Statistics

GENERAL TIPS

• Print resources can often actually be easier to navigate than internet sources.
• Print resources often go further back in time, useful for comparisons.
• Read the fine print describing the statistic and its scope, limits, etc. This critical information may be in footnotes.
• Two good sources with definitions for novices are the CIA World Factbook's Notes & Definitions page (https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/docs/notesanddefs.html)
  & The Human Development Report's Readers guide and notes to tables (http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/documents/note_on_stats_hdr2006.pdf)
• Be alert to comparing data from different sources or over time -- you might end up inadvertently comparing apples to oranges. Your professor won't like that!
• There is no one great source for all country data!
• Cite your sources fully:
  1. For internet sources in MLA or APA, see the Unesco example given in this handout: http://www.scu.edu/library/research/general/citing/internet.html
  2. For statistics taken from online subscription databases, see the last two examples given on this handout about citing from fulltext databases in APA style: http://itrs.scu.edu/library_tutorials/country_info/citefullapa.pdf

Print Resources

Dates here generally refer to year of publication. The data included will be for years prior to that, sometimes several years prior! Pay attention to the fine points always.

Europa World Yearbook, 1989- (some missing volumes)
D2 .E85

Europa Regional Surveys:

• Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1999
  DJK 1 .E288
• Africa South of the Sahara, 1986 -
  DT351 .A37
• The Far East and Australasia, 1972, 1974, 1986-
  DS1 .F3
• The Middle East, 1948, 1953, 1955, 1962
  DS 49 .M5
• The Middle East and North Africa, 1964/65 - (some gaps)
  DS49 .M5
• South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, 1988- (some gaps)
  F1406.5 .S68

CIA World Fact Book, 1982-
HC59 .W65

UN Statistical Yearbook United Nations 1948- (some missing years)
HA 12.5 .U63

Unesco Statistical Yearbook United Nations Educational,Scientific,and Cultural Organization 1967-
HA 12.5 .U632

Human Development Report, 1991-
HB884 .H85

International Trade Statistics Yearbook, 1983-
HF91 .U473

Military Balance, 1964/65-
UA 15 .L65

UN Demographic Yearbook United Nations, 1950-
HA 17 .D45

World Directory of Minorities Minority Rights Group International 1990 and 1997.
GN 495.4 .W67

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World Wide Web Resources

CIA World Fact Book (https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html)
This site provides current summary statistics in every area. It's a very quick and current look up. Clicking on the link here will take you to the latest edition. Start with the pulldown menu of countries.

Links to editions back to 1990 are online at: http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/lps35389/.

IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT OLDER EDITIONS: The formats vary wildly and can be difficult to read.

Even earlier editions, back to 1982, are available in print in the library.

Tips:
Adjacent to the label for each statistic, as in "Net migration rate" or "Ethnic groups" are two very important icons that you should make use of:

• gives you a definitions of that statistic. It may not be what you think it is!
• gives you a country-country comparative listing for that specific statistic

Among the statistics given for each country in the CIA World Factbook are: Land use, Population growth rate, Birth rate, Death rate, Net migration rate, Population by sex & age groups, Infant mortality rate, Life expectancy at birth by sex, Total fertility rate, HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate, HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS - deaths, Major infectious diseases, Ethnic groups, Religions, Languages, Literacy by sex, GDP (purchasing power parity), GDP (official exchange rate), GDP - real growth rate, GDP - per capita, GDP - composition by sector (agriculture, industry, service), Labor force, Labor force - by occupation, Unemployment rate, Population below poverty line, Household income or consumption by percentage share, Distribution of family income - Gini index, Inflation rate (consumer prices), Budget (revenues & expenditures), Public debt, Agriculture - products, Industries, Industrial production growth rate, Electricity - production, Electricity - consumption, Electricity - exports, Electricity - imports, Oil - production, Oil - consumption, Oil - exports Oil - imports, Oil - proved reserves, Natural Gas - production, Natural Gas - consumption, Natural Gas - exports, Natural Gas - imports Natural Gas - proved reserves, Current account balance, Exports - commodities, Exports - partners, Imports - commodities, Imports - partners, Reserves of foreign exchange and gold, Debt - external, Economic aid - donor, Economic aid - recipient, Telephones, Radios, Televisions, Internet users, Airports, Railroads, Roads, Ports, Ships, Military manpower, Military expenditures, Refugees

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CountryWatch
Commercial Data International's CountryWatch database contains current lengthy historical, political, and economic profiles of 191 countries in downloadable pdf files. The main audience for this database is the corporate world, so there is an emphasis on information related to investment climate, e.g. taxation, stock market, environmental controls. In addition to the statistics within the profiles, there are searchable datafiles that go back to 1993, although the dates available varies somewhat from statistic to statistic and country to country.
Tips:
Click on the tab labeled CountryWatchData to go directly to the statistics. There are over 250 separate data elements. It will take patience to scroll through. The order appears random, so you need to read them all very, very carefully. top

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United Nations Statistics Division
It can be challenging to navigate this site, but there is a wealth of information here, some of it going back decades. But, what is available will vary by country. Generally start by clicking on "Statistical Databases" and scanning the descriptions of what is Unrestricted. A quick way to get at all the data on a country is to click on the Common Database and then select "Countries" in the Metadata choices area. You then can select a country and see ALL the various statistics available on that country. Read those selections carefully. There are about 30 different formats for GDP, and the one you want may be at the end of the list!

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Statistical Abstract of the United States
This link will take you to the most current edition. Click on Earlier Editions in the band near the top to get links to volumes back to 1878. The formats, layout, and information will vary from year to year! There is a chapter entitled "Comparative International Statistics" that includes country-by-country (but, not always every country in the world for every statistic!) statistics on: population, growth, breakdown by age group, life expectancy, infant mortality, number of physicians, hospital beds, health expenditures, waste production, pollution, educational attainment, military expenditures, armed forces, foreign exchange rates, and many, many more for OECD member countries only.

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OFFSTATS
The University of Auckland library has put together what amounts to a country-by-country guide to a very wide range of official statistics from governments, international organizations, educational institutions, etc., freely available on the web. A great resource!

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Country Briefings
The Economist magazine provides a little service called Country Briefings for free on their homepage. Besides summary statistics, they give a nice current rundown on the government structure as well as the major political parties and players.
Tips:
None.

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Global Market Information Database
"Provides 2000 data types across 11 categories: Automotives and transport, Consumer markets, Economic indicators, Foreign trade, Industrial markets, IT and telecommunications, Leisure and lifestyles, Population and households, Resources and environment, Retailing, Service markets. Country statistics contains historic and forecast demographic, economic and marketing statistics for 205 countries. Country profiles contain key political and economic indicators. Lifestyle indicators contain a huge range of data such as eating habits, home ownership trends and crime patterns for 71 countries. Data updated annually, historic data back to 1977 and forecasts to 2016." (Description from SCU Library Business Databases page.)

IMPORTANT NOTE: You must select both geography and specific statistics or groups of statistics. A + sign indicates a further breakdown of a grouping. If you click on a grouping with a + sign, you get EVERYTHING under that grouping. It may be a whole lot more than you want, and will really, really, really slow things down. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, look at what is under a + sign before selecting it!

Below is a list of many of the statistics available. There are even more! Categories are in all caps.

POPULATION
Total population: at mid-year
Total population: at January 1st
Population aged 0-14: January 1st
Population aged 15-64: January 1st
Population aged 65+: January 1st
Male population: January 1st
Female population: January 1st
Births
Deaths
Marriage rates
Divorce rates
Fertility rates
Urban development
Urban population
Rural population
Population density
LITERACY AND EDUCATION
Literacy levels and duration of education
Pre-primary education
Primary education
Secondary education
Higher education
HEALTH
Medical services
Causes of death
Illness
Nutrition
Health expenditure
Life expectancy and healthy life expectancy
HOME OWNERSHIP
HOUSEHOLD PROFILES
Number of households
Average number of occupants per household
Households by number of occupants
Households by number of rooms
Households by facilities
Possession of household durables
INCOME AND EARNINGS
Income and savings
Average hourly earnings
Average monthly earnings
ADVERTISING AND MEDIA
AGRICULTURAL RESOURCES
AUTOMOTIVES
BANKING AND FINANCE
CONSUMER EXPENDITURE
CONSUMER MARKET SIZES
CONSUMER PRICES AND COSTS
CULTURAL INDICATORS
Libraries
Book titles published
Museums
Cinema and film
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
GDP
Trends in money supply
Annual rates of inflation
Government finance
Government expenditure by category [total]
Exchange rates
ENERGY RESOURCES AND OUTPUT
Energy production
Primary energy consumption
Commercial energy consumption
Residential consumption of electricity
Consumption of refinery products
Energy reserves
ENVIRONMENTAL DATA
Deforestation
Water and sanitation
Conservation
Air pollution
Waste
Total consumption of pesticides
EXTERNAL TRADE
Imports
Exports
Trade balance
INDUSTRIAL RESOURCES AND OUTPUT
Industrial production index
Mineral production
Metal production
Textile production
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Internet penetration
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Telephones
Telex subscribers
Facsimile machines in use
Availability of digital exchanges
Total capital telecommunications investment
Internet access
TRANSPORT
Road transport
Rail transport
Civil aviation
Merchant shipping
TRAVEL AND TOURISM
Tourism receipts
Tourism expenditure
Tourist arrivals
Tourist accommodation
Length of tourist stay
RETAIL DISTRIBUTION
Retail industry
Retail sales
Retailers
LABOUR
Total employed population
Total unemployed population
Unemployment rate
Hours of work
Economically active population

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U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Statistical Sites lists of links to internet sites with statistics from countries around the world. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics maintains this site. It includes links to official government sources for each country as well as the U.S.
Tips: None

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Governments on the Web
This site lists a set of links to government pages containing a wide array of information, including statistics.
Tips:
One good place to get statistical information in English is to go to the page for the country's U.S. embassy. The one for France, for example, has a wonderful, statistically rich, profile.

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African Statistics
Stanford University's has created a fabulous page of statistical sources especially for Africa called African Statistics, part of the library's larger guide to internet resources on Africa South of the Sahara.
Tips:
None.

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A Chartbook of International Labor Comparisons: United States, Europe, and Asia
This site has statistical data on 20 countries. Some figures are for one recent year, either 2000 or 2001. Others are averages for 1990-2000. All 20 countries are not included in each statistic. Among the many statistics are:

GDP per capita
growth of GDP per capita 1990-2000
labor force growth
labor force participation rates
employment
unemployment
full-time and part-time employment
unemployment rate for high school vs college degrees
annual hours worked
hourly compensation
social insurance expenditures
manufacturing productivity

Tips:
None.

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Human Development Reports
This site comes from the United Nations Development Programme. It is available online back to 1990 at this url: http://hdr.undp.org/

Tips: For the older years, at http://hdr.undp.org/, select REPORTS in the band at the top. Then select a year using the pulldown menu. Do NOT select a country or theme in that same menu. Just get the HDR for the year and then scan it.

Among the statistics provided:

Life expectancy
Infant mortality
Fertility
Calorie supply
Underweight children
Under-five mortality
Literacy
Gender empowerment
Per capita GDP
Human development index
Population
Birth
Death
Contraception
Growth rate
Urban vs rural
Health
Health expenditures
Immunization
Doctors
Nurses
AIDS
Tuberculosis
Malaria
Disabilities
Water
Food
Newspapers
Televisions
Telephones
Fax machines
Computers
Internet
Printing
Post offices
Science
Technology
Higher education
Military
Defense
Weapons
Armed forces
Debt
Development assistance
Foreign investment
Foreign aid
Energy
Land use
Sanitation
Human rights
Political participation
Housing
Cigarette consumption

Tips:
The tables, in the section labeled "Human Development Indicators", are only available from 1999 forward.

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International Data Base (IDB)
This is a product of the U.S. Census Bureau. You can find data from 1950 on, including projections, for 227 countries and regions. It is most useful for simple demographics and for OLD information. It is less useful and varies quite dramatically from country-country and year-year in all other areas. The statistics generally available are:

Population by age and sex
Vital rates, infant mortality, and life tables
Fertility and child survivorship
Migration
Marital Status
Family planning
Ethnicity, religion, and language
Literacy
Labor force, employment, and income
Households

Tips:

• You probably want to choose ALL AVAILABLE YEARS in the date selection area.
• All listed statistics are not available for all countries.

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United Nations Crime & Justice Information Network
This list of hotlinks to a variety of criminal justice statistical sources worldwide. The link to the International Crime Victim Survey often proves very useful as they provide some summary data, country-by-country, for free on their website. There is an overall crime statistics consisting of the percentage of the population victimised in one year and a further breakdown by crime, e.g car theft, burglarly, sexual offenses./prevalence ratesAnother particularly useful one: Total Recorded Crime per 100,000 Population (pdf).

Internet Center for Corruption Research
This site will give you the Corruption Index for various countries back to 1995. It is provided by Transparency International and Goettingen University, Germany. The goal of the site to "rank countries by the extent of corruption in public administration."
Tips:
None.

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Freedom House
This site is a non-partisan, non-profit champion of democracy for over 60 years. Since 1972 it has surveyed the world and issued reports on the state of freedom in each country. Tips:

• Freedom in the World page allows you to select a country and a year, from 2002 on, and get a report.
  
• Download the most recent full report, with comparative charts and graphs at http://www.freedomhouse.org/uploads/press_release/fiw07_charts.pdf

Unesco Website
Selected Tables from the current Unesco yearbook.
Tips:
Select in the following subject areas: Education, Literacy, Culture & Communication, Scienct & Technology.Use the following subject areas: Some of these statistics go back to 1970.

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World Health Organizationa Statistical Information System
The name says it all.
Tips:
Scan the contents. The search option is not that helpful.

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Your Nation
This site is a nifty little tool that allows you to get summary statistical data on one country, compare statistics for two countries, or rank five countries for any one characteristic. Primary source of the data is the CIA Factbook. Look at the dates, though. The last time I looked, statistics were from the 1998 CIA Factbook. In all there are more than 80 statistical elements to choose from. .
Tips:
None.

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