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Count of Persons Temporarily Absent from Family

Count of Persons Temporarily Absent from Family (CPAF)

This variable counts the total number of people who were reported as temporarily absent from the family on Census Night.

Data used to produce Count of Persons Temporarily Absent from Family (CPAF) is captured automatically from responses of those reported as being temporarily absent in question 53 on the Census Household Form, and then subject to a further process so that only persons forming a family nucleus (that is partners, children and grandchildren) are included in CPAF. Family members who are not identified as members of the family nucleus are deleted.

Count of Persons Temporarily Absent from Family (CPAF) is only applicable to families residing in private dwellings as family households. Of all families, 8.0% reported that a family member was absent from the dwelling on Census Night.

CPAF, like all other 'persons absent' Census variables, should be used with caution. Previous studies on Census data have shown that people can be omitted from the persons temporarily absent section of the form simply because they are not present when the form is being filled out (for both family and group households), and also due to there being space for only three persons to be listed as temporarily absent when there may in fact be four or more people absent.

For general information on the quality of Census data on relationships see the quality statement for Relationship in Household (RLHP).

More information on CPAF is available in the 2011 Census Dictionary (cat. no. 2901.0).

Question 53 as it appeared on the 2011 Census Household Form

Image of question 53 from the 2011 Census
A text only version of this question is also available

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2011 Census Dictionary

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