Showing papers in "Social Indicators Research in 1989"

Environmental quality and the wellbeing of children

Abstract: There are many reasons for believing that the environment exerts an influence (directly or indirectly) on the wellbeing of children and families. However, while clear evidence is available that low socioeconomic status is associated with lower than average levels of wellbeing, especially among adults, the evidence linking the social and emotional adjustment of children with the quality of the environment is patchy and equivocal. In this paper we focus on three levels of the family environment: the street, the home and the neighborhood. Neighborhood quality was measured by the Vinson-Homel social problems index, street-type as residential or commercial/retail, and housing quality in terms of upkeep, floor occupied, availability of playspace and occupancy type. The research hypothesis was that after allowing for community selection processes children living in lower quality environments would be less satisfied with various areas of their lives, would experience more negative emotions, and would have more restricted and less positive friendship patterns. The sample comprised 321 families which included a 9–11 year old child, drawn from 18 neighborhoods of Sydney. Neighborhood social problem score and street-type, and some aspects of housing, predicted emotional and social adjustment. Before and after controls for family composition, social class and culture, children living in commercial streets, particularly in inner-city areas, stood out from all others in their feelings of loneliness, dislike of other children and feelings of rejection, worry, fear, anger and unhappiness. Children living in high social problems areas showed a pattern of social constriction rather than maladjustment. These results suggest not simply the influence of social class but genuine community socialization effects. Possible sources of, and mechanisms for, these effects are suggested.

The systemic life quality model: A basis for urban renewal evaluation

Abstract: This paper develops, on the basis of explicit assumptions and axioms, a conceptual framework for observing the effectiveness of functioning of action systems, and, in particular of the human individual. The framework is used to construct a facet definition of human quality of life (QOL) which is claimed to be exclusive and exhaustive: The contents of the observational items it produces do not overlap and cover the entire QOL universe. A specification of two facets: the subsystem facet (personality, physical, social, cultural-value) and the functioning mode facet (expressive, adaptive, integrative, conservative) results in 16 content areas, each of which can be represented or covered by an observational item. The systemic QOL measuring represented or covered by an observational item. The systemic QOL measuring instrument is examined with respect to its reliability and validity. Structural hypotheses whose rationale is grounded in the elementary considerations that led to the systemic model of QOL are formulated, tested and are largely confirmed. Finally, the systemic QOL model is applied to the evaluation of life quality and environmental conditions in a neighborhood designated as “distress neighborhood” within national urban renewal project.

South African quality of life: A research note

Abstract: A nation-wide survey (n=5587) was conducted in 1982/83 with a view to developing a reliable cross-cultural index of quality of life for South Africa. Findings confirmed the known under-privileged position of blacks relative to other groups in terms of some 60 objective and subjective indicators. Contrary to expectations the results of factor and regression analyses indicated that the linear additive model of quality of life-as-a-whole cannot account for its full complexity. The possibility is considered that more broadly symbolic factors related to relative deprivation may make an independent contribution to perceived overall well-being. In conclusion, a single cross-cultural albeit multi-item measure of South African quality of life is recommended.

Satisfaction, happiness and well-being of Dutch students

Abstract: Applying Multiple Discrepancies Theory (MDT), the well-being of Dutch students was measured. To test relevant portions of MDT a questionnaire, originally developed by Michalos, was administered to a group of students at Leiden University, the Netherlands. It turned out that the cognitive structure of the satisfaction with life domains consisted of three dimensions: (1) a personal control (psychological distance) dimension; (2) a materialistic-nonmaterialistic dimension; and (3) an interpersonal-mental dimension. Scores of satisfaction with the life domains explain 50% of the variance of the scores of satisfaction with life-as-a-whole. While scores of dissatisfaction (discontent) with the life domains explain 60% of the variance of dissatisfaction with life-as-a-whole. The results show next that the discrepancy between the situation one has and the situation one aspires to is the most important discrepancy in explaining satisfaction scores, as was predicted by the hierarchical model. There are, however, deviations from the general pattern of findings: The influence of the best experience up till now is smaller than in the 1985 Canadian study. Past expectations and personal needs are stronger determinants of aspiration level in the Dutch study than in the Canadian study. In general the results confirm the assumptions of MDT.

A comparison of patterns of urban deprivation between Canadian and U.S. cities

Abstract: Recent research has indicated the existence of aggregate level differences between Canadian and U.S. cities. However, little attention has been given to possible socio-spatial differences between cities in the two nations. This paper attempts to address part of this issue by comparing a sample of paired Canadian and U.S. cities with respect to, (1) deprivation concentration levels within their inner cities, (2) the nature of areas of multiple deprivation, and (3) the proportion of their worst areas of multiple deprivation located within their inner cities. The study found that deprived groups were disproportionately represented in the inner-city areas of both nations. However, areas of multiple deprivation in U.S. cities contained more deprived groups than Canadian cities. Finally, the inner-city areas of both nations contained high proportions of their worst areas of multiple deprivation. In short, the extent of multiple deprivation is less in Canadian cities, but cities in both countries share an inner-city problem.

Life-course and satisfaction, equal for every-one?

Abstract: Since 1974 the department of Social Statistics of the Netherlands Central Bureau of Statistics has carried out regularly Quality of Life Surveys. The goal of the surveys is to give an integrating view of aspects of daily life of the respondents and their evaluation of these aspects. Among other things, information is gathered about satisfaction with life. With the results of the surveys of 1974, 1977, 1980 and 1983 a description is given of the development in satisfaction with life for four hypothetical cohorts. This description points out that there seems to be a general “course of life” in this type of satisfaction, regardless of the generation one belongs to or the period one lives in. This might be explained by the fact that important life-events are concentrated in certain periods of a person's life. However, statistically, this general part of the life-course is small.

On the measurement of certain aspects of social development

Abstract: An attempt has been made in this paper to measure social development. There has been some limited use of per capita national income as a measure of development. A number of social indicators from various societal areas may, alternatively, better represent social development of a region. A composite index of selected social indicators has been proposed as a measure of social development. Certain existing methods of construction of composite indexes have been examined and new methods proposed using the variance-covariance matrix and intercorrelation matrix of the indicators and the concept of (Euclidean) distance. Two examples of intertemporal and international comparisons have been presented to illustrate the proposed methods.

Public opinion and the dimensions of the welfare state

Abstract: Empirical studies over the last ten years indicate that the public in general still supports the welfare state but not necessarily its beneficiaries nor the allocations required to sustain its activities. Since most of these studies focused only on selected aspects of the welfare state their data do not provide a widespread and comprehensive overview of public opinion regarding the welfare state and its internal dynamics. This article focuses on public opinion with regard to the major components of the welfare state. The sample is drawn from a large urban population in Israel. For each component of the welfare state, three dimensions are studied: governmental allocation, quality of service and number of beneficiaries. The results indicate that public opinion with regard to the various elements of the welfare state is differential and distinct.

Population undercount and social science research.

Abstract: The undercount problem in the decennial census has important implication for social science research based directly or indirectly on census data. Because undercount rates (or coverage rates) vary by age, race, residence, and other factors typically studied in social research, important conceptual difficulties arise in using census results to corroborate sampling frames or to validate survey results. Differential undercount, particularly for analyses based on small areas, could produce substantial variability in prevalence rates in cases where the denominators for those rates are derived from the census. Several examples where the undercount problem arises in social science research, including survey research, are considered. The adjustment problem—whether to adjust, how to adjust, and how much to adjust—is also considered from the point of view of social sicence research.

The conical structure of adjustive behavior

Abstract: Wellbeing and coping have usually been treated as separate topics in previous research. The present study proposes a general framework for adjustive behavior which incorporates both previous topics as special cases. This framework shows definitional similarities and differences among wellbeing, coping and further special cases. Empirical data are presented which show a correspondence between the facets of the definitional system and the matrix of intercorrelations of the variables defined thereby. The correspondence is that of a conex, that is, the facets correspond to a conical coordinate system for the SSA space that reproduces the correlation matrix. The data were gathered as part of the Continuing Survey conducted jointly by the Israel Institute of Applied Social Research and the Hebrew University's Communications Institute. The population sampled is the adult urban and rural Jewish population of Israel, over 20 years of age in mid-December 1977. Interviews were conducted in the home through closed questionnaires, 27 of the items being of adjustive behavior. Monotonicity (weak) correlation coefficients were calculated for each pair of adjustive behavior items, for each of the urban and rural samples. Two major hypotheses were to be tested by the matrices of these coefficients: the First Law and the Cylindrical Law for attitude. Both laws were verified in each of the samples, but with the new finding that for adjustive behavior the cylinder degenerates into a cone.

Religiously unaffiliated Canadians: Sex, age, and regional variations

Abstract: Canada has been viewed traditionally as a preponderantly Christian country, with persons who are not affiliated with religion perceived as a deviant minority. Lack of affiliation with organized religion may be operationalized in a number of ways. In Canada in 1985, of all persons over the age of 15, about one in ten reported “no religion”. An additional 20% may be considered to be unaffiliated, in that they report they never attend church; and an additional 10% report that they go to church less than once a year. Depending upon the indicator used, therefore, nearly one in four Canadians may be considered to be religiously unaffiliated.

Life satisfaction among the rural elderly: What do the numbers mean?

Abstract: Studies of life satisfaction among the elderly are based almost entirely on quantitative data, yet we have little knowledge of whether such data are consistent and valid representations of satisfaction. The present paper addresses this issue through a comparison of quantitative and qualitative data on satisfaction with housing, family, spouse, self-esteem, health, friends and life as a whole. The data were obtained from 15 elderly men and women living in rural Ontario who had participated in both a survey study of life satisfaction and an intensive qualitative study of loneliness, social activities and social relationships. The values selected by participants from scales of satisfaction were found to be fairly similar overall to judgements made by the investigators on the basis of qualitative data from interviews and diaries. But there were also a number of discrepancies across both participants and domains, and these discrepancies were not systematic. The scale values appear to be at best a superficial representation of participants' satisfaction. It is concluded that quantitative approaches are of limited utility in studies of the quality of life, and that they are most appropriately viewed as supplementary to approaches employing qualitative data and analysis.

Household structure and child nutrition: A reinterpretation of income and mother's education

Abstract: Two frequently used predictors of child malnutrition are family income and mother's education. Despite their common sense rationale, they pose difficult and perhaps intractable problems of measurement and conceptualization. This paper proposes to substitute the concepts of family and maternal differentiation for these traditionally used indicators. Differentiation is defined as the capacity of the individual or group to process a diversity of information categories. Using data from a recent survey of households in Panama, indicators of this concept were constructed at the family and at the maternal levels using principal component analysis. These are shown to predict a range of indicators of childrens' nutritional status when appropriate control variables are included in the regression analysis. The same analysis was then repeated with income and mother's education replacing the differentiation measures. The results support our claim that the differentiation indicators are superior, and we argue that an even more important reason for using them is that they open the door to a long-term research program that is theoretically consistent and potentially cumulative.

Measuring Ontario's increasing housing affordability problem

Abstract: This empirical study measures the prevalence and incidence of housing affordability problems in Canada in 1972, 1976, and 1983. It shows the affordability problem has not been improved by the major effort the Canadian governments made during the 1970s. Rent controls have not been adequate in reducing affordability problems. Moderate intervention in the housing market are not enough to help low income households attain affordable housing. The problem's resolution may require a major effort to stimulate housing supply, and by direct government involvement, adjustment in creating new methods and institutions for building and delivering housing services. Housing affordability problems will remain unresolved in the absence of major income redistribution programs.

Mixed motivations for migration in the urban prairies: A comparative approach

Abstract: Two Canadian Prairie cities, with populations of about 600 000 each, have experienced dramatically different growth patterns in the last twenty years because of quite different economic bases. Edmonton has been a fast growth city based on the gas and oil boom. Winnipeg has experienced very slow growth with a very diversified economy. Through the vehicles of the Edmonton and Winnipeg Area Studies, an analysis of migration to the two cities is possible. It is a study of mixed motivation. Not only are single motives rarely expressed by respondents, but the relative strength of economic and family motives in particular is somewhat unexpected in the two cities. Finally, while return migration accounts for 50 percent of migrants to the slow growth city, it is not as detached from economic motives as appears to be the case in other Canadian research on return migration.

Change in the stressfulness of life in American states and regions from 1976 to 1982

Abstract: The State Stress Index (SSI) described in this paperI measures difference between the states of the United States, and differences over time, in the occurrence of stressful “life events.” The method of constructing the SSI is described and the scores for each of the American states in 1976 and 1982 are presented. There are large differences between the states in the stressfulness of life. The construct validity of the SSI was supported by analysis which show that the higher the SSI, the higher the incidence of behaviors that have long been assumed to be affected by stress, such as violence and heavy smoking and drinking, and suicide. Scores on the SSI revealed an increase in the stressfulness of life between 1976 and 1982, largely due to the economic recession in 1982. Despite this the 1982 rank order of the states was essentially the same as their relative position in 1976. The West remained the most stressful region of the United States, despite its other attractions, and the North Central and North East remained the least stressful regions, despite their “rustbelt” and “frostbelt” images.

Measuring natural resource scarcity

Abstract: One fundamental index of world social welfare is the availability of natural resources relative to population. In recent years, social, policy, and even physical scientists have been unable to reach consensus on whether natural resources are becoming increasingly scarce. The prevailing pessimistic view of the 1970s has been strongly challenged in the 1980s by resource-population optimists such as Julian Simon. In this paper, we argue that one source of failure to reach consensus is the fundamental ambiguity of available measures of natural resource scarcity. Surveying measures such as unit extraction cost, relative price, and the reserves-to-production ratio, we discuss difficulties of interpretation. Some of the problems identified may yield to further research, but others appear irremediable.

Life feeling scales for use in German and American samples

Abstract: This paper describes an effort to construct social life feeling scales (self-determination, trust, future outlook, and so forth) for use in both American and German samples. Unidimensional scales (as defined) based on American respondents were modified as required to meet the same criteria in a German sample. Scales based on the German sample were modified as required to meet the same criteria among the American respondents. These modified scales were combined in order to meet given criteria of unidimensionality in both samples. Although combined scales meet (approximately) criteria of unidimensionality in both samples (German and American), the question of whether the feelings underlying these scales are identical in both populations remains.

Measurement error and research design: A note on the utility of panel data in quality of life research

Abstract: In our example the use of a cross-sectional (between subjects) approach would probably have led to somewhat misleading conclusions. By examining variation over time (within subjects) we were however able to obtain reasonable estimates of the effects of the variables of interest.

Doing better than the optimum

Abstract: There may be a need for operationalizing basic social indicators like unemployment, inflation, crime, and others in such a way as to allow for going beyond what has traditionally been considered as the zero point of unemployment, inflation, crime, or other social indicators. Doing so can be helpful in stimulating greater societal achievement and happiness, especially with appropriate incentives and a growth perspective. Doing so can also facilitate better comparisons of alternative policies across nations and across other policies.

The human development spectrum: Sub-spectra and social indicators for use in development project planning, design, and implementation

Abstract: A spectrum of human development has been observed which has application in international development project planning, design, and implementation. Based on experience with privately funded development projects in Latin America, Asia, and Africa, seven components or sub-spectra of the human development spectrum which are vital to effective development projects are identified: need, resources, technology, social conscience, integrity, attitude, and problem solving. Their implications for the development process are explained, and indicators for each sub-spectrum are described.

Evaluating the products of alternative sampling methods

Abstract: While theoretical work in survey sampling has offered the promise that selection procedures based on probabilities proportional to size would produce subgroups for surveys as efficiently as oversampling, there were fewer expectations that the two methods would produce comparable products. This research reports the results of an experiment conducted within the 1982 General Social Survey (GSS), which compares two subsamples of blacks (N=510). The multivariate normal distributions of the oversample and the black probability sample are demonstrated to be statistically similar. This similarity extends to subsets of demographic and substantive variables, and to most individual variables as well. For survey directors, these results imply that the choice between oversampling and pps methodologies used for locating population subgroups should depend more on the relative costs/efficiencies involved, than on concerns over product quality. More generally, these results mean that all of the blacks in the 1982 GSS may be combined and treated as a single, national probability sample of the American black population.

Discrepancies between perceived income needs and actual incomes

Abstract: It is shown that in the twelve year period from 1973 to 1985 Canadians' estimates of family income needs tended to be about 51% of actual average family incomes, in current dollars. Estimated needs in current dollars increased 12 times more rapidly than actual average family incomes in constant 1985 dollars.

Trends in public attitudes toward educational spending

Abstract: During the 1970s, only about half of the adult American population wanted to allocate more money to education. But in the 1980s, almost two-thirds of those surveyed have wanted to spend more on education. Using the 1972–86 NORC General Social Surveys (of which there are a dozen replications — each with about 1500 respondents), this paper outlines the sources of this increase in support for educational spending. Over time, while education has been consistently given a higher priority by members of younger birth cohorts, and respondents educated beyond high school, racial differences have narrowed and regional differences have been reversed. In this decade, whites and non-Southerners are increasingly supportive of more spending on education than they were earlier. Finally, while rural/urban differences on education as a national spending priority have remained, this trend is less independent of larger social forces than the others. These results imply that to be most effective in producing increased allocations from public sources, educators and their political supporters should recognize those particular segments of the population who may be most responsive to calls for increased funding.

Analysis of participant reactions to a series of family planning training events

Abstract: Intrah conducts training in family planning for health workers in Africa and Asia. This paper assesses the training on the basis of reactions of participants and a model that views participant reactions as a function of characteristics of the setting in which the training takes place, training event, and the participants. Data are participant reactions from 1659 trainees in 92 events from 1984 to 1987. Factor analysis is used to reduce fifteen participant reaction items to a smaller set of dimensions. Regression analysis is used to test the conceptual model. Analysis produced five participant reaction factors, usefulness of the training, practicality of the training, presentation, a trainer rating and extent of activity. Between twenty six and fifty six percent of the variance in these measures is accounted for by the variables selected on the basis of the conceptual model.