All Outputs (77)

Enabling data linkage to maximise the value of public health research data: Summary report (2015)
Report
Green, E., Ritchie, F., Mytton, J., Webber, D. J., Deave, T., Montgomery, A., …Chowdhury, S. (2015). Enabling data linkage to maximise the value of public health research data: Summary report

Summary for the Wellcome Trust report on Enabling Data Linkage, including example case studies, key findings, and recommendations

Enabling data linkage to maximise the value of public health research data (2015)
Report
Green, E., Ritchie, F., Mytton, J., Webber, D. J., Deave, T., Montgomery, A., …Chowdhury, S. (2015). Enabling data linkage to maximise the value of public health research data

This project was commissioned by The Wellcome Trust on behalf of the Public Health Research Data Forum. The project aimed to identify the gains to public health research from linking existing data sources, the opportunities in and barriers to such da... Read More about Enabling data linkage to maximise the value of public health research data.

The measurement of apprentice pay: Interim report (2015)
Report
Drew, H., Ritchie, F., & Veliziotis, M. (2015). The measurement of apprentice pay: Interim report

This is the Interim Report on the LPC's project to review the measurement of Apprentice Pay. It concentrates largely on methodological issues, including a detailed analysis of the 2012 Apprentive Pay Survey; most of the issues raised were addressed i... Read More about The measurement of apprentice pay: Interim report.

Understanding official data sources: Final report for the low pay commission (2014)
Report
Ritchie, F., Whittard, D., & Dawson, C. (2014). Understanding official data sources: Final report for the low pay commission

The paper is split into three main sections: a review of existing data sources; an analysis of characteristics of the main reference datasets used for the production of research and official statistics; and an investigation into the imputation code u... Read More about Understanding official data sources: Final report for the low pay commission.

Access to sensitive data: Satisfying objectives rather than constraints (2014)
Journal Article
Ritchie, F. (2014). Access to sensitive data: Satisfying objectives rather than constraints. Journal of Official Statistics, 30(3), 533-545. https://doi.org/10.2478/JOS-2014-0033

The argument for access to sensitive unit-level data produced within government is usually framed in terms of risk and the legal responsibility to maintain confidentiality. This article argues that the framing of the question may restrict the set of... Read More about Access to sensitive data: Satisfying objectives rather than constraints.

International access to restricted data: A principles-based standards approach (2013)
Journal Article
Ritchie, F. (2013). International access to restricted data: A principles-based standards approach. Statistical Journal of the IAOS, 29(4), 289-300. https://doi.org/10.3233/SJI-130780

Cross-border access to restricted government microdata for research has made relatively little progress. Recent developments are notable as exceptions. This paper argues that the situation is made more complex by the lack of a common general frame of... Read More about International access to restricted data: A principles-based standards approach.

Effective researcher management (2009)
Presentation / Conference
Desai, T., & Ritchie, F. (2009, December). Effective researcher management. Paper presented at UNECE Worksession on Statistical Data Confidentiality 2009, Bilbao, Spain

National Statistical Institutes [NSIs] are increasingly investigating new ways of providing access to confidential microdata for research purposes. These innovations are being driven by the requirement for NSIs to ensure the best possible return for... Read More about Effective researcher management.

How do knowledge brokers work? The case of WERS
Working Paper
Drew, H., Ritchie, F., & King, A. (2014). How do knowledge brokers work? The case of WERS. Bristol

A resource-based view of organizations suggests that internal knowledge is amongst the most important sources of competitive advantage. Regardless of whether these ideas are exaggerated, it is not necessary to buy into them all to accept the signific... Read More about How do knowledge brokers work? The case of WERS.

Operationalising ‘safe statistics’: The case of linear regression
Working Paper
Ritchie, F. (2014). Operationalising ‘safe statistics’: The case of linear regression. Bristol

The recent growth in research access to confidential government microdata has prompted the development of more general 'output-based statistical disclosure control' (OSDC) methods which go beyond tabular protection. Central to OSDC is the concept of... Read More about Operationalising ‘safe statistics’: The case of linear regression.

Addressing the human factor in data access: Incentive compatibility, legitimacy and cost-effectiveness in public data resources
Working Paper
Ritchie, F., & Welpton, R. (2014). Addressing the human factor in data access: Incentive compatibility, legitimacy and cost-effectiveness in public data resources. Bristol

Traditional models of incentivising people suggest that positive incentives are more effective than negative ones. We argue that in data access the opposite can be true, as the assumptions made at the design stage can fundamentally change the user en... Read More about Addressing the human factor in data access: Incentive compatibility, legitimacy and cost-effectiveness in public data resources.

Resistance to change in government: Risk, inertia and incentives
Working Paper
Ritchie, F. (2014). Resistance to change in government: Risk, inertia and incentives. Bristol

There is a popular impression that governments are resistant to change and innovation, and that this is due to a combination of overly bureaucratic processes and a culture of risk aversion. It is debatable that this is well-founded, theoretically or... Read More about Resistance to change in government: Risk, inertia and incentives.

Can a change in attitudes improve effective access to administrative data for research?
Working Paper
Ritchie, F. (2016). Can a change in attitudes improve effective access to administrative data for research?. Bristol, UK

The re-use of administrative data for social research holds great potential. From a privacy perspective, administrative data present some additional challenges, including lack of consent, existence of matching databases, and the association with data... Read More about Can a change in attitudes improve effective access to administrative data for research?.

Operationalising principles-based output statistical disclosure control
Other
Ritchie, F., & Welpton, R. (2015). Operationalising principles-based output statistical disclosure control

This document is intended to help support staff and managers in research environments to implement principles-based output statistical disclosure control of results generated from confidential sources of data. It contains extensive discussion on the... Read More about Operationalising principles-based output statistical disclosure control.

Measuring non-compliance with minimum wages
Working Paper
Ritchie, F., Veliziotis, M., Drew, H., & Whittard, D. (2016). Measuring non-compliance with minimum wages. Bristol, UK

Many countries have a statutory minimum wage for employees. There is a strong policy interest in knowing the degree of compliance with the law. Quantitative analysis is ideally suited to this, and many countries have rich datasets for employment rese... Read More about Measuring non-compliance with minimum wages.

User-focused threat identification for anonymised microdata
Working Paper
Hafner, H., Lenz, R., & Ritchie, F. (2015). User-focused threat identification for anonymised microdata. Bristol

When producing anonymised microdata for research, national statistics institutes (NSIs) identify a number of 'risk scenarios' of how intruders might seek to attack a confidential dataset. This paper argues that the strategy used to identify confident... Read More about User-focused threat identification for anonymised microdata.

Five Safes: Designing data access for research
Working Paper
Desai, T., Ritchie, F., & Welpton, R. (2016). Five Safes: Designing data access for research

What is the best way of managing access to sensitive data? This is not a straightforward question, as it involves the interaction of legal, technical, statistical and, above all, human components to produce a solution. This paper introduces a modelli... Read More about Five Safes: Designing data access for research.

Hellenic statistical authority mission on microdata access: Final report
Report
Ritchie, F. Hellenic statistical authority mission on microdata access: Final report

A mission was convened to review current data access practices at the Hellenic Statistical Authority and make recommendations for future development. The resulting report defines a complete data access strategy for the Greek NSI. The report uses the... Read More about Hellenic statistical authority mission on microdata access: Final report.