Understanding Society

1. THE UK HOUSEHOLD LONGITUDINAL STUDY UnderstandingSociety

2. Funding and Sustainability Study currently funded until 2015, waves 1-5 • ESRC contribution of £27 million • £19.4 million from Large Facilities Capital Fund • £2.51 million from co-funders, including:

3. Impact Understanding Society will explain how UK families respond to regional, national and international change, including: • Environment – we will track whether people are changing their environmental behaviour in areas like recycling • Recession and Mobility – are large numbers of people moving to new industries? • Caring for the elderly – are people leaving employment to care? • Are people struggling to get stable employment following the deepest recession in sixty years? • What are the financial behaviours of UK households?

4. Understanding SocietyThe basics

5. Understanding Society: The beginning • Built on the strong foundation of the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) and the Northern Ireland Household Panel Study • 18 years (BHPS) / 8 years (NIHPS) of data • Most used data by academics • More than 2000 publications • Funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and drawing on co-funding from Government Departments • Management of the study awarded to ISER • Fieldwork contract awarded to • National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) for GB • Central Survey Unit (CSU) for Northern Ireland

6. Understanding Society: The basics • UKHLS – UK Household Longitudinal Study • UK – covers England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland • Household – interview all adults in the household, and children aged 10-15 complete a questionnaire • Longitudinal – return each year to interview the same people, following them if they move and interviewing their household

7. Rationales for longitudinal research • Net versus gross change: gross change visible only from longitudinal data • e.g. decomposition of change in unemployment rate over time into contributions from inflows and outflows • Some phenomena are inherently longitudinal (e.g. poverty persistence; unstable employment) • Provides spell-based perspectives (and can observe how circumstances change with time spent in state) • Repeated observations on individuals allow for possibility of controlling for unobserved differences between individuals (fixed and random effect models) • The ability to make causal inference is enhanced by temporal ordering

8. Features of Understanding Society • Large sample size: 40,000 households, around 100,000 individuals • Ethnicity strand: ethnic minority boost allows robust analyses of different ethnic groups • Bio-social: collection of additional bio-social data collected by interviewers and nurse; height, weight, cognitive function, blood… • Data linkage: information collected during the survey will be linked, with the consent of the respondent, to administrative and geographical data • Innovative: an panel of 1,500 households is used to test new ways of collecting data

9. Key features: Large sample size • 40,000 households gives an opportunity to explore issues where other longitudinal surveys are too small. • Permits analysis of small subgroups (teenage parents, disabled people etc) • Analysis at regional and sub-regional levels – effects of geographic variation in policy • High-resolution analysis of events in time – single-year age cohorts • Household focus – data on all members of household and interactions within household (consumption, income – within-household sharing is crucial) • Better and more continuous information on family and household environment within which early development takes place • Observe multiple generations and siblings allow examination of long-term transmission processes and isolate effects of commonly-shared family characteristics • Explore linkages outside the household (external transfers, extended family contact)

10. Key features: Ethnicity strand • The ethnicity “strand” refers to the whole approach towards ethnicity in the study • Focus on issues of diversity and commonality • Self-identification of ethnic group • Country of birth • Background – parents and grandparents ethnicity and countries of birth • Identity – importance to sense of self • Behaviour and beliefs • Migration history • Common questionnaire content across the sample for many questions, including some ethnicity related questions • Additional questionnaire content within the ethnic minority boost • General Population comparison sample

11. Key features: Biomedical research Biosocial study • Opportunity to assess exposure and antecedent factors of health status, understanding disease mechanisms (e.g. gene-environment interaction, gene-to-function links), household and socioeconomic effects and analysis of outcomes using direct assessments or data linkage. • Opens up prospects for advances at the interface between social science and biomedical research. • Cognitive function – Wave 3 • Nurse visits (GB only) • Bio-marker collection started after Wave 2 (Understanding Society) and Wave 3 (BHPS), with a follow-up nurse visit to around 6,000 households in England, Scotland and Wales • Collect height, weight, waist circumference, body-fat percentage, lung function, blood pressure, grip strength and blood • Interviewer collection of biomarkers (planned) • Pilot to test ‘iBio’ in April 2011 • Interviewers collect height, weight, waist circumference, body-fat percentage, blood pressure, grip strength and dried blood spots or saliva

12. Cognitive Ability/Functioning – Full Sample at W3

13. Key Features: linkage to administrative records • At Wave 1 asked respondents for permission to link to: • Health records • Education records • At a future wave, also ask for linkage to benefits and tax records • Parents were asked for permission on behalf of children < 16 • Will provide validation data e.g. for non-employment income receipts • Provide additional data not possible to collect in context of a survey interview • Link survey data to a range of geo-coded data

14. Key Features: Innovative Innovation • Administrative data linkage • Facility for geo-coded links • Innovation panel • Data collection moving to multiple modes • Looking to develop qualitative research combined with quantitative data collection • Test bed for development of new scientific theory and give momentum to the development of new methodological and analytical tools and techniques • Support development in experimental research and understanding the behaviour underlying survey non-response, measurement error and other barriers to high-quality quantitative research

15. Potential for Understanding Society Long-term, annual interview • As the panel matures over the next 20 years (we hope!) longer-term processes can be observed • Regular interviews ensure the capture of short and longer-term change in society • Frequency of data collection means that the timing and duration of events can be observed close to the time at which they occur

16. Potential for Understanding Society Multi-purpose/multi-topic • Ethnic minority strand • Bio-social agenda • A very wide range of research agendas, bringing together information on many life-course domains Interdisciplinary • aims both to meet needs of traditional panel use disciplines (economics, social policy and sociology) • support more interdisciplinary work within the social sciences (e.g. geography and economics) • within the biomedical sciences (e.g. psychology and genetics) • between the social and biomedical sciences.

17. Design

18. Understanding Society design • 12 month intervals between interviews as per the old BHPS/NIHPS • Continuous fieldwork over a 24 month period for each wave in GB • January 2009 – Wave 1 Year 1 starts • January 2010 – Wave 1 Year 2 starts; Wave 2 Year 1 starts • January 2011 – Wave 2 Year 2 starts; Wave 3 Year 1 starts • The BHPS/NIHPS sample is integrated into Year 1 at Wave 2 • Continuous fieldwork over a 12 month period for each wave in Northern Ireland • Respondents maintain the same initial monthly allocation throughout the life of the survey • Face-to-face interview at Waves 1-4 • Intention is for mixed mode data collection at Wave 5 • The IP is in field one year before the corresponding main stage wave. • IP2 was mixed mode (telephone/face-to-face) • IP5 is planned to be mixed mode (telephone/web/face-to-face)

19. Sample: Understanding Society • Great Britain sample • Stratified, clustered sample of entire GB residential population (incl. “Highlands and Islands”). • Addresses drawn from PAF • Primary sampling units are postal sectors in GB • 2640 PSUs • 110 sample points issued each month • 18 addresses issued to each PSU (2640 X 18 = 47,520 issued addresses) • Northern Ireland sample • Unclustered sample of residential population • 2,400 addresses drawn systematically from Land and Property Services Agency list of domestic properties • Addresses allocated to 11 monthly samples; February and March slightly larger number to maintain a representative sample at the quarterly level

20. Sample: BHPS/NIHPS • Great Britain 1991 sample • Stratified, clustered sample of entire GB residential population (south of the Caledonian Canal). • 8,167 addresses drawn from Postcode Address file • Primary sampling units are postal sectors in GB • 250 PSUs • Approx. 33 addresses issued to each PSU • Boost samples • 1999: Scotland/Wales • similar design to 1991, except includes north of Caledonian Canal • 75 PSUs in each country; 30-33 addresses in each PSU • 2001: Northern Ireland • Unclustered sample of residential population • 2,885 addresses drawn systematically from Valuation and Land Agency list of domestic properties; 1,997 productive households

21. Sample design – ethnic minority boost • In GB only (no NI cases) • 43,000 addresses selected for screening • Medium to high density ethnic minority areas included in sample – est. coverage 80% – 90% of EM population • Designed to produce 1,000 individuals interviewed in each of five main ethnic groups • Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Caribbean, Black African plus all mixed backgrounds • Includes other ethnic minorities such as Chinese, other Asian, Middle Eastern

22. Sample design – GP comparison sample and Innovation Panel • GP comparison sample (plus all ethnic minority respondents in the GP sample in low density areas who had no chance of selection in the boost sample) • Receive additional 5 minutes of questions as for the boost sample • One randomly sampled address in 40% of PSUs • Of 2640 PSUs, 1,056 contain 1 comparison sample address • To achieve 500 interviewed households • All persons at those addresses treated the same i.e. regardless of ethnic group • Innovation Panel • Equal probability design as per the new GP sample but GB only (south Caledonian Canal) • 120 PSUs/ 23 addresses per PSU • Issued sample of 2760 addresses to achieve 1500 interviewed households (60% response rate of eligible addresses)

23. Eligible residents • Definition of household • Shared living accommodation/one meal per day • Main residence • Includes: • Long term holiday / boarding school / hospital (temp. absent) • Still in halls of residence / institution (temp. absent) • In prison & returning to household • Long-term au pairs • 6+ months continuous residence • Adults working away – if address is main household • 6 month rule – except for ‘special groups’

24. Types of sample member • OSM (Original Sample Member) • In Wave 1 sample • New babies of female OSM • TSM (Temporary Sample Member) • New household members • PSM (Permanent Sample Member) • Male TSM who has child with female OSM • New Entrant

25. Overview of interviewer activities • Visit households • Enumerate households (including new household members) • Interview adults (aged 16+), including new household entrants • Administer adult and child self-completions • Follow those who move from original households (including children aged 0-15) • Trace movers to new address • Interview mover and other residents at the new address

26. Where are we now?

27. Understanding Society: The story so far • Wide consultation – ongoing • Academics, policy-makers, third sector, grassroots organisations • Innovation Panel • Wave 1: January 2008 • Wave 2: March 2009 • Wave 3: April 2010 • Cognitive Testing • April/May 2008 • June 2009 • April/May 2010

28. Understanding Society: The story so far • Translation Pilot – June 2008 • Dress Rehearsal • Wave 1: August/September 2008 • Wave 2: September-December 2009 • Wave 3: September-December 2010 • Wave 1 started – January 8th, 2009 (until December 2010) • Wave 2 started – January 8th, 2010 (until December 2011) • Wave 3 started – January 8th, 2011 (until December 2012) • Data available for Wave 1 Year 1 from the UK Data Archive

29. Understanding Society: Coming up… • Innovation Panel Wave 4: March-May 2011 • Wave 4 consultation and development • Wave 4 cognitive interviewing (March-April 2011) • IP5 experiment competition • iBio pilot: April-June 2011 • Wave 4 Dress Rehearsal September-December 2011 • Development of mixed mode strategy and design • Deposit of full Wave 1 data • Deposit of Wave 2 Year 1 data

30. Understanding Society: study timetable • January: new Wave go into the field • January-March: IP developed • January-March: Next wave questionnaire drafted • March-May: IP in field • March-June: Next wave questionnaire cognitive testing and “finalised” • March-June: Next wave IP competition • July-September: Next wave script tested • July-September: Next IP developed • September-December: Next wave dress rehearsal run-in • September-December: Next IP specified, scripted • September-December: Next wave question development

31. Sample sizes and response rates

32. Household response

33. Wave 1 (Year 1) sample numbers: households Eligible households only.

34. Wave 2 (Year 1) sample numbers: households (so far…) November/December samples still in the field Eligible households only.

35. Individuals within co-operating households Wave 2 is based on January-May data

36. Wave 1 (Year 1) sample numbers: individuals Eligible individuals only.

37. Wave 2 (Year 1) sample numbers: individuals (January-May data) Eligible individuals only.

38. Questionnaire content

39. Youth (10-15) Proxy (last resort) Youth Hh qure Paper SC 10-15 mins Int obs (1 min) 5 mins enumeration 10 mins 10 mins hhold qs Structure of the interview Adults (16+) CAPI 32.5 mins Paper SC/CASI 10-15 mins Paper SC 10-15 mins

40. Understanding Society: The individual questionnaire For all aged 16+ in the household, covers: • Initial conditions: e.g., place of birth, citizenship, qualifications, family background • Ethnicity and national identity, language, religion, harassment • History of marriage and cohabitation, fertility • Health and disability, caring • Employment and non-employment, discrimination • Childcare, parents and children, family networks • Unearned income and state benefits • Household finances • Political affiliation and values, environmental behaviour

41. Youth questionnaire • For 10 – 15 year olds (vs 11 – 15 on BHPS/NIHPS) • Some BHPS/NIHPS content carried forward • Understanding Society content also includes: • Use social websites • Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire • Relationship with parents/family members • Bullying at school and by/to siblings • More LSYPE comparable questions on education, truancy, misbehaviour etc • Religion and ethnic group • Illicit drugs/alcohol use and perceived risk of harm (at w2) • Cultural and sports participation (at w2) • Homework (at w2) • Money and work (w3) • Taking care of others (w3)

42. Rotating modules and questions • Length constraints acute • Move away from BHPS/NIHPS structure where most people are eligible to be asked all questions and most questions repeated each wave. More use of: • questions asked regularly, but not every wave • triggered questions asked only after key events • questions asked only at particular ages • Decided that where a BHPS/NIHPS question had no better replacement it would be carried forward for comparability • But many questions cut or replaced or moved to a rotating frequency

43. Understanding Society new areas of interest vs BHPS/NIHPS • Family and social networks outside the household • Attitudes and behaviours related to environmental issues • More on Illicit and risky behaviour especially for young people • Psychological attributes • Cognitive ability/functioning measures • More on health outcomes and health related behaviour • Quality of sleep • Well-being • Quality of marital relationships • Risk and trust • Collection of data about younger children < 10 from parent • More data on transition into young adulthood • Discrimination and harassment • Ethnic and national identity

44. Future content plans

45. “Aging” • Strategy is to ask a range of questions across the life-course • General content repeated over time is a way to study ‘aging’ • Large sample means about 1,000 respondents at each age < 70, fewer older people • Specific age triggered content • Children under age 10 – Circumstances of birth if newborn, breastfeeding, physical and psycho-social development at key ages, and parenting of children, childcare arrangements, to name a few. • Youth – 10-15 year old q’re; Adult content that mirrors youth q’re for 16-24 year olds including expectations employment, family, education, other experiences. • Mid-Life – Retirement planning and expectations (w2+) for those not currently retired at age 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65+

46. “Poverty” • Content that addresses issues of poverty mirrors BHPS/NIHPS content, but also … • Household expenditure, consumption (annual) • Household deprivation, child deprivation (rotating) • Behind in payments (annual) • Wealth (rotating) • Individual income from benefits and other sources (annual) • Earnings (annual) • Pensions & Savings (rotating) • Other covariates

47. “Drug Use” • Drug Use • Youth questionnaire addresses this specifically • Carrying forward alcohol, tobacco and illegal drug use questions into Young Adult content (w3+ annual) • Alcohol consumption amongst adults (w2 rotating) • Prescription drug use in Nurse visit (w2 / w3) • Local neighbourhood • BHPS/NIHPS questions on neighbourhood conditions • Fear of crime in neighbourhood

48. For more information • Questionnaires for waves 1 - 3 (including IP) are in the intranet at: http://data.understandingsociety.org.uk/survey-materials • Understanding Society working papers at: http://research.understandingsociety.org.uk/publications • Data available from the ESRC UK Data Archive: http://www.esds.ac.uk/findingData/snDescription.asp?sn=6614