals is generated. This workshop is
being designed to introduce researchers to the technique of bootstrap
estimation using both the Statistics Canada Bootvar macro and Stata
SE. Please contact Dave Haans at dave.haans@utoronto.ca if you
are an RDC researcher and would like to be informed about progress on
this workshop.
Previous Presentations
a) Working with
Canadian Census Data at the Toronto RDC
On December 13th, 2007, Martine Grenier, Mokili Mbuluyo and
Jean-René Boudreau from Statistics Canada gave a talk on the
Canadian Census Data now available at the Toronto RDC. They
presented information on the general content of the census microdata
(including universes, sample size and variables), covered
confidentiality rules for the census, and answered many questions of
the approximately 22 RDC researchers who attended.
Please see our Events
webpage for the poster and PowerPoint presentation which accompanied
this talk.
b) Toronto RDC CCHS
Mini-conference
On Friday, October 26, 2007, the Toronto RDC invited RDC researchers to
attend a mini-conference on the Canadian Community Health Survey
datasets.
Didier Garriguet, Senior Analyst in the Health Statistics Division at
Statistics Canada presented a well-received overview of the complex
CCHS 2.2 survey. Following Didier's presentation, Valerie
Tarasuk, Sharon Kirkpatrick and Sandra Fitzpatrick of the Department of
Nutritional Sciences at the University of Toronto gave a presentation
on "Using CCHS 2.2 to Describe Nutrition Disparities in Canada."
c) Brown Bag Lunch
Talk
Our latest Brown Bag Lunch Series talk was given by Charles Jones,
Department of Sociology, University of Toronto. His talk on
October 10th 2007 was titled "Effects of Maternal Smoking While
Pregnant on Child Outcomes on Adolescence: Results from a prospective
national longitudinal survey."
3) The Toronto
RDC’s Datasets
The following are some of the core RDC Program datasets available to
RDC Researchers.
Aboriginal People’s Survey (APS) 2001
The Aboriginal Peoples Survey (APS) provides data on the social and
economic conditions of Aboriginal people in Canada. Its specific
purpose was to identify the needs of Aboriginal people focusing on
issues such as health, language, employment, income, schooling,
housing, and mobility. The survey was designed and implemented in
partnership with national Aboriginal organizations.
Census of Population – 1996 and 2001
The Census of Population data file consists of responses to the census
long form. For each census, two questionnaires are given: the
short form and the long form. The short form contains seven
questions: the respondent’s name, sex, age, marital and common-law
status, family and household relationships and mother tongue. The long
form, given to 1 in 5 households, includes the seven questions from the
short questionnaire plus 52 additional questions, including a question
on religion and new questions on birthplace of parents and language
spoken at work. The RDCs now house data from the census long form.
The National Longitudinal Survey of
Children and Youth (NLSCY)
The NLSCY follows the development and well-being of Canadian children
from birth to adulthood. It currently consists of 6 cycles with
surveys administered every two years.
The National Population Health Survey
(NPHS)
The NPHS is a longitudinal survey which collects information related to
the health of the Canadian population and related socio-demographic
information. The NPHS currently consists of 6 cycles with surveys
administered every two years.
Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS)
The main objective of the CCHS is to provide timely, consistent,
cross-sectional estimates of health determinants, health status,
dietary intake, and health system utilization across Canada. The
CCHS is a sample survey with a cross-sectional design. There are
presently 3 cycles of the CCHS available, each with a different
research focus.
The Survey of Labour and Income
Dynamics (SLID)
The SLID is a multi-panel longitudinal survey conducted every
year. The main objective of the SLID is to study the economic
well-being of Canadians over time. It incorporates changes in
paid work, family make-up, receipt of government transfers and other
factors.
Other datasets include the Ethnic
Diversity Survey (EDS), the Longitudinal
Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC), the Youth in Transition Survey (YITS),
the Participation and Activity
Limitation Survey (PALS), the Workplace
and Employee Survey (WES), the National
Graduates Survey (NGS), and the Canadian
General Social Surveys (GSS).
The RDC Program’s listing of core datasets is always available
at: http://www.statcan.ca/english/rdc/whatdata.htm
4) Our Hours of
Operation
The hours of operation of the Toronto RDC are 9:00am to 6:00pm
Monday-Friday. On some days, the Toronto RDC may have to close at
5pm due to analyst availability.
Our hours, including any relevant closures, are always available at: http://sites.utoronto.ca/rdc/hours.html
5) Health Reports
Re-launched
Health Reports is Statistics Canada’s peer-reviewed journal for
discoveries in population health and health services research. Health
Reports publishes original research on diverse topics related to
understanding and improving the health of populations and the delivery
of health care. The journal welcomes submissions based on analyses of
national/provincial surveys or national/provincial administrative
databases, as well as results of international comparative health
research. Health Reports furthermore encourages the sharing of
methodological information among those engaged in the analysis of
health surveys or administrative databases. Published monthly
electronically and quarterly in print by the Health Information and
Research Division of Statistics Canada, Health Reports articles are
indexed in the biomedical journal online database MEDLINE/PubMed and
are positioned for widespread media uptake through release in
Statistics Canada’s Daily.
You can find the newly re-launched journal Health Reports at: http://www.statcan.ca/healthreports
6) York University’s
Summer Program in Data Analysis (SPIDA)
Multilevel Models and Structural Equation Models in Longitudinal Data
Analysis
June 17-25, 2008
York's Summer Program in Data Analysis (SPIDA) is an eight-day series
of intensive lectures and workshops designed to train social science
researchers in the theory and practice of multilevel [or mixed] models
and structural equation models, as they are applied to longitudinal
data, typically generated by panel surveys.
In longitudinal applications of multilevel models, temporal
trajectories, for example a sequence of health measurements over time,
are conceptualized as “nested” within each individual survey
respondent. Characterizing the sequence with one or more parameters, we
can ask whether the trajectory shows improvement, decline or stability,
and how this is related to a person’s age, income and other personal
characteristics. Not only do multilevel models allow temporal
trajectories to be parameterized in a very flexible way, measurements
need not be taken at the same time or equally often for each
individual, and missing data are easily accommodated. Finally, by
extending the model to more than two “levels”, it is possible to
systematically measure the effects of groupings of individuals, for
example in families, neighbourhoods or communities. This part of SPIDA
will be presented by Professor Suzanne Graham of the University of New
Hampshire [June 18-21].
The second topic of this year's SPIDA is structural equation models
(“SEMs”, the application of which to panel data is often described as
the analysis of “growth curves,” even though what is being measured can
exhibit any pattern of change over time. SEMs combine ideas of “path
analysis,” developed by Sewall Wright in the 1920s to describe causal
relationships, and factor analysis, developed in the 1930s to
conceptualize “traits”, measured imperfectly by a number of “items”,
usually in some kind of questionnaire or test. While SEMs have less
flexibility in characterizing temporal trajectories than multilevel
models, they have a unique ability to analyze temporal trajectories in
the context of complex causal relations. Also, it is usual for panel
surveys to provide measurements at discrete intervals, which produces
data appropriate for SEMs. Another advantage of SEMs is that they are
now a “mature” technique, in continuous development since the initial
work by Jöreskog and Sörbom in the late 1960s.
This part of SPIDA will be presented by Professor David Flora of York
University [June 23 - 25].
A typical day in the Program consists of a morning lecture, with a
related computer lab session in the afternoon. Computing will be done
in SAS because of its flexibility and the availability of support in
most social science research environments. For non-SAS users, the first
day of SPIDA [June 17] is a one-day SAS Workshop taught by Mirka
Ondrack and Nikolai Slobodianik of the Institute for Social Research’s
Statistical Consulting Service. Most days also include a lunch-time
speaker who will present an interesting application of the techniques
being taught during that session.
Further details about the Program, including a complete timetable and
course descriptions, as well as information about program fees,
residence accommodations, and the application process are provided at
our web-site:
http://www.isr.yorku.ca/spida2008/index.html
The DEADLINE for applications is April 11, 2008. Because of high demand
and the limited space available in the Program, it is necessary to
select among applicants. Selection will be based on applicants'
previous experience in data analysis, as well as their statements of
interest, but an effort will be made to represent all geographic
regions and social science research interests. Applicants will be
informed whether they have secured a place in the Program by April 25,
2008.
SPIDA is intended for faculty, researchers and graduate and
undergraduate students at Canadian universities, researchers and policy
analysts in both public and not-for-profit organizations, and data
librarians.
Full-time students are eligible for a modest fee bursary. Some
financial support is also available for applicants who live outside the
Greater Toronto Area to help cover the costs of travel and
accommodation. SPIDA is funded by the Canadian Initiative on Social
Statistics, a co-operative project of the Social Sciences and
Humanities Research Council of Canada and Statistics Canada.
For further inquiries about the Program, please contact Dr. Bryn
Greer-Wootten via spida@yorku.ca
7) Conferences
a) Statistics Canada
Socio-economic Conference, May 5th and 6th, 2008
The organizing committee of the STC Socio-economic conference is
pleased to inform you that this year our annual conference will be held
May 5th and 6th at the Ottawa Congress Centre. This conference
provides an unparalleled opportunity for analysts to share ideas and
learn about the research of others. This year's conference
highlights a number of keynote speakers on topics important to Canadian
public policy, including international economic and financial issues,
family-work balance, taxes and oil sands as well as the System of
National Accounts. They include John Murray, Deputy Governor at the
Bank of Canada, Shelley Phipps of the University of Dalhousie, Duncan
McDowall of the University of Carleton, and André Plourde of the
University of Alberta. In addition a series of State of the Art
Lectures on emerging policy issues, the best analytical methods, and
new data will be given by experts.
Please visit the conference web site at http://www.statcan.ca/english/conferences/socioeconomic2008/index.htm
for the full program.
b) 6th Annual
Statistics Canada RDC program conference, October 17th and 18th, 2008
Call for Papers -- Comings and Goings: Migration, Policy and Society
The Statistics Canada Research Data Centre (RDC) Program invites
researchers from any disciplinary field to present their findings at
its sixth annual conference. The theme of the conference is migration,
both international and internal. The Carleton Ottawa Outaouais Local
(COOL) RDC will host the conference at the University of Ottawa. Barry
Chiswick of the University of Illinois-Chicago will give a keynote
address on current issues in the economics of immigration. Quantitative
research that addresses a wide array of questions relating to migration
is particularly welcomed. Topics could include:
* Economic, linguistic and residential integration of international
immigrants
* The effect of international/internal mobility on child outcomes
* Variations in health status according to ethnic background/country of
birth
* The impact of migration on the economies of home and host
regions/countries
* Historical approaches to population flows
* Demographic, socio-economic, religious and cultural specificities of
different immigrant groups
* Spatial analysis of migratory patterns
* Inter-regional mobility in Canada or abroad
Only research that focuses on migration issues will be considered and
priority will be given to work with clear policy implications. Graduate
students of all disciplines are encouraged to submit abstracts.
Presentations will be in either English or French and simultaneous
translation will be provided in all sessions.
Abstracts should not exceed 300 words and must be submitted
electronically to coolrdc@uottawa.ca by May 9th, 2008. Abstracts may be submitted in either English or
French. In the correspondence, please indicate each author’s
status (such as professor, researcher, student or civil servant) and
institutional affiliation. Authors will be notified about the selection
of papers by July 11th, 2008. We will request that papers and
PowerPoint presentations be submitted by September 1st, 2008 at the
latest.
Any questions should be directed to the COOL RDC: (613) 562-5800 X 2887
or coolrdc@uottawa.ca
8) Opportunities
with Statistics Canada
a) Statistics
Canada/NICDS/MITACS Research Internships
Statistics Canada, The National Institute for Complex Data Structures
(NICDS) and MITACS announce up to three research internship positions
at the Methodology Branch within Statistics Canada. Interested Ph.D.
students who have already passed the comprehensive exams at a Canadian
university, or Postdoctoral students affiliated with a Canadian
university, are invited to send their applications (covering letter,
CV, and Application Form for Internship) by May 15, 2008 to:
Dr. Georgia Roberts
Statistics Canada
15 "J" R.H. Coats Building
Tunney's Pasture
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A OT6
Email: georgia.roberts@statcan.ca
Go to the following address to obtain an Application Form:
http://www.stats.uwaterloo.ca/~mitacs/InternshipApplicationForm.htm
Successful applicants will have the extremely valuable experience of
working at Statistics Canada in Ottawa for a period of four to six
months. The students will be involved in collaborative research with
Statistics Canada and university researchers including their own
supervisors. Research problems related to statistical methods for any
stage of a complex survey will be considered, although of particular
interest to Statistics Canada is the development of analytic tools for
analysing longitudinal data arising from complex surveys.
Some possible topics include: analysis of hierarchical survey data,
structural equation modelling of survey data, small domain inference,
analysis of duration data, and analysis of incomplete survey data. An
experienced methodologist from the Methodology Branch will be assigned
to work with each student during the stay at Statistics Canada. This
collaboration will be mainly in the form of help for the more technical
aspects of the doctoral dissertation, in helping with the handling of
the data and in interpreting the results. Doctoral advancement and
academic supervision would be the responsibility of the applicant and
the thesis-supervising professor.
For more information about the NICDS/MITACS project, “Statistical
Methods
for Complex Survey Data”, of which these internships form a part, go to:
http://www.stats.uwaterloo.ca/~mitacs
b) Post-Doctoral
Program in Health Research at Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada’s Health Information and Research Division announces
a new Post-Doctoral Program in Health Research. The program is
open to recent PhD graduates (within past 3 years) and provides
candidates an opportunity to work at Statistics Canada for 1
year. Applications must be submitted by March 31, 2008.
For more information about the program including instructions on how to
apply:
http://www.statcan.ca/english/employment/postdoc-en.htm
9) RDC Proposal
Submission Process
To access the RDC, researchers must submit a project proposal to a
review committee operating under the auspices of the Social Sciences
and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and Statistics Canada.
The proposal process is done through an on-line application system
accessible at: http://www.statcan.ca/english/rdc/application.htm
For more information on the Toronto RDC and how to apply for access,
please visit our website at: http://sites.utoronto.ca/rdc
Please note that the RDC Program facilitates the use of master data
sets. If you require public use files, please consult your local
Data Liberation Initiative (DLI) representative: http://www.statcan.ca/english/Dli/dli.htm
Once your proposal has been accepted, you will be invited to the
Toronto RDC. Here, you will receive an orientation on how
research is best conducted here, your security pass, a locker for your
project’s research materials if required, and a tour of our facilities
including a Conference Room where you can meet with your project
members and/or advisors, and our Internet Room where you are free to
check email or search for and print articles.
10) Contact Us
For further information on the Toronto RDC or on any other item in this
newsletter, please contact:
Toronto RDC
130 St. George St., Room 7032
University of Toronto
Toronto, ON
M5S 1A5
Phone: 416-946-8105
Fax: 416-946-8104
Email: toronto.rdc@utoronto.ca
Michael Baker, Academic Director
Phone: 416-946-8107
Email: baker@chass.utoronto.ca
Tina Hotton Mahony, RDC Analyst
Phone: 416-946-8108
Email: tina.hotton@utoronto.ca
Angela Prencipe, RDC Analyst
Phone: 416-946-8321
Email: toronto.rdc@utoronto.ca
Byron Lee, RDC Analyst
Phone: 416-946-8105
Email: rdc.analyst@utoronto.ca
Isobel Medel, RDC Administrative
Assistant
Email: torontordc.admin@utoronto.ca
The Toronto RDC Steering Committee may be contacted through:
Susan Murphy, RDC Manager
222 College Street
Toronto, ON
M5T 3J1
Phone: 416-978-7037
Fax: 416-978-4771
Email: susan.murphy@utoronto.ca
For further information on computing equipment and analytical software
available at the Toronto RDC, please contact:
Dave Haans, RDC Research and Computing
Consultant
Phone: 416-946-8106
Email: dave.haans@utoronto.ca