Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

Bringing Big Data to the Poverty Debate

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by

James A. Bacon
in ,

Here is a positive development in state government that will never get the attention it deserves: The Virginia Department of Social Services is joining four other state agencies in contributing data to the Virginia Longitudinal Data System (VLDS).

VLDS is a system for accessing data maintained by the Virginia Department of Education, the State Council for Higher Education in Virginia, the Virginia Employment Commission and the community college system. The program allows researchers to gain insight into what public policy initiatives will most cost-effectively prepare Virginians for a modern, 21st-century workforce.

The Department of Social Services brings new data to the mix and allows researchers to ask new questions, such as:

  • How does participation in public assistance programs (e.g. child care, WIC, Head Start, SNAP, TANF, Medicaid) in Virginia impact school readiness, school achievement, health, family cohesion, future employment and wages?
  • What is the return on investment from public assistance programs in Virginia? Are there patterns that suggest different program delivery models that may yield greater effectiveness or cost savings?
  • What are the most critical health, safety and community factors that contribute to children’s school readiness and school achievement?
  • How does investment in early childhood health and education impact future need for and cost of public assistance?
  • Are participants in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) work skills training programs employed and earning a living wage one or two years after completing the program? Which work skills programs have the greatest success rates?

These are all excellent questions! I am heartened to know that people in Virginia state government are asking them.

So many debates about public policy issues occur in a data-free vacuum. People advance arguments based upon preconceptions and ideology. VLDS holds out the promise of allowing us to reach conclusions based on hard data. This is one wonk who looks forward to the research coming from this initiative — even if the conclusions contradict some of my own pet theories.

— JAB

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5 responses to “Bringing Big Data to the Poverty Debate”

  1. larryg Avatar
    larryg

    I support the data approach but there are pitfalls – all too common these days – where people truly don’t understand the data and are more than willing to use it selectively to prove a point while ignoring the data that contradicts the point or at least ought to cause more analysis

    we have problems confusing causation verses correlation and we have purposeful – knowing – misrepresentation coming from sources that have developed a reputation for propagandizing it.

    It’s created a brand new activity that we never saw 10 years ago – Politifact.

    Mr. Gruber”s comments (rightly) got himself and Obama into trouble but the harsh truth is that there is indeed a lot of ignorance – we all are – but not all seek to get the truth – especially if it satisfies their own biases.

    If you asked many folks if they supported tax breaks and subsidies for health care including the govt forcing the insurance companies to cover pre-existing and to require certain things to be provided – they’d jump on ObamaCare but totally be ignorant that the govt does exactly the same thing on employer-provided and Medicare.

    and there is danger – because if the opponents go to court and get the govt out of health care – it may well – also include employer-provided !

    Big data is actually a liability now days – because most people are too lazy to really seek the truth but instead gravitate to the big data that supports their own ideology and ignore the big data that contradicts it.

    Big data itself does not truly resolve issues – it just provides more opportunities to create even more political churn and polarization.

    and .. don’t like 97% of climate scientists looking at big data and proclaiming climate changes? No problem. Just turn it into a massive worldwide conspiracy and ignore it.

    want to make a point about the racial divide? No problem just look at the state level and ignore the schools within a school district – data.

    want to deny the impact of the MedicaAid Expansion? No problem – believe it when the military provides jobs for Virginia but disbelieve it that MedicAid would also provide jobs… same Fed govt, same money infusion.to two different things – one is a good thing and the other is a bad thing.

    My view is that – you have to want – to seek the truth.. and that means as Jim said at the end ” even if the data seems to contradict your own theories.

  2. NoVaShenandoah Avatar
    NoVaShenandoah

    It is good to gather the data, absolutely. However policy should be based on INFORMATION, which is derived from the data. One of the key problems is that too many want to impose their preconceptions on what the information should be.

    1. larryg Avatar
      larryg

      http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/Fake-News/

    2. NoVaShenandoah Avatar
      NoVaShenandoah

      Thank you. An excellent link. It is ‘data’ that Sarah Palin says that (1) she can see Russia from her house; (2) Mexicans should be put in boats to be deported.

      It is ‘information’ when you conclude that she is clueless and an insult that she was the VP candidate.

      😉

  3. Malcolm Baldwin Avatar
    Malcolm Baldwin

    There’s really nothing but benefit from getting data to answer these critical problems, and the more data the better. Whether people want it, or understand it, present different problems. But without the data we’re flying blind or, worse, guided by prejudice and ideology. I trust Jim to absorb and present these data when they’re available.

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