Validation of Survey Data on Income and Employment: The ISMIE Experience

This report derives from the project "Improving survey measurement of income and employment (ISMIE)" which investigates measurement error in survey data on income and employment, using a UK sub-sample of the European Household Community Panel (ECHP). In this paper we describe the process of collecting validation data and the outcomes of the process. Validation data were obtained from two sources: employers' records and government benefit data from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The former provided information on occupation and employment status, gross and net pay, membership of company pension schemes and industry sector. The latter provided histories of benefit receipt and tax credits, for example, child, disability, housing and unemployment benefits, pensions and income support. In the survey interview, respondents were asked for written permission both to obtain their DWP records and to contact their employer. They were also asked to provide information that would facilitate the process of obtaining the validation data: National Insurance number (NINO) and employer contact details. Subsequently, DWP records were extracted using a non-hierarchical matching strategy, based on different combinations of identifying variables obtained in the survey (NINO, sex, date of birth, name and postcode), and a survey of employers was carried out (mail, with telephone follow-up). The representativeness of the validation samples obtained depends on the co-operation of both survey respondents and providers of validation data, as well as errors in the matching process. We report permission rates, proportions providing matching items, match rates for the DWP data and response rates to the employer survey. We identify correlates of these measures of success at each stage of the validation process in terms of substantive characteristics of the survey respondents. Variation by subgroups is identified and implications for the representativeness of the validation sample are discussed.

The Effects of Dependent Interviewing on Responses to Questions on Income Sources

Using an experimental design, we compare two alternative approaches to dependent interviewing (proactive and reactive) with traditional independent interviewing on a module of questions about sources of income. We believe this to be the first large-scale quantitative comparison of proactive and reactive dependent interviewing. The three approaches to questioning are compared in terms of their impact on under-reporting of income sources and related bivariate statistics. The study design also enables identification of the characteristics of respondents whose responses are sensitive to the mode of interviewing. We conclude that under-reporting can be significantly greater with independent interviewing than with either form of dependent interviewing, especially for income sources that are relatively common or relatively easy to forget. We find that dependent interviewing is particularly helpful as a recall aid for respondents below retirement age and registered disabled persons.

Linking Household Survey and Administrative Record Data: What Should the Matching Variables Be?

Linkages of household survey responses with administrative data may be based on unique individual identifiers or on survey respondent characteristics. The benefits gained from using unique identifiers need to be assessed in the light of potential problems such as non-response and measurement error. We report on a study that linked survey responses to UK government agency records on benefits and tax credits in five different ways. One matched on a respondent-supplied National Insurance Number and the other four used different combinations of sex, name, address, and date of birth. As many linkages were made using matches on sex, date of birth, and post-code, or on sex, date of birth, first name and family name, as were made using matches on self-reported National Insurance Number, and the former were also relatively accurate when assessed in terms of false positive and false negative rates. The five independent matching exercises also shed light on the potential returns from hierarchical and pooled matching.Record linkage; Matching; National Insurance number; Measurement error

Patterns of Consent: Evidence from a General Household Survey

We analyse consent patterns and consent bias in the context of a large general household survey, the 'Improving survey measurement of income and employment' (ISMIE) survey, also addressing issues that arise when there are multiple consent questions. Using a multivariate probit regression model for four binary outcomes with two incidental truncations, we show that there are biases in consent to data linkage with benefit and tax credit administrative records held by the Department for Work and Pensions, and with wage and employment data held by employers, and also in respondents' willingness and ability to supply their National Insurance Number. The biases differ according to the question considered, however. We also show that modelling consent questions independently rather than jointly may lead to misleading inferences about consent bias. A positive correlation between unobservable individual factors affecting consent to DWP record linkage and consent to employer record linkage is suggestive of a latent individual consent propensity.Informed consent; Household surveys; Consent bias; Selection bias; Multivariate probit; Incidental truncation; Data linkage; National Insurance number

The Yōtenki: kami identities in medieval Sannō shintō

My thesis focuses on Medieval Japan, in particular on the cult of the deities of the Hie shrines, near Kyōtō. This is known as Sannō shintō, and the deities themselves as Sannō (mountain sovereigns). Informed by Tendai Buddhism and linked to the main Tendai centre, the Enryakuji, Sannō shintō was central to the medieval cultural landscape, not only religious but also literary and political. My thesis is the first comprehensive study in English. It focuses on a text called Yōtenki, composed in stages from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century, both by priestly lineages at Hie and monastics affiliated to the Enryakuji. There is no comprehensive research on the Sannō deities. Only one monograph and articles exist in Japanese, as well as a few English-language articles. In the first two chapters of the thesis, I systematise the existing scholarship for the first time, reconciling it with my own textual research. I reconsider the neglected role of shrine lineages and produce a working definition of Sannō shintō which takes account of its continental models. In the third chapter, I tackle the composition process of the Yōtenki. The fourth chapter is the first extensive study on origin stories of the Hie deities, also showing the impact of medieval narratives on modern understandings of their identities. Finally, the fifth chapter shows how one chapter of the Yōtenki self-consciously addresses the continental models which I have introduced in the second chapter. My thesis also includes the first English translations of two sections of the Yōtenki, “Ōmiya no onkoto” and “Sannō no koto”. My thesis is the first introduction in English to the main actors of the Sannō cult, both human and divine. It clarifies the institutional discourses reflected by mythologies on the Sannō deities and sheds light on the variety of purposes for which mythological accounts on the deities were composed

Desigualdades de género en la academia italiana. ¿Cuál es el futuro para las mujeres académicas?

In the last 20 years, the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) has enacted two major reforms and passed a number of parliamentary acts that have radically changed the Italian academic system, e.g., the role of the permanent researcher was abolished and different types of fixed-term researchers were introduced. So far, very little is known on the effects of these reforms on men and women’s career progressions. Using a unique dataset that includes information on the whole Italian academic staff, this paper aims to provide an overview of the changes that the reforms introduced in the academic system and compare male and female scholars’ conditions within the university. The focus of the paper is on the young cohorts of academics who work as researchers. The main finding is that, in a context in which the selection and recruitment processes are not exclusively based on merit, the «gender neutral» MIUR reforms are contributing to the reproduction of the female disadvantage.En las últimas dos décadas, el Ministerio italiano de Educación, Universidad e Investigación (MIUR) promulgó dos reformas y aprobó un gran número de procedimientos parlamentarios que cambiaron radicalmente el sistema académico italiano, por ejemplo, el papel del investigador permanente fue suprimido y fueron introducidos varios tipos de investigadores a plazo fijo. Hasta aquí, muy poco es conocido sobre los efectos de estas reformas en las progresiones de carrera de hombres y mujeres. A través de un único conjunto de datos, lo cual incluye informaciones sobre el personal académico interno de Italia, éste artículo tiene como objetivo proporcionar un resumen de los cambios en el sistema académico introducidos por las reformas y una comparación entre las diferentes condiciones de los académicos hombres y mujeres en la Universidad. El foco de esta investigación está en las cohortes más jóvenes de académicos que trabajan como investigadores. El principal hallazgo es que, en un contexto donde los procesos de selección y reclutamiento no están basados exclusivamente en el mérito, las reformas de género neutral del MIUR están contribuyendo a la reproducción de la desventaja femenina

Does poor stunning affect the assessment of animal-based measures consciousness in lambs at slaughter?

Oral session 2[EN] According to EU legislation on the killing of animals (EC n. 1099/2009), to ensure that animals do not regain consciousness before slaughter, the efficiency of stunning method must be evaluated through animal-based measures (ABMs)

A Population Survey in Italy Based on the ICF Classification: Recognizing Persons with Severe Disability

Aim of this paper is to describe functioning of subjects with “severe disability” collected with a protocol based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health. It included sections on body functions and structures (BF and BS), activities and participation (A&P), and environmental factors (EF). In A&P, performance without personal support (WPS) was added to standard capacity and performance. Persons with severe disability were those reporting a number of very severe/complete problems in BF or in A&P-capacity superior to mean + 1SD. Correlations between BF and A&P and differences between capacity, performance-WPS, and performance were assessed with Spearman's coefficient. Out of 1051, 200 subjects were considered as severely disabled. Mild to moderate correlations between BF and A&P were reported (between 0.148 and 0.394 when the full range of impairments/limitations was taken into account; between 0.198 and 0.285 when only the severe impairments/limitations were taken into account); performance-WPS was less similar to performance than to capacity. Our approach enabled identifying subjects with “severe disability” and separating the effect of personal support from that of devices, policies, and service provision

Psychosocial risk factors of technological addictions in a sample of Spanish University students: The influence of Emotional (Dys)Regulation, personality traits and Fear of Missing Out on internet addiction

Perception of the need to be online can lead to the compulsive use of the Internet. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships between Internet Addiction and Social Media Addiction and some psychological variables that could influence the onset of these disorders (FoMO, Emotional Dysre-gulation, Personality traits). The sample was composed by 598 Spanish university students aged from 18 to 35 (471 women and 118 men; average age = 21.56; standard deviation = 2.73). Participants responded to an online questionnaire regarding the use of Internet (IAT), the use of social media (BSMAS), Fear of Missing Out (FoMO), Emotional (Dys)regu-lation (DERS) and personality traits (BFI-15). Correlation analysis showed a positive relationship between FoMO, Social Media Addiction, Internet Addiction, Emotional (Dys)regulation and Neuroticism dimension of Big five. Also, we observed a negative relationship between Internet Addiction and Social Media Addiction, Conscien-tiousness dimension of Big Five, and gender. The tested mediation model highlighted that the total effect of the DERS on the IAT score was significant as well as its indirect effect via the BSMAS and FoMO scores was positive and significant. In conclusion, we proposed a new integrated model for understanding the characteristics, pre-dictors, and risk factors of IA

Consenting to health record linkage: evidence from a multi-purpose longitudinal survey of a general population

Background: The British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) is the first long-running UK longitudinal survey with a non-medical focus and a sample covering the whole age range to have asked for permission to link to a range of administrative health records. This study determines whether informed consent led to selection bias and reflects on the value of the BHPS linked with health records for epidemiological research. Methods. Multivariate logistical regression is used, with whether the respondent gave consent to data linkage or not as the dependent variable. Independent variables were entered as four blocks; (i) a set of standard demographics likely to be found in most health registration data, (ii) a broader set of socio-economic characteristics, (iii) a set of indicators of health conditions and (iv) information about the use of health services. Results: Participants aged 16-24, males and those living in England were more likely to consent. Consent is not biased with respect to socio-economic characteristics or health. Recent users of GP services are underrepresented among consenters. Conclusions: Whilst data could only be linked for a minority of BHPS participants, the BHPS offers a great range of information on people's life histories, their attitudes and behaviours making it an invaluable source for epidemiological research. © 2012 Knies et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd