Children and Young People: Indicators of Wellbeing in New Zealand 2008

Social connectedness
Telephone/mobile access in the home
Internet access in the home

ISBN 978-0-478-33506-4 (Print) 
ISBN 978-0-478-33507-1 (Online)

The other sections and the appendices of the Children and Young People: Indicators of Wellbeing in New Zealand 2008 can be found at www.msd.govt.nz
Social connectedness
Desired outcomes
All children and young people enjoy friendships and social, cultural and recreational activities that build confidence and security, promote healthy relationships, and encourage civic and social responsibility.
Introduction
Social connectedness is about relationships, being involved with other people and the community. Connectedness happens when people socialise with friends, family, people in their neighbourhood and the communities they belong to. It also occurs when people take part in more structured activities such as education, employment, religious and cultural observance, sport, recreation, entertainment, and community events. The networks formed through these exchanges can provide a sense of inclusion and identity, and a source of support in times of need. They help society function effectively by building ‘social capital’, a resource that can be drawn on to achieve personal goals in socially acceptable ways.

The availability of social support has been identified as a major protective factor that is associated with positive outcomes for children and young people. Children and young people with strong family, cultural and community ties have more resources to draw on than those who are socially isolated.  

Participating in community activities, particularly structured and supervised activities, has a positive impact on young people, including more moderate drinking patterns, less drug taking, better school attendance, better education and career outcomes, more prosocial behaviour and better attitudes and behaviour regarding sex. Initial findings from the Youth Connectness Project suggest that belonging to groups outside school is linked to higher wellbeing, life satisfaction, stronger ethnic identity and a more positive body image.

Good communication and transport networks enhance opportunities for social connectedness. Technology is changing the nature of community and connectedness, reflected in the widespread use of text messaging via mobile phone and social networking on the Internet.
Indicators
Social connectedness cannot readily be measured in itself but insights can be gained by looking at factors that facilitate connectedness such as levels of participation in education, employment, sport and recreation as well as access to transport and communications. 

The two indicators in this domain are measures of the extent to which children and young people have access at home to the main means of connecting with people and communities outside the household: telephones (including landlines and mobile phones) and the Internet.

Telephone/mobile access in the home
Definition
The number of children under 18 years and young people aged 18–24 years living in households with access to telephones (either landline or cellphones), as a percentage of all children and young people.
Relevance
The telephone is a vital means of communication for individuals and households which helps to maintain social connectedness, not only enabling social contact with friends and family but also ensuring adequate lines of communication in times of need and emergency.
Current level
Only small proportions of children and young people live in households without access to telephones. In 2006, 98 percent of those under the age of 18 and 97 percent of those aged 18–24 lived in households with telephone access. This was an improvement on the figures in 2001, when 95 percent of both age groups lived in households with telephones.

The 2006 Census collected information separately on cellphones and landline telephones for the first time. It showed that 84 percent of those aged under 18 and 83 percent of those aged between 18 and 24 lived in households with cellphones that were available in the dwelling all or most of the time, while 90 percent of 0–17 year olds and 85 percent of 18–24 year olds lived in households with landline telephones.
Age and sex differences
In both the under 18 and 18–24 age groups there was little or no difference in telephone access for males and females. There was also very little difference between the age groups. The increase in telephone access between 2001 and 2006 occurred for both sexes and both age groups.

TableSC1.1 Proportion (%) of children and young people living in homes with access to telephones, by sex and age, 2001 and 2006
Sex
	Under 18 years	18–24 years	
	2001	2006	2001	2006	
Female	94.8	97.7	94.8	97.4	
Male	94.9	97.7	95.0	97.4	
Total	94.9	97.7	94.9	97.4	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2001 and 2006

Ethnic differences
There is some variation in telephone access by ethnicity, with children and young people from Māori and Pacific ethnic groups being less likely than others to live in households with telephones. In 2006, 94 percent of Māori and 95 percent of Pacific people under the age of 18 had telephone access compared with 99 percent of those in European, Asian and other ethnic groups. However, the gap has narrowed since 2001 when 87 percent of Māori and 86 percent of Pacific people under the age of 18 lived in households with telephones. A similar trend is evident in the 18–24 age group.

Table SC1.2 Proportion (%) of children and young people living in households with access to telephones, by ethnic group and age, 2001 and 2006
	Under 18 years	18–24 years	
	2001	2006	2001	2006	
Māori	87.3	94.2	87.6	94.3	
Pacific	85.6	94.6	88.8	95.6	
Asian	97.9	98.8	97.2	97.8	
European	97.8	99.0	96.8	98.2	
Other	97.5	98.8	96.3	98.2	
Total	94.9	97.7	94.9	97.4	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2001 and 2006

Ethnic differences are also apparent when access to cellphones and landline telephones is looked at separately. In 2006, European children and young people were more likely than others to have access to cellphones, with 88 percent of those aged under 18 and 86 percent of those aged 18–24 living in households with cellphones. Pacific people were the least likely to have access to cellphones – 74 percent of 0–17 year olds and 77 percent of 18–24 year olds.

Māori and Pacific children and young people were less likely than those from European, Asian and other ethnic groups to live in households with landline telephones. In the 0–17 age group, 75 percent of Māori and 80 percent of Pacific people had access to landline telephones, while in the 18–24 age group the figures were 71 percent for Māori and 81 percent for Pacific people.

Table SC1.3 Proportion (%) of children and young people living in households with access to cellphones and telephones, by ethnicity and age, 2006
	Access to cellphone	Access to telephone	
	Under 18	18–24	Under 18	18–24	
Māori	81.1	81.1	75.0	71.2	
Pacific Peoples	73.9	76.6	79.6	81.5	
Asian	79.9	77.7	96.4	93.2	
European	87.9	85.8	94.0	86.9	
Other	74.9	77.6	95.7	91.6	
Total	84.3	83.0	89.9	85.5	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2006

Internet access in the home
Definition
The number of children under 18 years and young people aged 18–24 years living in households with access to the internet, as a percentage of all children and young people.
Relevance
The Internet is an important means of accessing a wide range of information and services. People who are unable to access information technologies or who are without the skills to use them run the risk of being excluded from possible social, educational, cultural and economic benefits. This may have adverse effects on their educational outcomes, employment prospects and other aspects of wellbeing. Being able to communicate and interact easily in the absence of frequent face-to-face contact helps maintain social connectedness, although there are some associated risks of negative online behaviour for some groups. 
Current level
At the 2006 Census 70 percent of children under 18 years and 65 percent of young people aged 18–24 lived in households with access to the Internet. This is a considerable increase on the figures in 2001 when 46 percent of children under 18 years and 42 percent of 18–24 year olds lived in households with internet access.
Sex differences
Among children under 18, household internet access did not vary by sex. However, at ages 18–24, males (66 percent) were slightly more likely than females (64 percent) to have internet access at home.

Table SC2.1 Proportion (%) of children and young people living in homes with access to the internet, by sex, 2001 and 2006
Sex
	Under 18 years	18–24 years	
	2001	2006	2001	2006	
Female	45.4	70.0	40.0	63.8	
Male	45.5	69.9	43.5	66.1	
Total	45.5	69.9	41.7	64.9	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2001 and 2006
Age differences
Older children are more likely than younger children to have household access to the internet. In 2006, 74 percent of 15–17 year olds and 73 percent of 10–14 year olds lived in homes with access to the internet, compared with 69 percent of children aged 5–9 years and 66 percent of children aged under five years.

On the other hand, 18–19 year olds (66 percent) were slightly more likely to have household access to the internet than those aged 20–24 (64 percent).

Table SC2.2 Proportion (%) of children and young people living in homes with access to the internet, by age group, 2001 and 2006
Age group	2001	2006	
0–4 years	38.4	65.6	
5–9 years	43.9	68.5	
10–14 years	49.7	72.9	
15–17 years	53.2	74.0	
Total under 18	45.5	69.9	
18–19 years	44.6	66.4	
20–24 years	40.5	64.3	
Total 18–24	41.7	64.9	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2001 and 2006
Ethnic differences
Asian and European children, and children from the Other ethnic group category, were more likely than Māori and Pacific children to live in households with access to the internet. The same pattern was apparent among young people aged 18–24. However, in both age groups, the proportion of Māori and Pacific children and young people with access to the internet almost doubled between 2001 and 2006, increasing at a faster rate than for other ethnic groups.

Table SC2.3 Proportion (%) of children and young people living in households with access to the internet, by ethnic group, 2001 and 2006
Ethnic group	Under 18 years	18–24 years	
	2001	2006	2001	2006	
Māori	25.1	48.0	22.9	42.7	
Pacific	18.6	37.0	21.5	39.0	
Asian	60.9	78.4	65.2	80.5	
European	52.5	78.4	45.3	68.2	
Other	53.2	72.1	52.1	71.0	
Total	45.5	69.9	41.7	64.9	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2001 and 2006
Differences by family type
Access to the internet varies by family type and the labour force status of parents. Two-parent families with dependent children are far more likely to have internet access than one-parent families with dependent children. In 2006, 79 percent of two-parent families and 50 percent of one-parent families lived in households with internet access. For both groups this was a considerable increase on the 2001 figures of 55 percent and 28 percent respectively.

Among two-parent families, those with both parents employed were the most likely to have internet access – 86 percent of those in which one parent was employed full-time and the other part-time, 83 percent of those in which both were employed full-time and 79 percent of those in which both were employed part-time.  By comparison, just 52 percent of families in which neither parent was employed had internet access.

Among one-parent families, 62 percent of those in which the parent was employed full-time had internet access, compared with 57 percent of those in which the parent was employed part-time and 38 percent of those in which the parent was not employed.
Table SC2.4 Proportion (%) of one and two-parent families with dependent children living in households with internet access, by labour force status of parents, 2001 and 2006
Family type and labour force status of parents	2001	2006	
Two-parent families			
Both employed full-time	60.9	82.7	
One employed full-time, one employed part-time	60.0	85.7	
Both employed part-time	51.0	78.8	
One employed full-time, one not employed	48.3	73.5	
One employed part-time, one not employed	40.5	65.5	
Neither employed	31.2	51.5	
Total	54.9	79.3	
			
One-parent families			
Employed full-time	39.7	62.5	
Employed part-time	30.3	56.6	
Not employed	19.8	38.3	
Total	27.9	50.3	
Source: Statistics New Zealand, New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings 2001 and 2006

International comparison
In the OECD PISA 2006 survey, 88 percent of 15 year olds New Zealand students reported that they had access to the Internet at home. This was a higher proportion than the OECD average of 76 percent. Canada and Australia (each with 91 percent) were among ten countries which had significantly higher proportions than New Zealand. The United Kingdom (89 percent) and Belgium (88 percent) had similar proportions to New Zealand. New Zealand had a higher proportion than the United States (84 percent) and sixteen other OECD countries.