1200.0.55.004 - Country of Birth Standard, 2012, Version 1.0  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 26/09/2012  First Issue
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Collection Methods




Standard question module

There are two standard question modules for Country of Birth:
        • The question module for Detailed Data obtains the most comprehensive responses and data on Country of Birth. There are two alternatives for the question module for Detailed Data, which may be used depending on space and cost considerations:
            • Alternative one: a set of tick box selected responses and an 'Other - please specify' response category for writing a country not specified in the tick box list
            • Alternative two: a tick box for Australia and an 'Other - please specify' to write in the name of a country, if not born in Australia.

        • The question module for Minimum Data only contains the tick box options 'Australia' and 'Other country'. It does not collect detailed data on countries of birth other than Australia.
Question module for Detailed Data

Alternative one

This standard question module is designed to collect detailed data on Country of Birth and is recommended for household based surveys, statistical and administrative collections.

The applicable tick boxes for the variables Country of Birth of Person, Country of Birth of Father and Country of Birth of Mother are included in this Country of Birth standard.

        • The standard question module for obtaining detailed data, alternative one, for the variable Country of Birth of Person follows:

Q1. In which country [were you] [was the person] [was (name)] born?



Australiaq
Englandq
New Zealand q
India q
Italyq
Vietnam q
Philippines q
South Africaq
Scotland q
Malaysiaq
Other - please specify........
        • The standard question module for obtaining detailed data, alternative one, for the variable Country of Birth of Father follows:

Q1. In which country was [your] [the person's] [(name)'s] father born ?

Australiaq
Englandq
New Zealand q
India q
Italyq
Vietnam q
Philippines q
South Africaq
Scotland q
Malaysiaq
Other - please specify........
        • The standard question module for obtaining detailed data, alternative one, for the variable Country of Birth of Mother follows:

Q1. In which country was [your] [the person's] [(name)'s] mother born ?



Australiaq
Englandq
New Zealand q
India q
Italyq
Vietnam q
Philippines q
South Africaq
Scotland q
Malaysiaq
Other - please specify........

The countries in this module are included primarily on the basis of their statistical significance within Australia. Although China is a country in which a large proportion of Australia's population were born, it is excluded from the list because it is not the only country in which 'Chinese' people may be born and, if included, may bias responses. For example, by including China in the list, people born in Hong Kong (a Special Administrative Region of China) may simply tick the China box option, when they should specify Hong Kong in the 'other' option.

The list of countries provided with the question modules for the variables Country of Birth of Person, Country of Birth of Father and Country of Birth of Mother have been taken from the top ten most reported Census 2011 responses for Country of Birth of Person.

Alternative two

The standard question module, alternative two, for obtaining detailed data for the variable Country of Birth of Person follows:

      Q1. In which country [were you] [was the person] [was (name)] born ?
Australia q
Other - please specify: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The standard question module, alternative two, for obtaining detailed data for the variable Country of Birth of Father follows:
      Q1. In which country was [your] [the person's] [(name)'s] father born ?
Australia q
Other - please specify: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The standard question module, alternative two, for obtaining detailed data for the variable Country of Birth of Mother follows:

      Q1. In which country was [your] [the person's] [(name)'s] mother born ?
Australia q
Other - please specify: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Question module for minimum data

The standard question module for Minimum Data for the variable Country of Birth of Person follows:

      Q1. In which country [were you] [was the person] [was (name)] born ?
Australia q
Other Country q

The standard question module for Minimum Data for the variable Country of Birth of Father follows:
      Q1. In which country was [your] [the person's] [(name)'s] father born ?
Australia q
Other Country q

The standard question module for Minimum Data for the variable Country of Birth of Mother follows:
      Q1. In which country was [your] [the person's] [(name)'s] mother born ?
Australia q
Other Country q

This question provides no information regarding the range of countries of birth. It is suitable for statistical and administrative collections, which have space constraints or where there is no requirement for detailed data on Country of Birth.

Each alternative to the question module may be accompanied by a brief explanatory note giving detailed instructions about how to answer the Country of Birth questions. The explanatory note can be included with the chosen question module or in supplementary documentation. The explanatory note is in Appendix A.


Standard input categories

Input categories for Detailed Data

The base level units of the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC) (cat. no. 1269.0), represented by their four digit codes, are the standard input categories for the Country of Birth question module for Detailed Data.

Input categories for Minimum Data

The standard input categories for the Country of Birth question modules for Minimum Data are:

            • Australia
            • Other country