Measuring what matters: Can National Statistical Organisations embrace social media?

Abstract

For over a decade, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has been measuring the progress of our nation against a set of seventeen headline social, economic and environmental dimensions. Developed in the early 2000's by the ABS, important aspects of life were chosen after extensive consultation and debate about what should be the key headline dimensions of progress for Australia. Ten years on, and in recognition of the wide spread national and international interest in measuring the wellbeing and progress of societies, the ABS embarked on a journey to have a new conversation with Australians about what matters. The Measures of Australia's Progress consultation, or MAP 2.0, was a national conversation on Australia's progress. A major part of the project was the use of an online blog to collect comments from the general public about what aspects of life matter most to them, and what aspirations they hold for Australia's progress. Video and written contributions from prominent Australians were used to raise the profile of the blog and encourage input from people who might not otherwise have engaged. The use of social media as an engagement and consultation mechanism by a national statistical organisation was a new and challenging undertaking, but was a huge success - over 140 quality comments were received and discussions on several other websites were generated. This paper focuses on the rationale for using social media, the experience of the ABS in hosting a blog, lessons learnt, and future plans for measuring progress in Australia.