Description of Childhood Social and Economic Circumstances Domains and Scales
| Domain/scale | Definition | Number of items | Mean (SD) | Possible range | Observed range | α | Meaning of high score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home and family circumstances | |||||||
| Number of times renting during 4 periods of childhood (0–4) | Rented during 4 periods of childhood: 0–5, 6–9, 10–14, 15–18 | 4 | 2.07(1.62) | 0–4 | 0–4 | – | More periods of renting |
| Number of times moved (categories) | 0, 1, 2, 3, 4+ | 1 | 3.31 (1.48) | 1–5 | 1–5 | – | More moves |
| Raised by 2 parents (1/0) | Raised by both parents vs raised by one parent, a grandparent, a parent and a step parent, or some other combination of adults | 1 | 0.67 | 0–1 | 0–1 | – | Raised by 2 parents |
| Deprivation | Periods when their family was just surviving or when there was not enough food to eat or both | 2 | 0.79 (0.77) | 0–2 | 0–2 | – | More periods of disadvantage |
| Family financial status | Rating of family's financial status as 1=pretty well off, 2=about average, 3=poor | 1 | 2.28 (0.61) | 1–3 | 1–3 | – | Poorer status |
| Neighbourhood | |||||||
| Neighbourhood type | 1=upper middle class 2=middle 3=lower middle class 4=working class | 1 | 3.02 (1.00) | 1–4 | 1–4 | – | Lower income type |
| Neighbours who are same ethnicity | How many neighbours were the same race/ethnicity as themselves with 1=none, 2=a few, 3=about half and 4=all or most | 2 | 3.32(0.97) | 1–4 | 1–4 | – | Higher proportion same ethnicity |
| Work and money | |||||||
| Age began working regularly | 1 | 16.11(3.19) | 7–35 | – | Older age | ||
| Summer work for pay | Extent of working for pay during middle- and high school summers | 2 | 2.49 (1.10) | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0.63 | More work during summer |
| Potential for advancement through schooling | |||||||
| Parent attitude towards education | Extent to which parents paid attention to grades, stressed importance of education | 2 | 3.16 (0.98) | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0.82 | More support for schooling |
| Perceived importance of education | Respondent's sense that schooling is important to get a good job | 1 | 3.44 (0.92) | 1–4 | 1–4 | – | More important |
| School quality and content | |||||||
| Perceived school quality | Rating of quality of middle and high school education | 2 | 2.99 (0.77) | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0.76 | Higher perceived quality |
| Extracurricular activities—high school | Number of years on organised sports, school clubs, school organisations | 3 | 2.85 (2.75) | 0–9 | 0–9 | 0.59 | More extracurricular |
| Music extracurricular activities—high school | Number of years in band/choir or taking music lessons | 2 | 1.28 (1.98) | 0–6 | 0–6 | 0.71 | More music activities |
| Influence and support of adults | |||||||
| Extent of adult support | Extent of encouragement/support from parents, grandparents, aunts/uncles, teachers, counsellors, clergy/minister, other adult during age 5–18 | 7 | 9.85 (5.20) | 0–21 | 0–21 | 0.74 | More support |
| Extent of adult discouragement | Extent of discouragement from parents, grandparents, aunts/uncles, teachers, counsellors, clergy/minister, other adult during age 5–18 | 7 | 1.85 (2.73) | 0–21 | 0–16 | 0.67 | More discouragement |
| Leisure activities | |||||||
| Summer travel | Extent of summer camp, family trips, family scenic rental during middle and high school summers | 6 | 2.95 (3.61) | 0–15 | 0–15 | 0.78 | More summers of travel |
| Summer reading | Extent of reading during middle and high school summers | 2 | 2.83 (1.14) | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0.90 | More reading |
| Summer social activities | Extent of playing with friends, watching TV, playing on organised sports teams, during middle- and high school summers | 6 | 2.24 (0.68) | 1–4 | 1–4 | 0.70 | More social/leisure |