Cultural Competence Will Be Key to Success of 2010 Census

Photo Credit: U.S. Census Bureau, Public Information Office

The Washington Post reports that 20 percent of people may not participate in the 2010 census, even though they are legally obligated to do so. According to a new poll from the Pew Research Center, many respondents said they are too busy or uninterested to fill out the 10 question form, while many others simply distrust the government or worry about privacy.

In response to concerns from national civil rights groups, the Census Bureau has been touting a $133 million advertising campaign, which includes television spots in 28 different languages. The Bureau estimates it will reach the average person 42 times with slogans such as the “2010 census – it’s in our hands.”

Key to the Bureau’s success will not only be its ability to offer ads in-language, but also to provide messages that respond to cultural concerns and barriers to filling out the form. The Census Bureau reports that the emphasis in the message varies with the audience, with objects, backgrounds, and other props changing in some TV ads to reach different groups.

The question is, will that be enough? With the Census launching in March, two months of positive, culturally considerate messaging might not be adequate to mitigate years, even decades, of misinformation and distrust.

Census officials say that each percentage point of nonresponse to the initial survey costs $80-90 million to hire people to knock on doors. In preparing for the 2020 census, it might be wise to consider investing that money over the next decade in long-term, culturally competent messaging that increases dialogue and understanding about the need for and benefits of this critical decennial count.