Does the family affluence scale reflect actual parental earned income, level of education and occupational status? A validation study using register data in Sweden

• Aim To examine the external validity of the Family Affluence Scale (FAS) among adolescents in Sweden by using register data for parental earned income, level of education and occupational status. Methods Data from the baseline (2015-2019) of the Study of Adolescence Resilience and Stress (STARS), comprising 2283 13-year-olds in the region of Vastra Gotaland, were used. The FAS III consists of six items: unshared bedroom, car ownership, computer/tablet ownership, dishwasher, number of bathrooms and number of holidays abroad. Register data regarding earned income, educational level and occupational status from Statistics Sweden (2014-2018) were linked to adolescents. In total, survey data were available for 2280 adolescents, and register data were available for 2258 mothers and 2204 fathers. Results Total parental earned income was moderately correlated with adolescents' scoring on FAS (0.31 r < 0.48, p < 0.001), depending on examination year. The low FAS group mainly comprised low-income households, and the high FAS group mainly comprised high-income households. Correlations between mothers' and fathers' educational level and adolescents' scoring on FAS were low (r = 0.19 and r = 0.21, respectively, p < 0.001). FAS was higher among adolescents whose parents were working, but the correlation between parents' occupational status and FAS was low (r = 0.22, p < 0.001). Conclusions The FAS can mainly identify low- and high-income households in Sweden. It may be used as an alternative measure of parental earned income in studies using self-reported socioeconomic status among adolescents.

Subject headings

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskap -- Folkhälsovetenskap, global hälsa, socialmedicin och epidemiologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Family affluence scale

Validation

Sweden

Register data

HBSC

STARS

health behavior

inequalities

adolescents

drift

Public

Environmental & Occupational Health

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)