5.3 Topics from Comparable Studies

A review of the instrumentation used by comparable international studies indicates a

degree of consistency with material already used with Growing Up in Ireland’s Cohort

08 at age 3 while also highlighting areas where Growing Up in Ireland is innovating

and collecting information that other studies do not.

For information on parents, a majority of studies had items on the parent’s education

levels and the language primarily spoken in the home. Less common were questions

on the parents’ literacy and numeracy, citizenship and ethnic/cultural background,

and the household’s religion. There were no topics in the area of parent background

that were common in other studies but not already covered by Growing Up in Ireland,

although ‘language exposure/number of languages spoken’ featured in one study.

In terms of socio-demographics, nearly all studies (including Cohort 08 at age 3)

collected information on the parents’ occupational status, household income and

receipt of social welfare payments, as well as type of housing. Questions on housing

condition/quality, intent to remain in accommodation, time spent working in office

versus at home, car ownership and a basic deprivation scale were less common but

did feature in multiple studies. Questions on financial assistance from grandparents,

the cleanliness of the house, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, list of monthly

expenses, and benefits acquired through employment each appeared in one other

study, respectively.

There were no established topics relating to the neighbourhood/community in other

studies. A few studies asked about the parents’ perception of and satisfaction with

the local area, length of time lived in the area, access to public transport and local

services, and about family and friends living in the area. An emerging topic was

community participation, which was included in two studies, while questions on

attitude towards police and the parents’ number of close friends in the area each

appeared in one other study, respectively.

5.4 Summary of Continuing Topics