Showing papers in "Social Indicators Research in 1982"
TL;DR: Effective social indicators must be stable when individual or societal characteristics are unchanged and dynamic when circumstances alter and highly reliable measures may be poor indicators because they are insensitive to change.
Abstract: Effective social indicators must be stable when individual or societal characteristics are unchanged and dynamic when circumstances alter. Highly reliable measures may be poor indicators because they are insensitive to change. Little evidence is available on the sensitivity or validity of objective and subjective indicators. A lack of panel data has restricted the assessment of the stability of subjective measures.
160 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that length of residence, age, and local social ties, important elements in the "systemic" model of community attachment, are more strongly related to attachment than is size of place.
Abstract: Two studies of contradictory results concerning models of community attachment are briefly reviewed, one of which reported strong support for a ‘systemic’ model while the other placed greater emphasis on the relationship of size of place with attachment. Using data from 27 communities located in Iowa, measures used in both studies are replicated to the extent possible. Length of residence, age, and local social ties, important elements in the ‘systemic’ model of community attachment, are more strongly related to attachment than is size of place in this restudy.
83 citations
TL;DR: However, when urban density is introduced as a variable for the urban areas in the sample, it is found to be the most important determiner of community attachment as discussed by the authors. Butteel et al.
Abstract: A general problem in the area of urban studies has been the determination of factors significantly related to community attachment. Louis Wirth had argued that with increasing community size the level of community attachment diminishes. However, Kasarda and Janowitz employed British data and found that the length of residence in the community was a more important determinant of community attachment. Buttel et al. re-examined the question and found that the size of the community was the most important determiner of community attachment. This study analyzes the question employing national survey data collected in 1971 in the Quality of American Life study. Employing variables comparable to those of the Buttel et al. study, similar results are obtained, except that race, a variable not included in the previous study, is found to be quite significant for determining levels of community attachment. However, when urban density is introduced as a variable for the urban areas in the sample, it is found to be the most important determiner of community attachment.
68 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a gap-theoretical account of satisfaction and happiness called "the Michigan model" was supported for 12 domains and life as a whole by a social survey of rural Ontario seniors.
Abstract: After reviewing recent gerontological literature on satisfaction and happiness from the point of view of explanations by analysis of constituents, explanations by synthesis of correlates and mixtures of these two types of explanations, I described some results of a social survey of rural Ontario seniors. A gap-theoretical account of satisfaction and happiness called ‘the Michigan model’ was supported for 12 domains and life as a whole. Differences in the constituent patterns for satisfaction and happiness with life as a whole were found for males, females, those who had lived off farming, those who had not, those aged 60–74, and 75 and above.
48 citations
TL;DR: The Andrews-McKennell papers are shown to be a retrogression rather than a scientific advance, being conceptually confused, using inappropriate data analysis, and dealing with arbitrary assumptions which are either untested, untestable or false as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: In a paper published in Social Indicators Research in 1975, Levy and Guttman proved the proposition that wellbeing is a special case of attitude. They exploited this result for establishing a certain lawfulness for wellbeing behavior, and built on this for revealing more specialized features of the lawfulness. Five years later in this same journal, Andrews and McKennell published two papers on exactly the same proposition, but without proving it, without building on known relevant lawfulness of attitudinal behavior, and without mentioning (neither positively nor negatively) the Levy-Guttman work. The Andrews-McKennell papers are shown to be a retrogression rather than a scientific advance, being conceptually confused, using inappropriate data analysis, and dealing with arbitrary assumptions which are either untested, untestable or false.
38 citations
TL;DR: The relationship between a set of measures of various components of environmental density and perceived crowding was examined in a data set from a sample of residents of a large metropolitan area as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The relationships between a set of measures of various components of environmental density and perceived crowding are examined in a data set from a sample of residents of a large metropolitan area. While there are meaningful patterns observed among the correlations, the primary finding is the weakness of the relationships between density and crowding. The implications of the weak relationship between objective and subjective measures intended to measure components of the quality of life, of which the present findings are an example, are discussed; the usefulness of subjective measures may lie primarily in their capacity to define what aspects of society should be monitored and included in a system of social accounting.
36 citations
TL;DR: The main countervailing forces to liberalism were found to be stagflation, taxation level, and crime as mentioned in this paper, however, despite the waning of liberalism in recent years there is no evidence to support the idea that most liberal advances over the past four decades will be reversed in the immediate future.
Abstract: There has been a general shift towards liberalism during the post World War II period. A plurality of attitude trends have moved in the liberalism direction. There is, however, some evidence that this liberal shift has weakened, but not reversed during the last decade. Topical disaggregation show that the liberal movement has not been uniform across subjects. Attitudes towards abortions, civil liberties, race relations, and religion have moved most consistently in the liberal direction while crime/violence and spending/taxation items have showed more conservative trends. The main causes of the general liberalism trend were modernization and liberal idealism assisted by the New Deal Realignment and institutional leadership. The main countervailing forces to liberalism were found to be stagflation, taxation level, and crime. Despite the waning of liberalism in recent years there is no evidence to support the idea that most liberal advances over the past four decades will be reversed in the immediate future.
35 citations
TL;DR: This paper analyzed data collected from a national sample survey conducted recently in Korea and produced a number of results which do not accord with those from research undertaken in industrializing countries, such as the USA and Canada.
Abstract: Research on perceived quality of life to date has been confined to industrialized countries mostly in the West. As a result, very little has been known about the quality of life perceived and desired by the people living in industrializing countries. This study has sought to fill this void by analyzing data collected from a national sample survey conducted recently in Korea. The analysis has produced a number of results which do not accord with those from research undertaken in industrialized countries.
30 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a model identifying the various factors that ought to be brought into a thorough study of ecological aspects of quality of life is proposed, and strategies for operationalizing these factors in empirical studies are discussed.
Abstract: The centerpiece of this paper is a proposed model identifying the various factors that ought to be brought into a thorough study of ecological aspects of quality of life. The model suggests that in addition to studying the physical, economic and social situation of an individual it also is important to study his beliefs about how the world works, his personal lifestyle, and his values, goals, aspirations and needs if one is to make adequate inferences about what produces the level of quality of life that he experiences. The model also shows that it is important to look at similar variables for a community or a society in order to arrive at inferences about quality of life for that community or society. Personal and societal learning is a dynamic factor in the model. The paper concludes with a discussion of strategies for operationalizing these factors in empirical studies.
27 citations
TL;DR: Comparison of patients with a national sample reveals no difference in income (adjusted for inflation), marital status and education level but patients, who are typically older, are more often retired or disabled, but perceived quality of life is nearly the same.
Abstract: (1) Comparison of patients with a national sample reveals no difference in income (adjusted for inflation), marital status and education level but patients, who are typically older, are more often retired or disabled. (2) Overall, perceived quality of life is nearly the same for patients and national sample; apparent differences can be readily explained by factors other than cancer or its treatment. (3) While some minor differences among patients were found as a function of their site of cancer, treatment modality, or health status, no evidence was found of significant detrimental effects due to radiation therapy or perceived quality of life. (4) Contrary to expectations of deteriorated quality of life, compared to the national baselines the patients are actually more satisfied with their lives as a whole.
26 citations
Abstract: This paper reports results of a harmonised study of subjective social indicators carried out in eight member countries of the European Community, sponsored, on an experimental basis, by the Statistical Office of the European Communities (Luxembourg). Comparative data from nationwide representative samples from Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Denmark are presented for three key dependent measures of perceived well-being: Self-Assessed Health, Satisfaction with Housing and Life Satisfaction. The cross-cultural generalisability of the influence of demographic variables on these three measures in examined, using 4-way analysis of variance. The analyses revealed a remarkable consistency across nations in terms of the effects of certain demographic variables on some of the dependent measures; however, some inconsistencies were also revealed. Substantial discrepancies in mean scores of the same sub-groups in different countries were also observed. While further research would be required to determine whether these differences were due to objective circumstances or to cultural differences in subjective perceptions or response patterns, some tentative interpretations of the differences were put forth.
TL;DR: In this article, the usefulness of social indicators to the processes of policy planning and implementation in the delivery of mental health, alcohol and drug abuse services is investigated to determine whether social indicator data can contribute to more effective policy planning.
Abstract: Given current imperatives for more effective, responsive, and economical government, policy planners and administrators are seeking increasing assistance from social scientists. Here the usefulness of social indicators to the processes of policy planning and implementation in the delivery of mental health, alcohol and drug abuse services is investigated to determine whether social indicator data can contribute to more effective policy planning. In a two part study, the relationship between social indicators and Specific sources of these data were: population total, subdivided by geographic area and race (Caucasian, Black, and Other, which in Arizona is virtually all Native Americans) from the 1975 special census; population by age and ratio of dissolutions to marriages from the for 1977; crime rates from the Arizona State Justice Planning Agency for 1975; and cause of death rates from the Bureau of Vital Statistics, Arizona Department of Health Services for 1975. Subjective measures of psychological well-being were not available for the internal validational component of the study.
state wide service utilization rates and The measures the individual's level of anxiety, worry, loneliness, and sadness, and is associated with other measures that have been used in epidemiological studies to identify persons with psychological difficulties. The assesses an individual's level of psychiatric impairment as evidenced by the frequency with which he or she reports having experienced each of the 22 psychological and psychosomatic symptoms on the scale. It has also been used in numerous epidemiological studies to investigated levels of impairment among various populations. The reflects the degree to which the person is involved with, interested in, and experiences control over his or her physical and social environment. Active involvement with the world and frequent social participation are considered to be conducive to the experience of positive affect. The measures the degree to which the persons is satisfied with the quality of his or her life. The score on this scale is a composite of the respondent's level of satisfaction in different areas of life such as standard of living, health, personal functioning, and family life. The greater the satisfaction in these separate areas, the higher will be the individual's overall evaluation of the quality of his or her life.
psychological well-being in the community is examined. Both objective and subjective social indicators were studied. Both types of indicators were found to be useful and complementary in identifying service needs and states of well-being in the community.
TL;DR: This paper reports comparative social indicator data from eight member countries of the EEC: Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands to examine the cross-cultural generalizability of the influence of objective and subjective characteristics in predicting three measures of environmental quality.
Abstract: This paper reports comparative social indicator data from eight member countries of the European Economic Community (EEC): Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands. Nationwide representative samples in each country were interviewed in 1977 in the context of a harmonized study of subjective social indicators. A major purpose of the study was to examine the cross-cultural generalizability of the influence of objective and subjective characteristics in predicting three measures of environmental quality: (1) Satisfaction with Housing, (2) Satisfaction with Neighbourhood, and (3) Satisfaction with Health Services, as well as in predicting the global measure of Life Satisfaction. Stepwise multiple regression analyses were performed on each of the four dependent variables for each of the eight countries. The cross-national comparability of predictors was examined and similarities and differences were discussed.
TL;DR: This article analyzed the relation between regional development and perceived life satisfaction measures and found that people in less developed regions tend to be equally (or more) satisfied in almost every aspect of their lives.
Abstract: This paper analyzes the relation between regional development and perceived life satisfaction measures. Using Oklahoma it is identified that people in less developed regions tend to be equally (or more) satisfied in almost every aspect of their lives. This leads to the conclusion that aspirations, in addition to the attainment of aspirations, depend on the level of development.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors defined the level of living as a level of satisfaction of the needs of the population assured by a given flow of goods and services in a unit of time.
Abstract: Visualizing the level of living as a level of satisfaction of the needs of the population assured by a given flow of goods and services in a unit of time, several sets of components which are judged capable of representing the various aspects of the level of living are chosen for eleven states of Malaysia. Indices of levels of living disparities, within the framework developed by Frederick Harbison and associates, which are called ‘pattern of development’ and ‘measure of development’ are established for eleven states of Malaysia based on 16 socio-economic indicators in order to get a clear picture of regional socio-economic disparities in this country.
TL;DR: In this article, an attempt is made to describe territorial social indicators for Kwara State, Nigeria, and to suggest how they might be used to map inequalities, and how these indicators can be used for inequality mapping.
Abstract: An attempt is made to describe territorial social indicators for Kwara State, Nigeria, and to suggest how they might be used to map inequalities.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report on the effort to improve the consistency and objectivity of the economic rights section of the annual Country Reports, prepared by the Department of State, to provide a basis for equitable implementation of this aspect of U.S. human rights policy.
Abstract: This paper reports on the author's effort to improve the consistency and objectivity of the economic rights section of the annual Country Reports, prepared by the Department of State, to provide a basis for equitable implementation of this aspect of U.S. human rights policy. The purpose was to define relatively objectively the extent to which a country's basic human needs are filled, as a backdrop to a discussion of the country's policy effort. This complex and evolving area of foreign policy had few participants who were sophisticated about social policy or social data, and existing social indicators had many problems of reliability. The Universal Declaration on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic and Social Rights to which the U.S. is signatory, were taken as starting points, along with literature on basic needs in developing countries. Education, health, income and nutrition were selected as the highest priority rights for immediate action, policy issues were outlined for discussion, and a set of overview, background, and diagnostic social indicators were selected for inclusion in the reports. Principles for the selection of indicators included simplicity, ready availability across many nations, reliability, credibility, comprehensibility and correspondence to policy issues. Indicators, which are available through the World Bank, included life expectancy, literacy rates, infant mortality, school enrollment, population per physician, percentage of FAO daily nutritional requirement, percentage served by clean water. Cautions are raised that indicators should be used only in context of expert qualitative analysis of a country's situation because they are imperfect and limited measures. They should not be linked to policy too directly because the causal connection may be tenuous. The project is seen as a first phase in improving the information used in this policy area and giving more visibility to the issues.
TL;DR: The way of life is a topic of central interest in present Hungarian sociology as discussed by the authors, and the time budget survey is considered to be a good method to investigate the way-of-life.
Abstract: The way of life is a topic of central interest in present Hungarian sociology. The time budget survey is considered to be a good method to investigate the way of life. A national survey was performed in 1976–1977. Its results can be compared to an earlier national survey in 1963. The main characteristics of the way of life and the main changes are: The time spent at the workplace changed more slowly than the statutory working time. Income-supplementing working activities are very widespread, most of all in small agricultural plots. These plots are cultivated by almost all social strata residing in villages. The total amount of time spent in household chores diminished and became somewhat more equally shared by women and men. The length of daily contracted and commited time is strongly differentiated by social strata and this differentiation tended to increase.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report and analyze the quality of life perceptions held by the inhabitants of two culturally different but demographically similar cities: Springfield, Illinois and Aix-en-Provence, France.
Abstract: This paper reports and analyzes the quality of life perceptions held by the inhabitants of two culturally different but demographically similar cities: Springfield, Illinois and Aix-en-Provence, France. Although the Springfielders expressed greater satisfaction than the Aixois in virtually all the life domains covered by the research, the areas of relative satisfaction and dissatisfaction were remarkably similar in the two cities; furthermore, the domains in which the French indicated the least satisfaction were generally ones where their objective quality of life conditions were inferior to those of their American counterparts. Multiple regression techniques are used to trace the relative contribution of domain satisfactions and demographic characteristics in explaining respondents' comparative life enjoyment and reported levels of happiness.
TL;DR: In this article, the effects of civil religion on American society and culture have been investigated and it was shown that civil religion's political impact on public policy orientations would appear less than its impact on the selection of presidential candidates.
Abstract: What are the effects of civil religion on American society and culture? As a phenomena which presumably serves to integrate the political with the religious sectors of the national culture in the minds of citizens, it would seem that civil religion should have political consequences. Limited work has shown that civil religious beliefs help predict one's preference among presidential candidates. However, there have been no tests of civil religion as an indicator of public policy preferences. This investigation explores such relationships. While civil religion significantly related to stands on various public policies, these relationships are weak except in comparison to many other types of social indicators. Furthermore, civil religion's political impact on public policy orientations would appear less than its impact on the selection of presidential candidates.
TL;DR: Using a series of well-established territorial social indicators, the authors describes the relative change in levels of living in the United Kingdom by local authority areas between 1951 and 1971, and a typology of change derived from the results of a linear regression analysis is presented.
Abstract: Relatively little is known about the persistence or otherwise of geographical gradients in levels of living, even though the eradication of inter-and intra-regional disparities has been a major objective of the ‘welfare state’ created in the United Kingdom after the Second World War. Using a series of well-established territorial social indicators, this paper describes the relative change in levels of living in the United Kingdom by local authority areas between 1951 and 1971. A typology of change derived from the results of a linear regression analysis is presented. It is shown that the overall intensity of spatial inequality has changed very little over the period. At the same time, however, the relative position of some areas has deteriorated significantly, while that of others has significantly improved.
TL;DR: In this article, a comparison of counties highly dependent on coal production with other counties in Appalachian Kentucky shows that the coal counties have less industrial diversity and that income does not associate with equality in those counties as it does in non-coal counties.
Abstract: Comparison of counties highly dependent on coal production with other counties in Appalachian Kentucky shows that the coal counties have less industrial diversity. Also, income does not associate with equality in those counties as it does in non-coal counties. Coal and non-coal counties differ little as regards income, but coal dependence associates positively with income among coal-dependent counties. These results are largely consistent with descriptions of coal-producing Appalachia as an internal colony. They are relevant to general ideas of internal or economic colonialism, but they may not apply to other coal-producing areas.
TL;DR: The patterning of human concerns over time is investigated in this article, using data from two surveys on concerns conducted in Israel in 1962 and 1975 respectively, using identical questions developed by Hadley Cantril open-ended questions in which the respondent described either his personal or his country's future in positive and/or in negative terms.
Abstract: The patterning of human concerns over time is investigated, using data from two surveys on concerns conducted in Israel in 1962 and 1975 respectively. Both studies used identical questions developed by Hadley Cantril-open-ended questions in which the respondent described either his personal or his country's future in positive and/or in negative terms. Concerns were defined by three major facets: their evaluative direction, their psychological immediateness, and the life-area to which they pertain. Time and salience were considered indirectly. A basic structure was predicted: the patterning of concerns would remain relatively stable over the years. In the event, only a patterning by life-areas emerged, primarily for the personal concerns, but is was found to remain relatively stable over time. Hopes and fears on both personal and national issues intermingled in an overall configuration of the major concerns.
TL;DR: This article discussed four problems that accompany trend analysis with survey data, including sample composition, question context, question wording, and short-term versus long-term change, with special attention to Harris data.
Abstract: The recent publication of a volume that identifies almost 14 000 repeated questions from Louis Harris surveys should greatly facilitate the use of survey data for the study of social change. Four problems that accompany trend analyses with survey data are discussed in this paper with special attention to Harris data. They involve sample composition, question context, question wording, and short term versus long term change.
TL;DR: In this paper, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) approach to the development of estimates of the cost of raising a child is discussed in the context of other approaches to standard budget and child cost research.
Abstract: Four issues fundamental to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) approach to the development of estimates of the cost of raising a child are identified. The USDA resolution of conceptual and procedural problems is discussed in the context of other approaches to standard budget and child cost research. Finally, the USDA procedures are illustrated by a detailed description of the development of the most recent USDA estimates of the annual and total costs of raising farm children from birth to age eighteen. These estimates, updated to 1980 annual average price levels, are presented.
TL;DR: In this paper, the current state of Korean internal migration in 1961-75 is examined from three perspectives: (1) where migrants go; (2) who moves; and (3) why they move.
Abstract: The current state of Korean internal migration in 1961–75 is examined from three perspectives: (1) where migrants go; (2) who moves; and (3) why they move. It is followed by a closer examination of the experiences that in-migrants to Seoul, the capital city of Korea, undergo in regard to (1) decision-making of migration; (2) job mobility; (3) settlement patterns; and (4) living conditions of squatters. Evaluation of the migration policies named in the Seoul population dispersal and relocation plans leads to a conclusion that they have little concern with the welfare of the urban poor and in-migrants to Seoul.
TL;DR: A comparative study of the 52 upstate New York counties replicated a previous state level study that did a principal components analysis of social problems and attempted to predict them by aspects of social structure.
Abstract: A comparative study of the 52 upstate New York counties replicated a previous state level study that did a principal components analysis of social problems and attempted to predict them by aspects of social structure. In the New York counties the percent Democrat predicted various welfare measures. Population density predicted health and crime problems, and affluence. When population density was controlled, affluence related only to crimes of property. Contrasting with the state study, political competitiveness (per cent voting) was related to few variables.
TL;DR: The youth bulge hypothesis was tested through a regression analysis which estimated the contemporaneous relationship between a measure of adolescent disorder (the youth suicide rate over time) and the proportion of youths to adults.
Abstract: Statistics reveal the steady, long-term, increase of self-and-other-destructive conduct among American youths. The conduct involved includes suicide, homicide, out-of-wedlock births, drug abuse and recorded crimes. A variety of hypotheses have been proposed to interpret this conduct — and to indicate possible remedies. Some of these hypotheses are briefly characterized, generally evaluated, and rejected. One hypothesis, the so-called youth bulge theory, suggests that the conduct is due to a disproportinate relationship between the youth population and the adult population; this disproportion — the so-called youth bulge — ultimately led to various modes of youth alienation. The youth bulge hypothesis was tested through a regression analysis which estimated the contemporaneous relationship between a measure of adolescent disorder (the youth suicide rate over time) and the proportion of youths to adults. A statistically significant but small relationship was found between the two variables. The implications of this conclusion are briefly sketched.
TL;DR: In this article, economic indicators were used as an independent variable to predict family instability, and a positive correlation was found between the economic indicators and number of divorces per 100 marriages.
Abstract: Economic indicators were used as an independent variable to predict family instability. A positive correlation was found between the economic indicators and number of divorces per 100 marriages. Among the economic indicators, differences in impact were noted. Unemployment variables have a more immediate impact on family instability, while economic growth indicators are related inversely and have a greater impact on family instability over a period of time.
TL;DR: A Western Canadian research study substantiates the academic and applied value of the social indicators approach with respect to health services planning, research, and policy decision-making.
Abstract: Health-service researchers, policy analysts, and politicians face several problems in attempting to evaluate health care programs and make relevant policy decisions. The possible role of social indicators is discussed in these regards and is applied in an important health care context, the utilization of ancillary health services by the elderly. A Western Canadian research study substantiates the academic and applied value of the social indicators approach with respect to health services planning, research, and policy decision-making.