Understanding Society (survey)

Understanding Society (survey)
Name	Understanding Society
Former names	British Household Panel Survey
Country	United Kingdom
Started	2009
Sponsor	Economic and Social Research Council
Institution	University of Essex
Frequency	Annual
Sample size	~40,000 individuals

Understanding Society (survey)

Understanding Society is a large longitudinal household survey conducted in the United Kingdom that tracks social, economic, health, and attitudinal information from individuals and families over time. The project builds on earlier efforts such as the British Household Panel Survey and is led by teams at the University of Essex with funding and oversight involving organizations like the Economic and Social Research Council and collaborations with agencies including the Office for National Statistics and the Institute for Fiscal Studies. The study has been used by researchers affiliated with institutions such as University College London, the London School of Economics, and the University of Manchester to inform policy debates in contexts including welfare reform, labor markets, and public health.

Overview

Understanding Society is a panel survey that collects repeated measures from the same households and individuals to analyze change over time, drawing on sampling frames related to registers maintained by the Office for National Statistics and guest studies tied to the British Cohort Study and the Millennium Cohort Study. Fieldwork management involves partnerships with survey operations organizations like Ipsos MORI and coordination with academic centers such as the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex. The survey supports comparative work alongside international studies like the European Social Survey and the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe.

History and development

The survey was launched as a successor to the British Household Panel Survey with a major redesign introduced in 2009 to expand scope and sample size. Early governance included steering from funders such as the Economic and Social Research Council and advisory input from the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department of Health and Social Care. Subsequent waves incorporated innovations influenced by methodology developments at organizations like the National Centre for Social Research and by longitudinal frameworks seen in the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and the German Socio-Economic Panel. Major expansions and harmonization efforts involved collaboration with the Wellcome Trust and researchers from the Medical Research Council.

Methodology

Sampling strategy draws on address lists and population registers maintained by the Office for National Statistics and uses stratified, clustered designs similar to those used by the General Lifestyle Survey and the Census of Population. Fieldwork protocols incorporate interviewer training modeled after practice from NatCen Social Research and management of nonresponse influenced by work at the Institute for Fiscal Studies. The survey employs mixed-mode collection including face-to-face interviews, web questionnaires, and biomarker collection in protocols akin to the Health Survey for England and the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Weighting, calibration, and imputation procedures are documented following standards advanced by statistical groups such as the Royal Statistical Society and researchers at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

Content and measures

Question modules encompass employment histories and earnings linked to tax and benefits contexts overseen by the Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and the Department for Work and Pensions, health measures referencing instruments used in the Health Survey for England and the Scottish Health Survey, as well as attitudes and political behavior items that parallel modules from the British Election Study and the European Social Survey. Child development and educational attainment items draw inspiration from the National Pupil Database and cohort studies such as the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Biomarker and physical measures link to protocols developed with the Medical Research Council and clinical guidance used by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.

Data access and usage

Microdata and documentation are distributed to researchers via data services like the UK Data Service and managed access arrangements with institutions including the Economic and Social Data Service and the Secure Data Service. Data linkage projects have been undertaken in partnership with administrative data holders such as NHS Digital, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, and local authorities, with governance shaped by ethics panels at the University of Essex and oversight from funders like the Economic and Social Research Council. The resource supports secondary analysis across universities including University College London, the University of Cambridge, and the University of Oxford, and is cited in policy briefings by departments such as the Department for Work and Pensions.

Findings and impact

Analyses using the survey have informed evidence on income dynamics and poverty referenced in reports by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Institute for Fiscal Studies, labor market mobility work cited by the Resolution Foundation, and public health research published with collaborators from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the Medical Research Council. Findings on family formation, child outcomes, and educational inequality have contributed to debates involving the Department for Education and policy proposals reviewed by parliamentary committees such as the Work and Pensions Committee. The study’s longitudinal evidence has underpinned academic articles in outlets associated with the British Academy and influenced programs developed by charitable funders like the Wellcome Trust and the Nuffield Foundation.

Category:Longitudinal surveys