Making Sense of the Census

Observations of the 2001 Enumeration in Remote Aboriginal Australia

D.F. Martin

F. Morphy

W.G. Sanders

J. Taylor

This book is copyright. Apart from fair dealings for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Inquiries should be directed to the publisher, Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia.

2004

Table of Contents

Foreword

Lists of figures and tables

Abbreviations and acronyms

Abbreviations for kin terms (chapter 3)

Acknowledgements

1. The context for observation


Out of sight, out of mind: remote census counts before 1971
The referendum of 1967 and beyond
The development of special enumeration procedures
Current practice
Data quality
Departures from standard procedures

2. Counting the Wik: the 2001 Census in Aurukun, western Cape York Peninsula

Introduction
Pre-census preparation
Proposed collection methodology
Conduct of the census
Responses to the census questions
Completion of the count
Conclusion

3. When systems collide: the 2001 Census at a Northern Territory outstation

Introduction
Putting the census team in place
From training to doing
The enumeration proceeds
The interviews
A complete enumeration?
The 'household' and its structure
Factors influencing the quality of the data
Conclusion

4. Adapting to circumstance: the 2001 Census in the Alice Springs town camps

Introduction
Background
Getting going
Twelve days in August: building the effort
The decision to focus on household forms
Analysis and policy implications for census collection
The Indigenous Enumeration Strategy: how special, how successful, how necessary?

5. The indigenous Enumeration Strategy: an overview assessment and ideas for improvement

Who to count
How to count
What to ask
Conclusion

Appendix A. Dwelling Check List, 2001 Census

Appendix B. Special Indigenous Household Form, 2001 Census

Bibliography

Notes on the authors

CAEPR Research Monograph Series

List of Figures

1.1. Procedural structure of the Indigenous Enumeration Strategy, 1991 Census
2.1. Example of a 'cluster' of households, Aurukun
3.1. Kin relationships between people designated as 'person 1' for each occupied dwelling, community A, Census 2001
3.2. The kin connections of the community A enumerators, 2001 Census
3.3. Siblings and cousins in the Anglo-Celtic and local Indigenous systems
3.4. Children in the Anglo-Celtic and local Indigenous systems
3.5. The Anglo-Celtic term mother and the local Indigenous term M compared systems
3.6. Dwelling J: actual relationships of usual residents systems
3.7. Dwelling K: actual relationships of usual residents and visitor
3.8. Anglo-Celtic kinship terminology and the nuclear family
3.9. Local Indigenous kinship terminology and the intersection of lineages
4.1. Alice Springs Community Living Areas, with hand annotations of town camp CD numbers

List of Tables

2.1. Family types, Aurukun, 2001 Census
2.2. Language spoken at home and English proficiency, Aurukun, 2001 Census
2.3. Religious affiliation, Aurukun, 2001 Census
3.1. Details of dwelling J as recorded on the SIHF, 2001 Census