The implications of long term community involvement for the production and circulation of population knowledge

Sangeetha Madhavan, Mark Collinson, Nicholas W. Townsend, Kathleen Kahn and Stephen Tollman
Additional contact information
Sangeetha Madhavan: University of Maryland College Park
Mark Collinson: University of the Witwatersrand
Nicholas W. Townsend: Brown University
Kathleen Kahn: University of the Witwatersrand
Stephen Tollman: University of the Witwatersrand

Demographic Research, 2007, vol. 17, issue 13, pages 369-388

Abstract: Demographic surveillance systems (DSS) depend on community acceptance and involvement to produce high quality longitudinal data. Ensuring community support also exposes power relations usually concealed in the research process. We discuss the Agincourt Health and Demographic Surveillance System in South Africa to argue that: 1) long-term presence and community involvement contribute to high response rates and data quality, 2) to maintain community support the project must demonstrate its usefulness, 3) reporting to community members provides valuable checks on the local relevance and comprehension of questions, and 4) community opinion can modify both wording and content of research questions.

Keywords: community; demographic surveillance system; fertility; health; knowledge; longitudinal; migration; mortality; South Africa (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J1 Z0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
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