Must we throw household data in the dustbin ? Marc PILON IRD / UR105 « Savoirs et développement »

FAMILY AND HOUSEHOLD… DIFFERENT REALITIES Family : a concept which is not very clear- cut Household : a tool for data collection transformed into a unit of analysis

WHAT CAN BE DONE WITH HOUSEHOLD DATA ? Despite different criticisms of the household concept, quite often adequate analysis may produce pertinent results Some observations –the kinship link data are more and more neglected in censuses and surveys –quite poor typologies –weak knowledge about the characteristics of old people

Illustrations of what can be made with the example of schooling Inadequate School Statistics Under-used demographic Data (census, surveys) Non school data which have a rich analytical potential…

some examples… Women Heads of Household Appear to Support Schooling More than Men Do Importance of School Migration and the Ambiguity of Fosterage vs. Schooling

Distribution of male students by relation to the Household Head, for each level of education. Burkina Faso, Census of 1996

% of Children 7-12 in school by status in the household, according to sex and area of residence, for Provinces of Burkina Faso, Census of 1996

some examples… Household Schooling at the Level

Indices of Schooling for Children Aged 7-12 at the Household Level, by Sex of the Head and Type of Residence. Burkina Faso, Census of 1996

IN CONCLUSION… Should we throw away all studies we have made using household data ? Censuses and classical surveys, based on the household unit, will continue for a long time  so, we have to think how to best analyse these data  but recognise their limitations

IN CONCLUSION… How to go beyond the Household ? –Take account of the phenomenon of non cohabitation : On Household questionnaires, collect information about non-resident members, and give them a special code for the residential status  for children… Percentage of HH children at school, by age group and depending of their residential status AgeMaleFemale GroupResidentElsewhereResidentElsewhere ,532,938,530, ,129, ,4108,7

IN CONCLUSION… How to go beyond the Household ? –Take account of the phenomenon of non cohabitation between spouses…  For married men, distinguish the total number of wives and the number of wives living with their husband  For married women who are heads of household, important to have information about their husband

IN CONCLUSION… How to go beyond the Household ? –We need specific quantitative studies, in order to show the problems introduced by classical household concept, their implications for social, economic measures… –Carry out specific surveys based on an appropriate unit, depending on the subject, the objective of the research