Change through data: A data analytics training program for government employees

Kreuter, Frauke ; Ghani, Rayid ; Lane, Julia

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DOI:	https://doi.org/10.1162/99608f92.ed353ae3
URL:	https://madoc.bib.uni-mannheim.de/58637
Additional URL:	https://hdsr.mitpress.mit.edu/pub/0mb0zzlc/release...
URN:	urn:nbn:de:bsz:180-madoc-586376
Document Type:	Article
Year of publication:	2019
The title of a journal, publication series:	Harvard Data Science Review
Volume:	1
Issue number:	2
Page range:	1-26
Place of publication:	Cambridge, MA
Publishing house:	MIT-Press
ISSN:	2644-2353
Publication language:	English
Institution:	Außerfakultäre Einrichtungen > Mannheim Centre for European Social Research - Research Department A School of Social Sciences > Statistik u. Sozialwissenschaftliche Methodenlehre (Kreuter 2014-2020)
Pre-existing license:	Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Subject:	300 Social sciences, sociology, anthropology
Abstract:	From education to health to criminal justice, government regulation and policy decisions have important effects on social and individual experiences. New data science tools applied to data created by government agencies have the potential to enhance these meaningful decisions. However, certain institutional barriers limit the realization of this potential. First, we need to provide systematic training of government employees in data analytics. Second we need a careful rethinking of the rules and technical systems that protect data in order to expand access to linked individual-level data across agencies and jurisdictions, while maintaining privacy. Here, we describe a program that has been run for the last three years by the University of Maryland, New York University, and the University of Chicago, with partners such as Ohio State University, Indiana University/Purdue University, Indianapolis, and the University of Missouri. The program—which trains government employees on how to perform applied data analysis with confidential individual-level data generated through administrative processes, and extensive project-focused work—provides both online and onsite training components. Training takes place in a secure environment. The aim is to help agencies tackle important policy problems by using modern computational and data analysis methods and tools. We have found that this program accelerates the technical and analytical development of public sector employees. As such, it demonstrates the potential value of working with individual-level data across agency and jurisdictional lines. We plan to build on this initial success by creating a larger community of academic institutions, government agencies, and foundations that can work together to increase the capacity of governments to make more efficient and effective decisions.
Additional information:	Online-Ressource