Comparability — Bangladesh [top]

In the 2011 sample, a person is considered as disabled if he/she is, by born or cause of others, physically unable, completely/partly handicapped or mentally retarded. A person is classified as disabled if he/she responds as having any difficulty in speech.

Comparability — Benin [top]

The census language was simply whether the person was mute in 2002 or if they were incapable of speaking or communicating in 2013.

Comparability — Botswana [top]

For all samples the variable is meant to gauge the level of disability: whether the person is totally unable to speak or has partial speech impairment.

Comparability — Burkina Faso [top]

A person is classified as disabled if he/she responds as being mute or deaf and mute.

The 1985 sample only provides the type of disability for residents of the household. The 1996 and 2006 samples provide the type of disability for all persons. The samples do not distinguish between temporary and permanent disabilities.

Comparability — Cambodia [top]

The census question in both 2008 and 2013 defines a speech disability as the inability to speak at all (mute) or the inability to be understood through speech. People able to speak with stammering who are still comprehensible are not classified as disabled. The 2019 sample refers to having difficulty using usual language or speaking.

Comparability — Cameroon [top]

In the 2005 sample, a person is classified as disabled if he/she responds as being mute.

Comparability — Costa Rica [top]

An affirmative response to the question indicates "difficulty with speaking".

Comparability — Côte d'Ivoire [top]

In 1998, the census question asks whether the person was mute.

Comparability — Dominican Republic [top]

In 1981 and 2002, a person is classified as disabled if he/she responds as being mute. In 2010, having permanent difficulties speaking are identified separately.

Comparability — Egypt [top]

The 1986 and 1996 samples indicate deafness as a category within a question about the type of disability.

Persons with multiple unidentified disabilities are coded "unknown" for DISMUTE, because the exact disabilities in those cases are not specified. See DISABLED to identify these cases.

Comparability — El Salvador [top]

The universe changes from all persons in the 1992 sample to persons in private households in the 2007 sample.

El Salvador 1992 refers to persons with total muteness, while the 2007 sample identifies permanent limitations in speaking.

Comparability — Ethiopia [top]

The census questions differ over time. In 1984, the wording was "mute"; in 1994 it was a "hearing and speaking problem"; and in 2007 it was a "speaking difficulty."

Comparability — France [top]

The "yes" response for the French sample is the combination of responses for "mute" and "deaf-mute".

Comparability — Guatemala [top]

In the 1994 sample, a person is classified as disabled if they have a positive response for being deaf mute.

Comparability — Guinea [top]

The 1996 and 2014 data report responses for "mute" and "deaf and mute". Other multiple-disability responses that may have included muteness are not identified. An affirmative response indicates the person was completely mute.

Comparability — Haiti [top]

The 2003 sample, a person is classified as disabled if he/she responds as being mute.

Comparability — Honduras [top]

In 2013, a person is classified as disables if they cannot speak.

Comparability — Indonesia [top]

The 1980 sample identifies in a single category persons who cannot speak at all (mute) and persons who cannot hear (deaf), not specifying whether either or both disabilities could be present.

Comparability — Iran [top]

The variable indicates whether a person has a speech and voice disorder, defined as any kind of weakness in speaking or making sounds by throat in a normal way. These include muteness, speech impediments, larynx defects, and mental problems which affect fluent speech.

Comparability — Iraq [top]

There were no specific instructions regarding muteness. Muteness was reported both separately and in combination with deafness.

Comparability — Israel [top]

This variable is derived from the question on languages spoken daily. We use the answer for the first language, which includes mute as a response. The universe is restrictive, including only persons age 15 or older.

Comparability — Jamaica [top]

In both samples, the variable indicates a disability in speaking only, defined as a speech impairment or lack of speaking ability to perform activities in the "manner considered normal for a human being". Those with multiple disabilities, due to the inability to determine the type of disability, are grouped in the unknown category. See DISABLED to identify these cases.

There are slight variations on the question universes but the samples are otherwise comparable.

Comparability — Kenya [top]

In 2009, a person is classified as disabled if he/she responds as having any difficulty in speech. Speech and language disorders refer to problems in communication or difficulties in producing oral speech sounds or problems with voice quality. They might be characterized by an interruption in the flow or rhythm of speech, such as stammering. The respondents were to report up to three disabilities, being the first one the most disabling.

In 2019, a person is considered disabled if they respond yes to having difficulty communicating in their usual language. This may be a result of mechanical problems such as hearing impairment or speech impairment, or it may be related to the ability of the mind to interpret the sounds that the auditory system is gathering and to recognize the words that are being used or an inability of the mind to compose a sentence or say a word even when the person knows the word and sentence.

Comparability — Liberia [top]

In the 2008 sample, a person is classified as mute if she/he is unable to speak, has a speech impairment or is deaf and dumb.

Those with multiple disabilities are grouped in the unknown category due to the inability to determine the type of disability.

Comparability — Malawi [top]

In 2008, the census question asks if the respondent has any problems or difficulty in speaking which "inhibit the ability to work or participate in normal activities". In 2018, a person is classified as disabled if they have difficulty speaking.

Comparability — Malaysia [top]

The 1980 sample had a single "deaf or dumb" response that was to be reported if the person was unable to attend normal schools or secure a job. The 2000 census allowed the recording of three separate disabilities instead of choosing the one that posed the greatest limitation. Speech limitation was reported separately from hearing in 2000.

Comparability — Mali [top]

The samples are comparable. The censuses combined responses for deaf and mute in the same category.

Comparability — Mauritius [top]

The 1990 and 2000 harmonized variables are constructed from the first, second, and third reported disabilities.

The 2011 sample reports different levels of difficulty in speaking and talking, where persons with any level of difficulty are classified as "yes". The difficulty levels are preserved in the corresponding unharmonized source variable.

Comparability — Mexico [top]

Mexico 2000 identifies persons who cannot speak, while Mexico 2010-2020 refers to persons with difficulties communicating with others, either due to speech limitations or because they cannot converse in a comprehensible way. Both samples refer to a disability that limits the person's ability to carry out daily life activities and explicitly exclude babies who are not yet able to talk.

Comparability — Mongolia [top]

In 2010, a person is classified as disabled if speaking ability is lost of limited due to speech organ injuries, defects, and diseases. The response of "other disabilities" is classified as unknown, as that may include persons with multiple disabilities. In 2020, a person is considered disabled if they have difficulty communicating, for example understanding or being understood. Persons with a response of multiple disabilities are considered unknown.

Comparability — Morocco [top]

The 2004 sample identifies persons unable to practice daily activities in a normal way because of a total or partial vocal disability (muteness).

The 2014 sample indicates whether the person has any difficulty in communicating, where persons with any level of difficulty are classified as "yes". The difficulty levels are preserved in the corresponding unharmonized source variable.

Comparability — Mozambique [top]

In 2008, this variable is derived from the question on languages spoken daily. We use the answer for the first language, which includes mute as a response.

In 2018 a person is considered disabled if they respond yes to deaf/mute. Note that the responses for deaf and mute are the same in 2018. However, the variable DISDEAF is not the same as DISMUTE because DISDEAF also includes those with difficulty hearing, which is a separate question in the census. It is also worth noting that about 20% of persons who responds yes to deaf/mute also responded yes to the ability to speak and hold a conversation in Portuguese.

Comparability — Nepal [top]

Disability is indicated as difficulty in speaking and being understood. People with multiple disabilities are coded into the "Unknown" category, because the exact disabilities in those cases are unknown.

Comparability — Pakistan [top]

Responses for deaf, mute, and deaf and mute are combined together in the same category. The question was not asked in the 1981 and 1998 samples.

Comparability — Panama [top]

All samples report the inability to hear or talk as a single category. The 1980 sample asked the question only of persons age 40 and younger.

In 2010, the affirmative response to the question indicates the complete inability to hear or talk, even with the help of hearing aids. This question also includes those who communicate through sign language.

Comparability — Paraguay [top]

The question wording was "mute" for 1962-1992. The 2002 census specified responses for "mute" or "speaks with great difficulty".

Comparability — Philippines [top]

There is a major comparability issue among the Philippines samples. An affirmative response in 1990 indicates a complete inability to speak. In the 1995 and 2000 samples any significant speech impairment is considered a disability. In 2010, any functional disability in communicating is considered a disability.

The universe is age 5 and older in 2010 but includes all persons in earlier years.

Comparability — Rwanda [top]

There is a minor universe difference between samples.

For the 2002 sample, there was a single question on type of disability. If a person had more than one disability, the most severe one was to be reported. This is not the case for the 2012 sample where respondents can list up to six types of disabilities.

The 2002 census combined responses for mute and deaf in the same category, but mute persons are separated out using the separate language question, which had a response for muteness. The 2012 census specifies whether the person had a disability regarding speaking.

Comparability — Saint Lucia [top]

In the 1991 sample, "yes" responses to the question about presence of speech disability are coded as "mute" in this variable. The variable is not available in 1980.

Comparability — Senegal [top]

The 2002 sample defines muteness as the loss of ability to speak that is limiting to daily activities. The 1988 sample asked a question about disability but did not specify muteness as a category.

The 2013 census question reports different levels of difficulty in speaking or communicating. Persons with any level of difficulty are classified as "yes" in 2013. These details are preserved in the unharmonized source variable.

Comparability — Sierra Leone [top]

In the 2004 sample, the variable indicates if the person's most serious disability is either a speech impairment or muteness. Therefore, a person may go unrecorded yet still have speaking difficulty because it is not his/her most "serious" disability.

The 2015 sample records if the person's main or second type of disability is either a speech difficulty or muteness.

Comparability — South Africa [top]

This variable indicates whether the person had a communication disability, such as a speech impediment: one that impaired their ability to fully participate in life activities. There was not a requirement of complete inability to talk. The 2011 and 2016 questionnaires asked if exists a difficulty communicating, a person was considered disabled if he/she answered "a lot of difficulty" or "cannot do at all". The level of difficulty reported is preserved in the corresponding unharmonized source variable.

The 2001-2007 samples have information for persons of all ages, while in 2011-2016 only for persons age 5+. The 2011 sample asked this question of all persons, but the census documentation recommended including only persons age 5+ in the analysis of disability. Thus, DISMUTE has responses restricted to persons age 5+ in the variable universe. The original responses for persons under this age are available in the corresponding unharmonized source variable.

Comparability — South Sudan [top]

The variable indicates whether the person has any difficulty in speaking or is mute. Muteness and difficulty in speaking are separable using the unharmonized source variables.

Comparability — Sudan [top]

The variable indicates whether the person has any difficulty in speaking.

Comparability — Suriname [top]

The 2012 sample reports different levels of difficulty in communicating, where persons with any level of difficulty seeing are classified as "yes". The difficulty levels are preserved in the corresponding unharmonized source variable.

Comparability — Tanzania [top]

The 2002 sample indicates muteness as one category within a general question about disability. There are no further instructions for what constitutes muteness in the 2002 sample. The question was not asked in the 1988 sample. Individuals with multiple handicaps are coded in the "unknown" category because the exact disabilities are not specified. See the DISABLED variable to identify these cases.

Comparability — Togo [top]

The respondent is classified as disabled if either of the two source disability variables indicate "deaf mute."

Comparability — Trinidad and Tobago [top]

The 2011 census asked whether a person had a severe speaking disability and whether the speaking disability was caused by physical, mental or emotional health. The 2000 census simply refers to a speaking impairment.

Comparability — Turkey [top]

In the 2000 sample, speech impaired refers to persons who cannot speak or who can in some circumstances speak only using a device held up to their larynx, thus limiting their daily life activities or work. Persons with more than one disability in the 2000 sample, due to the inability to determine the type of disability, are grouped in the unknown category.

Comparability — Uganda [top]

The 2002 sample stipulated that a disability was a condition expected to last 6 months or more. The threshold for disability in both samples is the ability to perform normal activities. The 1991 category was "deaf and dumb".

Comparability — Uruguay [top]

The 2006 sample identifies persons with permanent speech limitations, including persons with total impossibility to articulate words or generate and emit messages with their voice and persons that have difficulties or permanent restrictions speaking, which affect the ability to perform daily life activities. Data are only available for persons interviewed in the third trimester of the household survey.

Comparability — Zambia [top]

In the 2010 sample, a person is classified as mute if there is complete loss of sense of hearing and speech, complete lack of ability to speak or if the person fails to produce meaningful sound words.

Those with multiple disabilities, due to the inability to determine the type of disability, are grouped in the unknown category.

Comparability — Zimbabwe [top]

The 2012 census asked whether the person had difficulty speaking.