Volunteering Emergency Services and Crime, Tasmania

   Page tools:

    NAME OF ORGANISATION
    Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS)

    OVERVIEW
    This once-only survey was conducted to obtain information on the nature and extent of volunteering, the awareness of emergency services and the attitudes and perceptions to crime in Tasmania

    It was conducted as a supplementary to the October 1993 Monthly Labour Force Survey.

    The following information was collected:

    Volunteering

    • The extent of volunteering both on an informal basis and through formal organisations;
    • Types of volunteering (e.g. fund raising, caring for aged/disabled/sick, teaching/instructing, committee work); and
    • Educational attainment of volunteers

    Emergency Services
    • Presence of safety devices in the household (e.g. smoke detectors and fire extinguishers);
    • Awareness of fire safety procedures; and
    • Awareness of the State Emergency Service and its role.

    Crime
    • Perceived crime problems in Tasmania; and
    • The effectiveness of the Tasmanian police.

    Results were released June 1994 in Tasmanian Statistical Indicators (ABS Cat No. 1303.6) and in additional user tables. In some cases, additional unpublished cross-classifications of data items are available. Estimates were published for persons, and for households (for data relating to household safety devices).

    PURPOSE
    This survey aims to obtain information on two areas of interest to the State Government.
    • In the light of recent education programs, to re-examine community awareness of emergency services, and perceptions of crime and the police as surveyed in 1989; and
    • to assess the nature and extent of volunteer participation throughout the community both through organisations and outside organisations.

    Within Australia, social care has come to depend on volunteers and informal providers at all levels; both in 'voluntary organisations' and in informal help. Furthermore, in the recreation area the delivery of recreational services such as coaching and umpiring is provided almost exclusively on a voluntary basis. Yet, little in-depth work, especially in Tasmania, has been undertaken to identify the characteristics and activities of the numerous volunteers within the community.

    SCOPE
    This survey was conducted as supplementary to the Monthly Labour Force Survey.
    For the volunteering component of the survey, all usual residents of private dwellings aged 15 years and over were in scope. Special dwellings and visitors to private dwellings were excluded.
    For the emergency services and crime components of the survey, all usual residents of private dwellings aged 18 years and over were in scope.

    Other normal Labour Force exclusions apply to scope and coverage, for example:
    • members of the permanent defence forces;
    • certain diplomatic personnel of overseas governments, customarily excluded from census and estimated populations;
    • overseas residents in Australia;
    • members of non-Australian defence forces (and their dependants) stationed in Australia; and
    • Jervis Bay Territory.


    In the Labour Force Survey, coverage rules are applied that aim to ensure that each person is associated with only one dwelling, and hence has only one chance of selection. The chance of a person being enumerated at two separate dwellings in the one survey is considered to be negligible.

    DATA DETAIL

    Conceptual framework
    As the data were collected as supplementary to the Monthly Labour Force Survey, some data can be cross-classified with data from that Labour Force Survey. For example:

    • Age;
    • Sex;
    • Employment status; and,
    • Full-time/part-time employment status.

    Main outputs
    Main results from the survey were published in Tasmanian Statistical Indicators, June 1994
    (ABS Cat No. 1303.6). Additional user tables were produced and, in some cases, additional unpublished cross-classifications of data items are available.

    Population
    People: Volunteering: Tasmanian civilian population aged 15 and over.
    Emergency Services and Crime: Tasmanian civilian population aged 18 and over.
    Households: for data relating to household smoke detectors and fire extinguishers.
    Main data items
    1. Volunteering: nature and extent of volunteer participation throughout the community:
    • volunteering through organisations and/or independent of organisations;
    • years spent participating in volunteer work;
    • hours spent participating in volunteer work;
    • type of organisation for which volunteered;
    • activity performed; and
    • educational attainment.
    2. Emergency services:
    • smoke detectors fitted in the dwelling;
    • how often the battery in the smoke detector is changed;
    • fire extinguishers in the dwelling;
    • knowledge of what to do if respondent (and family) were threatened by fire;
    • how respondent found out about procedures to follow in the case of fire;
    • has respondent heard of the State Emergency Service;
    • what respondent thought that the Sate Emergency Service does;
    • perceived major hazards posing a threat; and
    • what respondent would do to make a non-urgent ambulance call.
    3. Crime:
    • those who considered crime to be a problem in Tasmania;
    • main crime concerns;
    • whether respondent considered that crime in their neighbourhood/area had increased, decreased or remained the same over the previous 2 years;
    • whether the respondent thought that the Tasmanian police were effective; and
    • what the respondent thought the police could do to be more effective.
    Data breakdowns

    Data were disaggregated at the Tasmanian level and at statistical division level (Hobart and Southern; Northern; and Mersey-Lyell)
    Personal attributes cross-classified included sex, age, employment status, and educational attainment.

    Classifications
    Classifications from the Monthly Labour Force Survey

    • Employment status
    • Full-time/part-time status
    • Personal characteristics: age, sex
    • Geography: Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC)
    • Households with children present

    Other concepts (summary)
    Not applicable

    GEOGRAPHIC DETAIL
    Tasmania
    Statistical Division

    Comments and/or Other Regions
    not applicable

    COLLECTION FREQUENCY
    Once Only

    Frequency comments
    not applicable

    COLLECTION HISTORY
    Not applicable. This is a once-only survey.

    DATA AVAILABILITY
    Yes

    Data availability comments
    not applicable


    DATE OF LAST UPDATE FOR THIS DOCUMENT
    03/05/2002 11:12 AM