Committee on Applied Demography 2005 Annual Report1 by Shelley Lapkoff, Chair March 1, 2005 Committee Membership The Committee on Applied Demography (CAD) represents the interests of applied demographers to the PAA Board of Directors. The committee has four members, each serving a four-year term. Traditionally, two members have represented the business demography community and two have represented the state and local demography community. Current members (and their terms) include: Shelley Lapkoff, Lapkoff & Gobalet Demographic Research, 2003-2006 Lisa Blumerman, U.S. Census Bureau, 2004-2007 Warren Brown, Cornell University, 2004-2007 Linda Jacobsen, Population Reference Bureau, 2005-2008 Applied Demographers in the PAA Applied demography is the subfield of demography that focuses on practical applications of demographic methods and materials for decision-making purposes. Its practitioners come from a variety of academic disciplines and professional backgrounds and are employed primarily by government agencies, businesses, and non-profit organizations. Their work often includes data collection, demographic analysis, the interpretation and communication of demographic trends, strategic planning, and the development and evaluation of population estimates and projections. About one in five PAA members are applied demographers or are interested in the field.2 Applied Demography Sessions at the PAA Meetings Since 1997, we have requested that the annual meetings contain an “Applied Demography track” where 1. Sessions do not overlap, 2. There is a session of interest to applied demographers in each time slot, and 3. Applied demography poster sessions be grouped together. On Wednesday afternoon before the PAA meetings begin, CAD convenes a business meeting to discuss suggestions for sessions for the following year and any other outstanding issues. Many more than the four CAD members attend; it is common for 20 people to attend the business meeting. Suggestions for next year’s sessions are discussed and then submitted by the CAD Chair. For the 2006 meetings, CAD is happy to help the program committee with the Applied Demography track. As we have done for many years, we will:
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Thanks to Stephanie Dudley for her prompt assistance in providing information for this report. There are several ways to measure the number of applied demographers in the PAA: fields of interest, subscribers to the Applied Demography newsletter, employment, and subscribers to the Applied Demography email list server. The various measurements are discussed in the appendix. 2
1. Send a carefully formulated list of sessions and potential organizers to the program chair. This can serve as a starting point for an applied demography track. As usual, sessions suggested by other PAA members will be potential candidates for the track. 2. Encourage participation in and submissions for the 2006 meetings through our email list server (this list server is discussed below). 3. Assure that the CAD chair or an applied demographer on the program committee identifies applied demography sessions so that sessions are in separate time slots. Establishing a clearly identified applied demography track is our recommended low-cost strategy for attracting more applied demographers as paid registrants to PAA meetings. The CAD advertises the track using the email list server. Applied demography sessions are almost always well attended (even on Saturday mornings) and there is a good chance that continuing an applied demography track will strengthen attendance at future PAA meetings. Also, it is worth noting that because many applied demographers work in the private sector, economic cycles have less influence their decisions to attend PAA than is the case for academic demographers. When academic demographers do not attend meetings because money is scarce, non-academic demographers very well may be able to attend. Core Applied Demography Activities at the PAA Meetings Four activities are initiated or applauded by CAD each year: 1. School demography interest group (2:30-4:00 PM, Wednesday). This year (2005) is the second annual meeting of the school demography interest group. 2. Annual business meeting (4:00-6:00 PM, Wednesday). The meeting is open to all. Typically about 20 to 30 people attend. We discuss sessions to recommend for next year’s PAA meetings, ideas for next year’s breakfast speaker (see #3 below), and ways to make the PAA and CAD more useful to applied demographers. 3. Wine and cheese reception (usually 6:30-8:00 PM, Thursday evening). Typically, between 50 and 100 people attend. The reception and panel serve several important purposes for the PAA membership as a whole: they enable graduate students and recent graduates to learn more about non-academic job opportunities and they facilitate informal networking and the exchange of ideas among current and would-be applied demographers. 4. Annual breakfast meeting (7:00-8:20 AM, Friday) with keynote speaker. This breakfast is open to everyone but requires the advance purchase of a ticket ($25). The guest speaker at this year’s meeting is U.S. Census Bureau Director Louis Kincannon.
Email List Server CAD maintains a list of applied demographers and communicates items of interest to them. Currently, we have 641 email addresses on the list server. The PAA meetings and 2
submissions to the meetings are advertised and encouraged through the email list server. We have many subscribers who are not PAA members. These individuals represent a potential source of new members. The announcements alert these demographers that the organization exists and encourages them to join and also keeps current PAA members more connected to the organization. Applied demography job openings are frequently posted via the list server. Applied Demography Newsletter The Applied Demography newsletter currently has 313 subscribers, down from 380 subscribers one year ago. The newsletter comes out two or three times a year. Subscriptions to the newsletter ($5 per year) generate revenues that go into a reserve fund. As of December 31, 2004, the balance in the fund was $12,511. CAD has been discussing whether to make the newsletter available electronically. Website The CAD has been developing material for a website. This would be especially useful for helping us retain institutional history. At a minimum, the website will contain past CAD reports to the PAA Board of Directors, minutes of the Applied Demography Business Meetings, and a list of past CAD members (who continue to mentor and are usually very active). As the CAD Board changes membership over time, it would be very helpful for new members to see what past CAD Boards have done. We are working with Stephanie Dudley of the PAA office staff to provide a CAD page to the PAA website. We hope to have a first draft of the page out for review after this year’s PAA meetings. Appreciation The CAD appreciates and applauds the Board’s efforts to reach out to the applied demography community by sending PAA representatives to the annual CAD business meeting and breakfast, nominating several applied demographers as candidates for PAA offices, appointing an applied demographer to the editorial board of Demography, and, most importantly, working with us to establish an applied demography track at the annual meetings. We believe these efforts will be beneficial to applied demographers and to the PAA as a whole. The CAD will continue to encourage applied demographers to join the PAA and to attend the annual meeting.
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Appendix: Measuring the Number of Applied Demographers There are at least four ways to measure the number of applied demographers in the PAA: 1. those listing an applied demography subject as one of their fields of specialization as listed on PAA records, 2. the number of PAA members who work in a non-academic setting, based on PAA records, 3. the number of subscribers to the applied demography newsletter, and 4. the number of subscribers to the applied demography email list serve. None of these measures is perfect, but each gives some indication of the presence of applied demographers in the PAA. Field of Specialization PAA members can list up to three fields of specialization when they join the PAA. As of February 2005, 561 members had at least one applied demography field of specialization (business demography; data collection and processing; estimates and projections; and state and local demography). The precise breakdown is shown in Table 1. There are 2,884 PAA members; however, 315 list no field of specialization. If we exclude the 315 with no data, the 561 members with at least one applied field represents 22 percent of the membership (561/2,569).
Employment Based At least 11 percent of employed PAA members are applied demographers, working as private consultants, in state and local governments, or in business and industry. In addition, another 10 percent work in the federal government and another 12 percent work for non-profits. Most of the demographers working in the federal government are likely to be applied demographers, while some of the demographers working for non-profits may be applied as well. See Table 2. Subscribers to the Applied Demography Newsletter This category produces the lowest estimate of applied demographers. There are currently 313 subscribers, down from 380 subscribers one year ago. Subscribers to the Applied Demography Email Listserver 641 (some not members of the PAA)
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Table 1
Number of Members with Applied Demography Fields of Specialization First Field of Specialization Business Demograpy Data Collection / Processing Estimates & Projections State & Local Demography Total
46 60 104 36 246
Second Field of Specialization (Excludes those with an Applied First Field) Business Demograpy 9 Data Collection / Processing 79 Estimates & Projections 61 State & Local Demography 23 Total 172 Third Field of Specialization (Excludes those with an Applied First or Second Field) Business Demograpy 12 Data Collection / Processing 63 Estimates & Projections 48 State & Local Demography 20 Total 143 All Fields of Specialization with at Least One Applied Listing Business Demograpy 67 Data Collection / Processing 202 Estimates & Projections 213 State & Local Demography 79 Total 561 Data as of February 26, 2005
Table 2 PAA Membership by Employment Category Academic (not student) Nonprofit Organization Federal Government International Organization Business & Industry State, Provincial, Local Govt Private Consultant / Self-Employed Other Subtotal None listed Student Retired Grand Total
Number 1,176 218 182 87 72 72 57 13 1,877 291 644 71 2,883
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Percent 63% 12% 10% 5% 4% 4% 3% 1% 100%
