International comparisons

Definitions and data sources

Definitions of each indicator in the international comparison diagrams, and the reference years and data sources used, are provided below. These indicators are the same as those used in the international comparison sections of the Social Report but may be different from the main social report indicators because more comparable data is not available. Where there are differences, they are noted.

For the comparison between Australia and New Zealand, OECD data is used for all indicators except indigenous language speakers, adult literacy (prose and numeracy) and satisfaction with work-life balance.   

Health

Life expectancy

Life expectancy at birth indicates the total number of years a person could expect to live, based on the mortality rates of the population at each age in a given year or period.

Reference years: 2006–2008 (New Zealand 2006; Australia 2007)

Note: The data for New Zealand and Australia is from complete life tables for the periods 2005–2007 and 2006–2008, respectively. This is used in preference to OECD estimates for more recent years.

Data sources: OECD (2010) OECD Health Data 2010 OECD: Paris; Australian Bureau of Statistics (2009) Life Tables, Australia, 2006–2008, ABS: Canberra; Statistics New Zealand (2009) New Zealand Life Tables: 2005–07, SNZ: Wellington.

Suicide

The number of suicide deaths per 100,000 population.

Reference years: 2003–2008 (New Zealand 2007; Australia 2006)

Note: This comparison includes a larger number of OECD countries than is reported in the suicide indicator in the Social Report, which uses a Ministry of Health data source. A smaller group of countries is most often used in comparisons with New Zealand on health measures.

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Health Data 2010 OECD: Paris

The percentage of the population aged 15 or more years who report that they are daily smokers.

Reference years: 2002–2009 (New Zealand and Australia 2007)

Note: This measure is used in the international comparison section of the Social Report indicator on cigarette smoking. It differs from the main measure used in the indicator, which is the proportion of the population who currently smoke cigarettes.

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Health Data 2010 OECD: Paris

Obesity

The proportion of the adult population (generally the population aged 15 years and over) who are obese. Adult obesity is defined as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 30kg/m².

Reference years: 2005–2008 (New Zealand 2006/2007; Australia 2007–2008)

Note: Only the 12 OECD countries with measured rates of obesity are compared.

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Health Data 2010 OECD: Paris

Potentially hazardous drinking

Annual consumption of alcohol in litres per person aged 15 years and over.

Reference years: 2003–2009 (New Zealand 2009; Australia 2007)

Note: This measure differs from the main measure used in the potentially hazardous drinking indicator.

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Health Data 2010 OECD: Paris

Knowledge and skills

Participation in tertiary education

The percentage of 20–29 year olds enrolled in public or private educational institutions for study.

Note: This measure differs from the main measure used in the indicator on participation in tertiary education.

Reference year: 2007

Data source: OECD (2009) Education at a Glance 2009 OECD: Paris

Educational attainment of the adult population (tertiary)

The proportion of adults aged 25–64 years with an educational attainment of Tertiary-type A (International Standard Classification of Education Level 5 and 6, bachelor’s degree or higher), as defined by The International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED-97).

For more detail see: UNESCO Institute of Statistics (2006) ISCED 1997 UNESCO: Canada.

Reference year: 2007

Data source: OECD (2009) Education at a Glance 2009 OECD: Paris

Adult literacy skills in English (prose literacy and numeracy)

The proportion of the population aged 16–65 years with higher literacy skills (prose literacy and numeracy) in English (defined as skills at Level 3 or above).

Reference year: New Zealand relative to Australia: 2006

Note: Comparable data is available for New Zealand, Australia, the English-speaking part of Canada, and the United States only.

Data source: Satherley, P, Lawes, E and Sok, S (2008) The Adult Literacy and Life Skills (ALL) Survey: Overview and International Comparisons. Ministry of Education: Wellington

Paid work

Unemployment

The percentage of the civilian population aged 15/16 years and over not in employment who are actively seeking and available for paid work.

Reference year: 2009

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Stats extract, Harmonised unemployment rate, accessed 26 May 2010.

Employment

The proportion of the population aged 15/16–64 years who are in paid employment for at least one hour per week.

Reference year: 2009

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Employment Outlook 2010, Statistical Annex, Table B: Employment/population ratios, activity and unemployment rates, persons aged 15–64 years, p 271.

Satisfaction with work-life balance

The proportion of employed people who are “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their work-life balance.

Reference year: New Zealand relative to Australia: New Zealand 2008; Australia 2009

Data sources: Quality of Life Project (2009) Quality of Life Survey 2008: National Report Quality of Life Project and the Ministry of Social Development: New Zealand. Ichii, R, Pocock, B and Skinner, N (2009) Work, Life and Workplace Flexibility: The Australian Work and Life Index 2009 Centre for Work and Life, University of South Australia: Adelaide

Economic standard of living

Market income per person

Gross domestic product (GDP) per person, adjusted using purchasing power parities. 

Reference year: 2008

Note: This measure differs from the main measure used in the market income per person indicator: real gross national disposable income per capita.

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Stat, National Accounts of OECD countries, Main Aggregates, Gross domestic product (expenditure approach), Table HCPC, per head at current prices and current PPPs of 2000 (US dollars), accessed 7 August 2010. OECD: Paris

Income inequality

The extent of the disparity between high and low incomes. The measure used here is the Gini coefficient. Gini coefficients measure income inequality, with a score of 100 indicating perfect inequality and a score of 0 indicating perfect equality.

Reference years: 2000–2005 (New Zealand and Australia 2004)

Note: This measure differs from the main measure in the income inequality indicator.

Data sources: OECD (2008) Growing Unequal: income distribution and poverty in OECD countries OECD: Paris

Population with low incomes

The proportion of the population in households with equivalised disposable income below 50 percent of the median equivalised disposable income, where household disposable income is equivalised using the square root of household size.

Reference years: 2000–2005 (New Zealand and Australia 2004)

Note: This measure differs from the main measure in the population with low incomes indicator.

Data sources: OECD (2008) Growing Unequal: income distribution and poverty in OECD countries OECD: Paris

Civil and political rights

Voter turnout

Proportion of registered voters who cast votes in the general Parliamentary election.

Reference years: 2004–2008 (New Zealand 2008; Australia 2007)

Note: This measure differs from the main measure in the voter turnout indicator, which is the proportion of the estimated voting-age population aged 18 years and over who cast a vote in general elections.

Data source: Inter-Parliamentary Union (2010) PARLINE Database, data from the most recent election, as of 4 June 2010

Representation of women in Parliament

The proportion of elected Members of Parliament (lower house if two houses of Parliament) who are women.

Reference year: As at 31 May 2010

Data source: Inter-Parliamentary Union (2010) Women in National Parliaments, Situation as of 31 May 2010 http://www.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm

Perceived discrimination

The proportion of people aged 15 years and over who reported in a survey that they had been discriminated against in the previous 12 months.

Reference year: 2009 – 19 European OECD countries (New Zealand 2008)

Data sources: European Commission (2009) Discrimination in the EU in 2009, Table Qe3; Statistics New Zealand (2009) New Zealand General Social Survey 2008, Information Release.

Perceived corruption

The perceived level of corruption – defined as “the abuse of public office for private gain” – among politicians and public officials, on a scale of 0 (highly corrupt) to 10 (highly clean). A country’s score in the Corruption Perceptions Index is derived by Transparency International from a number of different surveys of business people and country analysts.

Reference year: 2009

Data source: Transparency International (2009) Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. Transparency International: Berlin

Cultural identity

Indigenous language speakers

The percentage of the indigenous population able to hold an everyday conversation in an indigenous language.

New Zealand: Indigenous population Māori and language Māori Australia: Indigenous population Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and languages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages, which number over 100.

Note: This indicator is an adaptation of the Social Report indicator on Māori language speakers.

Reference years: New Zealand relative to Australia: New Zealand 2006; Australia 2002

Data sources: Statistics New Zealand (2007) 2006 Census Statistics New Zealand: Wellington. Australian Bureau of Statistics (2004) National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey 2002 Australian Bureau of Statistics: Canberra

Safety

Assault mortality

The number of people who have died as the result of an assault, per 100,000 population.

Reference years: 2003–2008 (New Zealand 2007; Australia 2006)

Data source: OECD (2010) OECD Health Data 2010 OECD: Paris

Road casualties (deaths)

The number of people killed in motor vehicle crashes as a proportion (per 100,000) of the total population.

Reference years: 2005–2008 (New Zealand and Australia 2008)

Data source: OECD/International Road Transport Forum (2009) International Road Traffic and Accident Database (IRTAD Database, November 2009. http://www.internationaltransportforum.org/irtad/pdf/risk.pdf

Social Connectedness

Internet access

The percentage of households with access to the internet at home.

Reference years: 2005–2009 (New Zealand 2009; Australia 2008/2009)

Note: This measure differs from the main measure used in the telephone and internet access in the home indicator, which is the proportion of the population with access to the internet in the home.

Data source: OECD (2009) OECD Key ICT Indicators OECD: Paris

Trust in others

The proportion of the population aged 15 years and over reporting that people usually can be trusted.

Reference years: 2003–2006 (New Zealand and Australia 2006)

Data sources: Quality of Life Project (2009) Quality of Life Survey 2008: National Report Quality of Life Project and the Ministry of Social Development: New Zealand Statistics Canada (2004) 2003 General Social Survey on Social Engagement, Cycle 17: an overview of findings Statistics Canada: Ottawa European Commission (2005) Social Values, Science and Technology: Special Eurobarometer 225 European Commission: Brussels Australian Bureau of Statistics (2007) General Social Survey: Summary Results, Australia 2006 Australian Bureau of Statistics: Canberra

Overall life satisfaction

A country’s average score on an 11-point scale from 0–10 (with 0 being the lowest and 10 being the highest levels of satisfaction), derived from individual survey respondents’ scores.

Reference year: 2006

Note: This measure differs from the main measure used in the overall life satisfaction indicator.

Data source: OECD (2009) Society at a Glance 2009: OECD Social Indicators, Chapter 8, Social Cohesion Indicators, Table CO1: Life satisfaction. The data is from the 2006 Gallup World Poll.