Data Types, Sources and Measurement
EVIDENCE LAB · 02
Data, Sources
& Measurement.
Economic evidence is constructed through definitions, classifications and choices. Learn what your observations mean before asking what they show.
SOURCEUNITSCALE
01 · DATA STRUCTURES
Who, where
and when?
Many units. One moment.
Households, firms or regions observed at approximately the same point in time.
One unit. Many moments.
A variable recorded sequentially—monthly inflation, quarterly GDP or daily prices.
Many units. Many moments.
Repeated observations for the same entities, combining variation across units and time.
02 · MEASUREMENT CHOICES
The same economy.
Different numbers.
Nominal versus real
Current-price values mix quantity changes with price changes. Deflation separates purchasing power from inflation.
Level versus rate
A level describes magnitude; a rate expresses change or incidence relative to a meaningful denominator.
Index numbers
An index expresses relative change from a chosen base period. The base matters for presentation, not growth.
Total versus per capita
Population-adjusted measures improve comparison but may conceal distributional differences within places.
SOURCE AUDIT
Primary or secondary?
Authority is not enough. Audit coverage, frequency, comparability, revisions, missingness and the incentives that generated each observation.
VARIABLE OPERATIONALISATION STUDIO
Give your concept
a measurable form.
Design a variable and ECONORIA will assemble its measurement passport, expose risks and estimate readiness.
Define an economic concept.
- Operational measure
- Not yet defined
- Unit
- Euros per person
- Structure
- Cross-section · annual
- Price basis
- Not applicable
- Source
- Not yet documented
MEASUREMENT RISKThe concept and indicator may not be equivalent. Define both to expose the interpretation gap.
KNOWLEDGE CHECK
GDP for 13 regions over 20 years is…
which data structure?
