Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.
This source hails from the earlier years of large-scale survey research in Britain, with the electronic data file created following scanning of and data capture from original survey returns. The data collection provides insight into the lifestyles and religiosity of urban young people, predominantly working-class, at the dawn of the affluent society. It comprises a stratified random sample survey of the religious, social and associational lives of young people aged 15-24 in urban England in 1957. It was designed and fielded by the Newman Demographic Survey, a private research institute directed by religious sociologist Tony Spencer, in collaboration with Young Christian Workers, a faith-based youth organisation. The investigators aimed to yield a sample of English urban youth which would include at least 1000 Catholic respondents, representing all English Catholic dioceses. 8196 was achieved, of which following some apparently random data loss 5834 were of sufficient quality for scanning and data capture in 2010. The survey instrument consisted primarily of closed-form items piloted in Gateshead, Highgate and Manchester, and was designed following correspondence with specialist survey experts: Len England (1901-1999), Director of Mass Observation; Leslie Austen, director of Social Surveys (Gallup Poll) Ltd; and W.L. Readman at the National Food Survey at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. John Mandeville of the British Tabulating Machine Company, a British-based company operating under licence to IBM, also provided advice to the survey investigators. The electoral register was used as the sampling frame, using a version of the 'nth page' method. To prevent interviewer fatigue, about half of the respondents (70% of Anglicans) completed a short version of the questionnaire, covering items on leisure and religious belief, while the remainder completed a longer version including items on associational memberships, schooling, religious attendance and practice, marital status, and parental country and religion of origin. Some written-in responses (on leisure, religious affiliation, associational memberships and occupation) have been captured. Design and post-stratification weights have been calculated for users.
Main Topics:
The religious, social and associational lives of young people aged 15-24 in urban England in 1957; their domestic circumstances, educational background and current working status.
Multi-stage stratified random sample
The investigators aimed to stratify the sample, at the first stage by the populations of urban areas by standard (now Government Office) region aged 15-24 as enumerated in the 1951 Census. Within each standard region they originally stratified according to the size of total population of boroughs, districts and local authorities as of 30 June 1955 divided as follows: 500,000 and more; 100,000-499,999; 50,000-99,999; 10,000-49,999; fewer than 10,000. Due to resource constraints, a first compromise was the decision not to cover authorities with smaller populations, as essentially comprising large villages and market towns. The sample universe was accordingly 'persons, in urban areas of England with population exceeding 50,000, age 15 to 24 inclusive'. The original aspiration to sample boroughs randomly was next abandoned as too resource-intensive. It had originally been hoped that the 'flying squad method' could be used, with smaller numbers of YCW volunteers travelling to areas where they were poorly-represented by car. Instead, boroughs were identified from a list of towns where the YCW had sections strong enough to field the survey without extensive additional help. Accordingly this probably introduced some bias in that the YCW was undoubtedly stronger in towns with higher proportions of Catholics and more active churches, congregations and clergy. This may reduce external validity somewhat. Within these boroughs, the electoral register was used as the sampling frame, using a version of the 'nth page' method. Where a household hosted more than one young person aged 15-24, it is not clear from the notes for interviewers how they were sampled. The number of residents aged 15-24 was however recorded for the creation of design weights.
Face-to-face interview
