From Birth to Death III carries on the work of the Social Monitoring Group, although with an individual author, working from a university base (the Planning Council was abolished in 1991). This third monitoring report analyses relevant social trends and their implications with special attention to the 1986 – 1991 period which has seen significant social and economic change.

Its statisical bases are the 1981, 1986 and 1991 Censuses of Population, but it also incorporates other quantitative and qualitative information from recent New Zealand research. The life cycle approach and key indicators used in the previous reports are again adopted to provide some comparability, although the statistical database has been redefined. Ethnic differences and their policy implications are again central to the analysis.

The SMG reports aroused considerable interest, and From Birth to Death III is again written in a style accessible to a range of audiences. It will be of interest to analysts and researchers in government agencies, to assist in policy development; to workers in voluntary agencies, in planning service delivery; and to secondary and tertiary level students. As an indication of national trends, it will also be of interest to local and regional government bodies and iwi authorities.

From Birth to Death III goes well beyond the brief of the Department of Statistics, commenting on trends and drawing out their implications. It synthesises research findings from a wide range of sources, making them more accessible. Its especial value lies in its integrated approach, avoiding artificial boundaries which do not exist in the ‘real world’ social environment, and presenting information relating to significant stages in the lives of individuals and families.