Scottish Government

List of Topics

The Scottish Household Survey (SHS) is designed to provide accurate, up-to-date information about the characteristics, attitudes and behaviour of Scottish households and individuals on a range of issues. The survey is specifically designed to support the work of the Scottish Government's transport, communities and local government policy areas

Core questions, providing standard information about the composition and key characteristics of households, remain largely unchanged over time. However, the continuous nature of the survey and its modular design permits some flexibility, and the questionnaire has evolved over time.

This document provides a run-down of the topics covered within the Scottish Household Survey from 1999 through to 2008.

You may also find our Publication Summary - Questionnaire page of interest, which shows a simplified version of the questionnaire as used in the field.

Topic List 1999-2008

The topic list is presented in Word format, which provides a user-friendly access to this information. Presented below is a brief summary of the types of questions you are likely to find within each topic.

Part One - Highest income householder or spouse/partner

• HA - Household composition
  Relationship to HIH, age, sex, working status, marital status, ethnicity, religion, need for translation
• HB - Accommodation
  Property type, number of floors, tenure
• HC - Sharing accommodation, Internet access, Recycling
  Sharing rooms, whether share by choice, central heating, internet access and use, recycling
• HD - Driving and transport
  Orange/Blue badges, access to cars and bicycles, access to bus services
• HE - Young people in the household
  Childcare, satisfaction with schools, travel to school, reasons for not using public transport for travel to school
• HF - Health and disability
  People with longstanding health problems or disabilities, conditions, receipt and provision of care, hours of care
• HG - Employment of Highest Income Householder
  Participation in the labour market, period of retirement or unemployment, number of jobs
• HH - Household Income
  Sources and amounts of income from employment, benefits and other sources, employment and self-employment
• HI - Financial Services, Savings and Housing Costs
  Bank, building society and credit union accounts, savings
• HJ - Mortgage and rent
  Mortgage/rent payments before and after benefits, insurance, how household is managing financially

Part Two - Random Adult

• RA - Accommodation
  Time at address, buying former rented property, experience of homelessness,
• RB - Neighbourhoods and Community Safety
  Rating of neighbourhood, likes and dislikes about neighbourhood, neighbourhood problems, frequency of using buses and trains, safety from crime when travelling by bus and train in the evening and walking alone after dark, social contact, neighbour disputes, fear of crime, experience of physical assault.
• RC - Education and Training
  Educational qualifications, participation in training and education, use of the internet, type of internet connection
• RD - Travel and Transport
  Driving licences, travel to work/education, reasons for using car and not using public transport, views on transport charging and congestion, motorcycle ownership and use, miles driven in a year, expenditure on public transport, use and views of bus and train services, use of community transport, planning journeys and awareness and use of Transport Direct and Traveline Scotland, perceptions of bus and train services, travel diary inc experience of congestion
• RF - Volunteering, Convenience of Services
  Type and frequency of volunteering, organisations volunteered for, what affacts past and future decisions to volunteer, convenience of local services
• RG - Health and Disability
  Longstanding health problems or disability, concessionary travel and use of free travel on off-peak bus services, activities found difficult, aids and adaptations available and required, home helps, provision of care, smoking
• RH - Random Adult Employment
  Participation in the labour market, period of retirement or unemployment, number of jobs
• RI - Random Adult Income
  Banded personal income

Notes

• The Highest Income Householder (HIH) is taken as the household reference person for the first part of the interview. This must be a person in whose name the accommodation is owned or rented, or who is otherwise responsible for the accommodation. In households with joint householders, the person with the highest income is taken as the household reference person. If householders have the same income, the older is taken as the household reference person.
• The '2003' changes to the questionnaire were made with effect from April 2003. This is why some topics are described as being available "to March 2003" and "from April 2003".
• There were minor amendments to the 2005 questionnaire with effect from July 2005, and January 2006.
• The changes to the 2007 questionnaire were implemented on the 23rd January 2007. There were smaller changes in the following months with a larger change again in June 2007. The changes in June were aimed at reducing streams in order to bring the overall time of the survey down.
• The 2008 changes took effect at the beginning of February 2008.

If you have any enquiries about the topic list, then please contact the SHS team.

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