Numbers Game

By Sherri Collins

Editor, Pet Product News International

Chester A. Arthur is probably not high on most people’s lists of significant U.S. presidents (he served from 1881 to 1885), but for those who relish business data, he should be remembered as the president who signed into being the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in 1884. The BLS, in turn, became part of the newly created Department of Labor in 1913.

For 125 years, the BLS has been recording and interpreting business data. Vital statistics, such as the Consumer Price Index, Producer Price Index, unemployment rates, Employment Cost Index and occupational injury and illness rates, provide government officials, business owners and everyday consumers concise indications on how the U.S. is faring economically and socially. The BLS website is loaded with information, from quick-read charts and tables to lengthy reports and publications to extensive databases and tutorials to help you take full advantage of the offerings.

Equally beneficial, though, is that the BLS data and statistical analyses are transparent. Knowing how, where and why an entity gathers its data is vitally important, especially if said entity “spins” the results one way or another. Statistics never prove anything; they can’t by their inherent nature. What statistics can do is indicate trends and prevalences, show correlations and improve the reporting strength of data. Because they’re “merely” numbers, data can be manipulated—both intentionally and inadvertently--in a variety of ways to suit a particular end.

What brought all this to mind—and to your attention—was a recent press release titled “NATIONAL SURVEY FINDS AMERICANS WANT CHOICE IN HEALTH INSURANCE; Many opposed to government run health care system.” The headline was a bit vague, but I figured the body of the release would go into explicit detail. Which it did--and didn’t. I gave it points for being forthright on who conducted the study: the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America and its statistical affiliate, Trusted Choice. It also provided the survey size, which was 928 respondents.

What raised the red flag and my statistical hackles was this: “The study found that more than 56% of the respondents who have health insurance are against or are not sure how they feel about a government operated health care plan.” Note the “have health insurance” and the “against or are not sure” phrases. Both of which indicate biased reporting, since there’s no mention of how those who don’t have insurance felt, or how many of the 56% were actually against a government plan.

That the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America came out against any government-run plan shouldn’t surprise anyone, or at least those who read beyond the headline. We are a nation in love with studies—at least according to a recent survey (just kidding). However, without background info on those studies, they really are just manipulated numbers. Before you take a study seriously, look at the details—the questions asked, who was asked, why they were asked, etc. You may find the reported results are nothing more than spin.

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