Department of Social Services – Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey

Annual

2022

The Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey is Australia's first nationally representative household-based longitudinal survey.

HILDA provides longitudinal data on the lives of Australian residents on a wide range of aspects of life. This includes:

• family dynamics
• economic wellbeing
• subjective wellbeing
• labour market dynamics.

The HILDA Survey defines disability as an impairment, long-term health condition or disability that restricts everyday activities and has lasted, or is likely to last, for a period of 6 months or more.

The HILDA Survey collects information on 17 disability types, which have been combined into the following 6 disability groups:

• sensory: includes sight, hearing, and speech problems
• intellectual: includes difficulty learning or understanding things
• physical: includes difficulty breathing, blackouts, chronic pain, limited use of arms or fingers, difficulty gripping tings, limited use of feet or legs, physical restrictions, and disfigurement or deformity
• psychosocial: includes nervous or emotional conditions, and mental illness
• head injury, stroke or other brain damage
• other: includes long-term conditions that are restrictive despite treatment or medication, and other long-term conditions.

Disability severity is determined based on whether a person has a limitation or restriction in 3 core activities – self-care, mobility, and communication. People who always or sometimes need help with one or more core activities are referred to as 'people with severe or profound disability'. People who have disability but do not need help or supervision with core activities are referred to as people with 'other disability status'.

The HILDA Survey does not collect information on severity of disability in every wave. The most recent collection was in the 21st wave (2021). Further, HILDA only collects information on disability severity from respondents aged 15 and over. Therefore, for the purposes of the 2022 HILDA-based reporting, it is assumed that person's current disability severity is the same as it was one year ago, which may be inaccurate since disability severity and disability status may change over time. People with disability who did not have disability in 2021 or did not participate in the 2021 data collection have disability severity reported as 'Not known'. This group includes all people with disability aged 15 years in 2022.

Age calculated as at the time of the interview.

Indigenous status is based on respondents self-identifying as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin. The term 'First Nations people' is used to refer to people who have identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin.

Sex of respondent is recorded as 'Male', 'Female', or 'Another term'.

Sexual identity is based on respondents choosing a category which best describes how they think of themselves:

• Heterosexual or straight
• Gay or lesbian
• Bisexual
• Other
• Unsure/don't know
• Prefer not to say

For preserving confidentiality, responses of 'Gay or lesbian', 'Bisexual', and 'Other' are combined into one category. Responses of 'Unsure/don't know' and 'Prefer not to say' are grouped as 'Not known'.

The data about sexual identity was collected by HILDA in 2012, 2016, and 2020 from respondents aged 15 and over. For the purposes of 2022-based reporting, it was assumed that a person's sexual orientation was the same as the most recent available data for that respondent (including if the most recent data was 'Unsure/don't know' or 'Prefer not to say'). People who did not participate or did not provide a response in any of the 2012, 2016, or 2020 data collections have sexual orientation reported as 'Not known'. This group includes all people with disability aged 15 and 16 years in 2022.

HILDA collects information on country of birth, whether a person speaks a language other than English at home, and (for those who speak a language other than English at home) proficiency in spoken English. This information is used to derive Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) status for reporting against the ADS OF measures.

The CALD cohort includes people born in countries other than main English-speaking countries (Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the USA, Canada, Republic of Ireland, and South Africa), and/or those who speak a language other than English at home. People born in main English-speaking countries who only speak English at hime are included in the non-CALD cohort.

The CALD cohort is further sub-divided according to proficiency in spoken English. Low English proficiency group includes people who speak a language other than English at home with self-reported proficiency in spoken English of 'not well' or 'not at all'. High English proficiency group includes people who speak a language other than English at home with self-reported proficiency in spoken English of 'well' or 'very well', and those who only speak English at home.

Data are reported on the 2021 Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS).¹

National, state and territory data are available.

Highest level of educational attainment is reported as:

• None or below Year 10 (includes Certificate I/II)
• Year 10/11
• Year 12 or equivalent
• Certificate III/IV or Diploma
• Bachelor Degree or higher.

Employment status is reported as:

• Employed
• Unemployed
• Not in the labour force.

Household composition is reported as:

• Lone person
• Couple family without children
• Couple family with children aged under 15*
• Couple family with children aged 15 and over only
• Lone parent family with children aged under 15*
• Lone parent family with children aged 15 and over only
• Other household composition

*Couple and lone parent families with children aged under 15 may also include children aged 15 and over.

• Social participation

1. The ASGS can be found at: Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) | Australian Bureau of Statistics (abs.gov.au)