What can be done to bridge this gap?
Posted: Thu Feb 06, 2025 9:26 am
I don’t believe the problems are insurmountable, but it is clear that we need to call for some new approaches.
A key change needed is being clearer france rcs data about what data represents.
If data is being collected about older people (exactly where you draw the line on who is ‘older’ is up for debate), we need to move away from treating them as one heterogeneous whole and recognise that there are many different intersectional groups within this larger group. Before the data can be accurately collected on such sub-groups, there needs to be a process of identifying and defining these sub-categories so that the metadata clearly demarcates what the data tells us.
I’m not saying this is without its own problems – it isn’t always easy to completely define the characteristics of people within a group and there may end up being edge cases which are hard to define. But if the effort isn’t put in to undertaking this identification and definitional process, then people, their identity and their needs will continue not to be adequately represented.
A key change needed is being clearer france rcs data about what data represents.
If data is being collected about older people (exactly where you draw the line on who is ‘older’ is up for debate), we need to move away from treating them as one heterogeneous whole and recognise that there are many different intersectional groups within this larger group. Before the data can be accurately collected on such sub-groups, there needs to be a process of identifying and defining these sub-categories so that the metadata clearly demarcates what the data tells us.
I’m not saying this is without its own problems – it isn’t always easy to completely define the characteristics of people within a group and there may end up being edge cases which are hard to define. But if the effort isn’t put in to undertaking this identification and definitional process, then people, their identity and their needs will continue not to be adequately represented.