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Improving Public Understanding of Economic Statistics: Presenting Labour Market Statistics to the Public

Author

Listed:
  • Claire Cathro

  • Johnny Runge

  • Jordan Whitwell-Mak
  • Katharine Stockland
  • Nida Broughton
  • Jasmin Rostron

Abstract

Previous research has found that the UK public feel economics and economic statistics are communicated in a way that is difficult to understand. Producers of economic statistics primarily write for technical audiences, such as policy makers and economists, and not the general public. This research therefore explores how the Office for National Statistics (ONS) could potentially communicate statistics about the labour market directly to the general population, with the aim to improve public comprehension, engagement, and trust. We developed alternative versions of the ONS Labour Market Overview, a summary of the latest labour market statistics released monthly on the ONS website, that were designed to be easier to read and understand for non-technical audiences. We then tested these summaries with the general public through an online randomised controlled trial (RCT) with 3,849 adults from across the UK in January and February 2022. We found that the alternative summaries outperformed the control version on comprehension, engagement and trust. These results show that relatively small changes to how the statistics are presented or discussed can result in improvements in public comprehension of, engagement with, and trust in economic statistics - all critical outcomes for a national statistical agency like the ONS.

Suggested Citation

  • Claire Cathro & Johnny Runge & Jordan Whitwell-Mak & Katharine Stockland & Nida Broughton & Jasmin Rostron, 2022. "Improving Public Understanding of Economic Statistics: Presenting Labour Market Statistics to the Public," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2022-26, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    • Handle: RePEc:nsr:escoed:escoe-dp-2022-26
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Johnny Runge & Nathan Hudson-Sharp, 2020. "Public Understanding of Economics and Economic Statistics," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Occasional Papers ESCOE-OP-03, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    2. Johnny Runge & Anna Killick, 2021. "What can Economists Learn from Public Perspectives on the Economy and Economic Statistics?," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Occasional Papers ESCOE-OP-04, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    3. Williamson, Maureen R. & Wearing, Alexander J., 1996. "Lay people's cognitive models of the economy," Journal of Economic Psychology, Elsevier, vol. 17(1), pages 3-38, February.
    4. Johnny Runge, 2021. "Communicating Data Uncertainty on GDP and Unemployment: Interviews with the UK Public," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2021-07, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    5. Elisa Darriet & Sacha Bourgeois-Gironde, 2015. "Why lay social representations of the economy should count in economics," Mind & Society: Cognitive Studies in Economics and Social Sciences, Springer;Fondazione Rosselli, vol. 14(2), pages 245-258, November.
    6. Bholat, David & Broughton, Nida & Ter Meer, Janna & Walczak, Eryk, 2019. "Enhancing central bank communications using simple and relatable information," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 1-15.
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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • D90 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - General
    • C91 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Individual Behavior

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