michela gamba - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by michela gamba
Journal of Modern Italian Studies, Jun 1, 2009
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key e... more A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key economic variables such as GDP growth, inflation and unemployment rate (Blinder and Kruger, 2004; Curtin, 2008). A recent survey has also shown that the level of trust in official statistics varies among countries, trust being higher where people believe that political decisions are effectively made on the basis of available statistical information (Papacostas, 2008). For this reason, the OECD and the ISAE have decided to replicate the 2007 survey on what people know about statistics (Fullone, Gamba, Giovannini, Malgarini, 2008). The second wave of this survey allows us, for the first time, to monitor the evolution of knowledge over time. The 2009 questionnaire also includes a new set of questions, aiming to better understand whether a departure from the hypothesis is linked to "sticky information" and/or staggered updating (Mankiw and Reis, 2002), or to the failure of actual statistics in providing relevant information to the public. In the first case, people rationally choose to be inattentive to economic data (Reis, 2006, 2009) because of the cost and the relatively low benefit. On the other hand, if the official information is perceived as non-relevant, people may tend to rely more on private information and other data sources (Curtin, 2008). We will finally derive an aggregate measure of statistical knowledge, a Z-score, trying to assess whether knowledge is linked to the socio-demographic characteristics of respondents, the desire and willingness of being informed or to the sources of information used. Some considerations on the results obtained will conclude the paper.
OECD Statistics Working Papers, 2016
The OECD Statistics Working Paper Series-managed by the OECD Statistics Directorate-is designed t... more The OECD Statistics Working Paper Series-managed by the OECD Statistics Directorate-is designed to make available in a timely fashion and to a wider readership selected studies prepared by OECD staff or by outside consultants working on OECD projects. The papers included are of a technical, methodological or statistical policy nature and relate to statistical work relevant to the Organisation. The Working Papers are generally available only in their original language-English or French-with a summary in the other. OECD Working Papers should not be reported as representing the official views of the OECD or of its member countries. The opinions expressed and arguments employed are those of the author. Working Papers describe preliminary results or research in progress by the author and are published to stimulate discussion on a broad range of issues on which the OECD works. Comments on Working Papers are welcomed, and may be sent to the Statistics Directorate, OECD,
Many macroeconomic variables published at sub-annual frequency are revised back in time whenever ... more Many macroeconomic variables published at sub-annual frequency are revised back in time whenever new data are released or when substantial increases of the information set on which they are built up become available. Undertaking revisions analysis 2 allows both users and producers of these statistics the opportunity to study the magnitude and direction of revisions. This is an important element for understanding the quality of the published statistics and for interpreting the figures when analysing the current state of the economy.
Journal of Modern Italian Studies, 2009
A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key e... more A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key economic variables such as GDP growth, inflation and unemployment rate (Blinder and Kruger, 2004;. A recent survey has also shown that the level of trust in official statistics varies among countries, trust being higher where people believe that political decisions are effectively made on the basis of available statistical information .
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key e... more A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key economic variables such as GDP growth, inflation and unemployment rate (Blinder and Kruger, 2004;. A recent survey has also shown that the level of trust in official statistics varies among countries, trust being higher where people believe that political decisions are effectively made on the basis of available statistical information .
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
Journal of Modern Italian Studies, Jun 1, 2009
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key e... more A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key economic variables such as GDP growth, inflation and unemployment rate (Blinder and Kruger, 2004; Curtin, 2008). A recent survey has also shown that the level of trust in official statistics varies among countries, trust being higher where people believe that political decisions are effectively made on the basis of available statistical information (Papacostas, 2008). For this reason, the OECD and the ISAE have decided to replicate the 2007 survey on what people know about statistics (Fullone, Gamba, Giovannini, Malgarini, 2008). The second wave of this survey allows us, for the first time, to monitor the evolution of knowledge over time. The 2009 questionnaire also includes a new set of questions, aiming to better understand whether a departure from the hypothesis is linked to "sticky information" and/or staggered updating (Mankiw and Reis, 2002), or to the failure of actual statistics in providing relevant information to the public. In the first case, people rationally choose to be inattentive to economic data (Reis, 2006, 2009) because of the cost and the relatively low benefit. On the other hand, if the official information is perceived as non-relevant, people may tend to rely more on private information and other data sources (Curtin, 2008). We will finally derive an aggregate measure of statistical knowledge, a Z-score, trying to assess whether knowledge is linked to the socio-demographic characteristics of respondents, the desire and willingness of being informed or to the sources of information used. Some considerations on the results obtained will conclude the paper.
OECD Statistics Working Papers, 2016
The OECD Statistics Working Paper Series-managed by the OECD Statistics Directorate-is designed t... more The OECD Statistics Working Paper Series-managed by the OECD Statistics Directorate-is designed to make available in a timely fashion and to a wider readership selected studies prepared by OECD staff or by outside consultants working on OECD projects. The papers included are of a technical, methodological or statistical policy nature and relate to statistical work relevant to the Organisation. The Working Papers are generally available only in their original language-English or French-with a summary in the other. OECD Working Papers should not be reported as representing the official views of the OECD or of its member countries. The opinions expressed and arguments employed are those of the author. Working Papers describe preliminary results or research in progress by the author and are published to stimulate discussion on a broad range of issues on which the OECD works. Comments on Working Papers are welcomed, and may be sent to the Statistics Directorate, OECD,
Many macroeconomic variables published at sub-annual frequency are revised back in time whenever ... more Many macroeconomic variables published at sub-annual frequency are revised back in time whenever new data are released or when substantial increases of the information set on which they are built up become available. Undertaking revisions analysis 2 allows both users and producers of these statistics the opportunity to study the magnitude and direction of revisions. This is an important element for understanding the quality of the published statistics and for interpreting the figures when analysing the current state of the economy.
Journal of Modern Italian Studies, 2009
A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key e... more A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key economic variables such as GDP growth, inflation and unemployment rate (Blinder and Kruger, 2004;. A recent survey has also shown that the level of trust in official statistics varies among countries, trust being higher where people believe that political decisions are effectively made on the basis of available statistical information .
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.
A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key e... more A number of studies have recently shown that agents are far from being fully informed about key economic variables such as GDP growth, inflation and unemployment rate (Blinder and Kruger, 2004;. A recent survey has also shown that the level of trust in official statistics varies among countries, trust being higher where people believe that political decisions are effectively made on the basis of available statistical information .
This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It disc... more This paper reviews the role of statistical information in economic and political systems. It discusses how the production of knowledge in a decentralized way is fundamentally different from the traditional production of information in a centralized way by National Statistical Offices (NSOs). An empirical case study using data from the Eurobarometer Survey shows that trust in the statistical system is related to trust in governance institutions (government, parliament and EU). A final section discusses different avenues for constructing indicators of societal progress.