The GOSAP Social Indicators Project

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The GOSAPSocial Indicators Project

• Collaborating with Data
• to Enhance
• Virginias Prevention Efforts

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Why are we doing the Social Indicators Project?

• The Social Indicators Project supports 7 of the
  Core Elements developed by the SIG Advisory
  Council
• Evidence-based Practice
• Promoting the use of, and building the capacity
  for, evidence-based practice
• Environmental Change
• Increasing the focus on the shared environment
  related to community norms, regulations, policies
  and data collection

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Why are we doing the Social Indicators Project?

• Collaboration
• Establishing organized prevention partnerships at
  the state and local levels to foster consistent
  planning
• Resources Development
• Provides data to justify securing a consistent
  and efficiently integrated funding stream for
  substance abuse prevention efforts

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Why are we doing the Social Indicators Project?

• Legislative Issues
• Provides data to enact public policies that
  clearly reflect what research shows to be
  effective in promoting successful outcomes in
  substance abuse prevention
• Advocacy
• Provides data to foster prevention advocacy
  development at the local and state levels
• Public Awareness
• Provides data to heighten awareness of prevention
  goals, messages and initiatives at the local,
  state and national levels

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What is Virginias Social Indicator Project?

• Common language
• We are seeking agreement from state agencies and
  interested others on what social indicators
  should be
• accepted by all agencies in grant/funding
  applications and plans and
• routinely collected and posted on the GOSAP
  Website.
• We are seeking common definitions for all social
  indicators to be used.

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What is Virginias Social Indicator Project?

• Data base
• We are working to collect agreed upon social
  indicators into a web-based data base
• city/county level data at a minimum
• statewide comparison
• multiple years
• raw data, percentages, rates, ranks
• updated annually

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What is Virginias Social Indicator Project?

• Youth Survey Data
• Data from the existing Youth Survey and the
  Tobacco Use Survey also will be included
• The Current limited number of respondents does
  not allow complete reporting at the city/county
  level.

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What is Virginias Social Indicator Project?

• Training
• Training materials for how to use the data
  contained in the data base will be developed and
  should be available in a variety of venues,
  potentially
• GOSAP sponsored Prevention Basics training
• State training and technical assistance
  professionals and
• Possible contracted trainers.

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Where we want to go next

• Benchmarking
• We hope to be able to use the social indicator
  data to set benchmarks for where we want to be,
  statewide, on prevention initiatives.
• Collaborating together, we can target our efforts
  and improve the well-being of children and youth
  in Virginia.

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Where we want to go next

• Evidence-based Programs
• We also want to promote the use of evidence-based
  programs statewide by
• providing information on practices that work
• targeting resources to these practices and
• disseminating on Virginias evidence-based
  programs though the GOSAP Website

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Where we want to go next

• Making it all work together
• Data
• Collected
• How to analyze and understand it
• How to tell the story and market it
• Making research accessible
• What outcomes can be changed?
• What is most effective in making them change?
• What degree of change can you make?10

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What are Social Indicators?

• Social Indicators are measures of change in
  conditions or behaviors.
• They can tell us about the outcome of a policy,
  project or effort (policy/criterion) about
  peoples subjective feelings of well-being (life
  satisfaction/happiness) or document the state of
  conditions or behaviors over time (descriptive).
  1
• They are selected specifically to relate to our
  values and goals.
• They frequently are reported as rates or
  percentages so that they can be compared over
  time. 7

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Why are Social Indicators Important?

• Social Indicators are important because they
  provide a scientific basis for informing policy.
• Social Indicators provide real data, rather than
  anecdote, to inform our discussions and
  decisions.4
• Social Indicators can inform program development
  and administration.
• Social Indicators can inform resource allocation.6

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What can Social Indicators do?

• Describe
• Social Indicators can describe the state or
  condition of an area of interest.
• Social Indicators can show trends, both positive
  and negative, in those areas of interest.
• Social Indicators can be viewed for separate
  parts of the population (such as particular
  income levels or races) to help us target
  resources.2

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What can Social Indicators do?

• Monitor
• Social Indicators can be looked at over time,
  highlighting areas of concern that may need
  special attention or areas of improvement in
  which were doing well.
• Social Indicators can be available quickly to
  improve and inform policy and efforts.
• Social Indicators can inform policy to promote
  positive improvement.2
• Social Indicators can be collected on all members
  of the population affected by a policy or
  program.

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What can Social Indicators do?

• Set Goals
• Social Indicators can be used to identify a
  baseline for where we are and a benchmark for
  where we want to be.
• Social Indicators can reflect the values of the
  society that uses them. 2
• Social Indicators can be used to help coordinate
  and manage activities across agencies and
  organizations.6

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What can Social Indicators do?

• Hold Accountable
• Social Indicators can be used to document the
  outcomes of policies, projects and efforts.
• Changes in the indicators may be sanctioned
  negatively or positively. 2
• Social Indicators can be used to identify
  promising (or non-promising) practices for more
  further evaluation.6
• Note social indicators do not tell us the
  underlying causes for changeso the reason for
  change may not be under the control of those
  being held accountable. 2

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What can Social Indicators not do?

• Social Indicators are no substitute for sound
  evaluation.
• Social Indicators do not explain the causes of
  change, they simply show change.
• Social Indicators do not identify all the factors
  that may have influenced change. 2

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What makes a goodSocial Indicator?

• Social Indicators need to measure the correct
  population.
• If youre identifying issues for girls, use only
  age appropriate girls.
• Social Indicators need to measure the correct
  geographical level.
• If youre looking at your locality, use local
  level (not national or state level data.
• Social Indicators need to accurately measure what
  you are trying to change.
• If you are trying to promote change in families,
  you need to measure outcomes for both children
  and parents.2
• Social Indicators should be grounded in
  scientific research and theory.10

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How do I choose whichSocial Indicators to use?

• Indicators should be comprehensive they should
  measure a range of conditions and behaviors such
  as health, mental health, education, etc.
• Indicators should be age-appropriate measures
  should be included for pre-school (0-5),
  school-aged (6-11) and adolescent (12-17)
  children as they have different needs.
• Indicators should be easily understandable by the
  general public.3

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How do I choose whichSocial Indicators to use?

• Indicators should cover a range of outcomes, both
  positive and negative (risk and protective
  factors).
• Indicators should take into account the duration
  and the interaction of multiple years or factors
  that impact an outcome.
• Indicators should mean the same thing across
  different populations.3

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How do I choose whichSocial Indicators to use?

• Indicators should mean the same thing across time
  so that they will be comparable.
• Indicators should anticipate future issues so
  that they can serve as baselines for future
  years.
• Indicators should be collected with the same
  degree of scientific rigor over time.
• Indicators should be collected at various
  geographic levels (national, state, local or even
  neighborhood).3

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How do I choose whichSocial Indicators to use?

• Indicators should be economical so that the cost
  of collecting them will not interfere with their
  on-going collection.
• Indicators should reflect our values and
  goalswhat is important to usso that we can
  track our progress in meeting them.
• Indicators should be collected so that they can
  be viewed for a variety of sub-populations (ages,
  races, genders, socioeconomic levels, etc.)3

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How do I choose whichSocial Indicators to use?

• To inform policy, a system of indicators should
  include short, medium and long-term indicators.10

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How do I use Social Indicators?

• Gather Baselines
• Compile your Social Indicators and study them.
  As a community, ask yourselves some questions
• Is where we are acceptable? Is this where we
  want to be?
• Do we approve of the trend we see?
• Where will we be five years from now?5

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How do I use Social Indicators?

• Tell the Story
• Look at each indicator. Break it out by age,
  race, gender, socioeconomic status.
• Gather diverse people knowledgeable about your
  community.
• Ask them to explain the differences you see
• Why are the trends heading the way they are?
• Why are there differences between the
  sub-populations?
• What are the causes for what the indicators say?
• The answers to these questions will suggest next
  steps for you to take in policy and programs.5

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How do I use Social Indicators?

• Determine your outcomes
• Through consensus, create outcome statements for
  your community
• Examples babies will be born healthy children
  will enter school ready to learn young people
  will make smart choices, etc.
• Decide what indicators you will use to monitor
  each outcome statement.
• Set improvement goals for each outcome.11

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How do I use Social Indicators?

• Identify the Impact
• Think about the cost of not changing your
  indicators
• What will the costs be to address the issues when
  the children are older (e.g., remedial education,
  crime, teen mothers, increased welfare costs)?
• What will the social costs be? Is this what we
  want for our children and our community?
• Make the economic argument for why you need to
  address the problem indicators now. 5

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators can help you to focus your
  efforts as if creating a business plan. They
  tell you
• where you started from
• where you are now and
• where you want to be.
• They help you monitor your progress along the
  way. 9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators allow us to compare ourselves
  to others (competition). Many indicators can be
  compared with
• other neighborhoods,
• like cities or counties,
• the Commonwealth of Virginia
• other states, or even
• other countries.9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators tracked over time can show the
  cost benefit of prevention efforts.
• Track improvement in outcomes.
• Track expenditures in prevention during the same
  time.
• Track declining expenditures in reduced service
  demands.9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators, and the comparison of
  indicators, can force
• discussion,
• examination, and
• commitment to change.9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators can bring together agencies and
  groups to focus on a common goal. An indicator
  becomes
• a common focus
• a common language
• a common outcome. 9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators build confidence and support
  for your efforts.
• If people understand what you do, they are more
  likely to support you.
• Social indicators summarize complex efforts into
  understandable outcomes.
• Social indicators diffuse the politics from
  issues by showing clear, objective data for
  budgetary and policy purposes.9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators build support for funding and
  other resources.
• Outcomes tracked over time provide evidence that
  investing in prevention is a wise strategy.9

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Social Indicators as a Business Tool

• Social Indicators can help to engage the business
  community.
• Business leaders are comfortable in the world of
  social indicators because they use them daily.
• Begin to look at your social indicators as assets
  and liabilities.
• Look at your programming as business
  reinvestment, the cost of advertising or the cost
  of doing business.
• Market prevention to the business community using
  these concepts.9

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GOSAP Social Indicators Project

• For more information contact
• Susan Gholston
• Governors Office for Substance Abuse Prevention
• 804-786-9072
• Susan.gholston_at_governor.virginia.gov

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Footnotes

• 1Land, Kenneth. Social Indicators.
  http//market1.cob.vt.edu/isqols/kenlandessay.htm.
  
• 2Moore, Kristin Anderson, Brett V. Brown, with
  Harriet J. Scarupa. The Uses (and Misuses) of
  social Indicators Implications for Public
  Policy. Child Trends Research Brief.
  Publication 2003-01. Washington, D.C.
  www.childtrends.org
• Moore, Kristin Anderson. Indicators of Child
  and Family Well-Being The good, the Bad and the
  Ugly A Presentation to National Institutes of
  Health, Office of Behavioral and social Sciences
  Research. September 13, 1999. Washington, D.C.
  www.childtrends.org
• 3Moore, Kristin Anderson. Building a Better
  System of Child and Family Indicators. Child
  Trends Research Brief. Washington, D.C.
  www.childtrends.org
• Moore, Kristin Anderson. Indicators of Child
  and Family Well-Being The good, the Bad and the
  Ugly A Presentation to National Institutes of
  Health, Office of Behavioral and social Sciences
  Research. September 13, 1999. Washington, D.C.
  www.childtrends.org
• 4Moore, Kristin Anderson. Indicators of Child
  and Family Well-Being The good, the Bad and the
  Ugly A Presentation to National Institutes of
  Health, Office of Behavioral and social Sciences
  Research. September 13, 1999. Washington, D.C.
  www.childtrends.org
• 5Friedman, Mark. Results Accountability for Prop
  10 Commissions A Planning Guide for Improving
  the Well-Being of Young Children and Their
  Families. Prepared for The Center for Healthier
  Children, Families and Communities, Los Angeles,
  California. March, 2000.
• 6Brown, Brett and Thomas Corbett. Social
  Indicators and Public Policy in the Age of
  Devolution. NGA Center for Best Practices.
  http//www.nga.org/center/divisions/1,1188,C_ISSUE
  _BRIEFD_1594,00.html
• 7Kingsley, G. Thomas. Building and Operating
  Neighborhood Indicator Systems A Guidebook.
  The Urban Institute. March 1999.
  www.urban.org/nnip/index.htm
• 8Child Trends. Indicators of Childrens
  Well-Being From Construct to Application The
  Third National level Meeting of the Planning
  Phase. April 28, 1997. Publication 1997-18.
  Washington, D.C. www.childtrends.org
• 9Hogan, Cornelius D. The Importance of
  indicators and What They Can Do. Presentation
  included in the Appendix of Child Trends.
  Indicators of Childrens Well-Being From
  Construct to Application The Third National
  level Meeting of the Planning Phase. April 28,
  1997. Publication 1997-18. Washington, D.C.
  www.childtrends.org
• 10Brown, Brett and Kris Moore. The Youth
  Indicators Field in Research and Practice
  Current Status and Targets of Opportunity.
  December 2001. Publication 2001-30. Washington,
  D.C. www.childtrends.org
• 11Murphy, David. Creating Community Capacity to
  Use Indicators. 2001. www.ahs.state.vt.us/publs/
  docs/0106CreatingCommunityCapacity.htm