Construction of an adaptable European transnational ecological deprivation index: the French version

Abstract

BackgroundStudying social disparities in health implies the ability to measure them accurately, to compare them between different areas or countries and to follow trends over time. This study proposes a method for constructing a French European deprivation index, which will be replicable in several European countries and is related to an individual deprivation indicator constructed from a European survey specifically designed to study deprivation.Methods and ResultsUsing individual data from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions survey, goods/services indicated by individuals as being fundamental needs, the lack of which reflect deprivation, were selected. From this definition, which is specific to a cultural context, an individual deprivation indicator was constructed by selecting fundamental needs associated both with objective and subjective poverty. Next, the authors selected among variables available both in the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions survey and French national census those best reflecting individual experience of deprivation using multivariate logistic regression. An ecological measure of deprivation was provided for all the smallest French geographical units. Preliminary validation showed a higher association between the French European Deprivation Index (EDI) score and both income and education than the Townsend index, partly ensuring its ability to measure individual socioeconomic status.ConclusionThis index, which is specific to a particular cultural and social policy context, could be replicated in 25 other European countries, thereby allowing European comparisons. EDI could also be reproducible over time. EDI could prove to be a relevant tool in evidence-based policy-making for measuring and reducing social disparities in health issues and even outside the medical domain.

Correction of misclassification bias induced by the residential mobility in studies examining the link between socioeconomic environment and cancer incidence

“…Let X be the exposure variable. In studies addressing the issue of social inequality in cancer using an aggregated approach, the socioeconomic environment of people living in a given area is usually assessed with an index based on available census data [11][12][13][14][15]. Such indices can be used with percentiles.…”

“…More precisely, for each place of residence in 1999, the data indicates the proportion of the population living in the same municipality in 1990, and details of the origins of the inhabitants from another municipality. The social deprivation of the various municipalities was assessed using the quintiles of the French version of the European Deprivation Index [15]. With respect to the place of residence in 1999, we thus determined for each quintile of deprivation, the distribution of the quintile of deprivation of the municipalities where people lived in 1990.…”

The Portuguese Version of the European Deprivation Index: An Instrument to Study Health Inequalities

“…35,36 That will allow integrated studies, something particularly useful at the present time when scientific research is getting a cross-national extend due to the European financing channels. Hopefully, in the future other countries will follow the same methods and develop their own EDI.…”

“…35,36 This index was developed using as bedrock the Townsend theorization of deprivation. With data from a European-wide survey, which provided information on the perceived and objective poverty, a measure of individual deprivation was obtained.…”

Factors influencing inclusion in digestive cancer clinical trials: A population-based study

“…The Côte d'Or administrative area contains 822 IRIS. The socio-economic characteristics of each IRIS were determined using the French population census data of 2007, and they were summarized in a validated ecological deprivation score: the French European deprivation index (EDI) [8]. The higher the EDI, the more deprived the area is.…”