General social survey: summary results, Australia, 2014

Provides an understanding of the multi-dimensional nature of relative advantage and disadvantage across the Australian population, and facilitates reporting on and monitoring of people\u27s opportunities to participate fully in society. Introduction In 2014, the fourth General Social Survey (GSS) was conducted with Australians aged 15 years and over. The main purpose of the survey was to provide an understanding of the multi-dimensional nature of relative advantage and disadvantage across the population, and to facilitate reporting on and monitoring of people\u27s opportunities to participate fully in society. Many of the key factors that influence an individual\u27s social inclusion have been collected across the series of the GSS. This release provides an update on Australia\u27s progress. These summary findings provide a snapshot of the data collected in the GSS, highlighting several themes emerging from the 2014 survey. The themes include how Australia has progressed on aspects of social capital such as participation, support, feelings of safety and trust. The GSS covers a wide range of topics, many of which are collected in other surveys. The analysis draws on data from complementary sources, and considers factors that may be driving changes in selected measures. It also draws attention to overall life satisfaction, focusing on characteristics of population groups with low reported life satisfaction - people with a mental health condition, people with disability, recent and other migrants, people living in one parent families, and those with different sexual orientations. To further illustrate the analytical potential of this survey, these summary findings include a case study on Tasmania. When compared with national rates, Tasmania has a higher unemployment rate, lower labour force participation rate, lower average weekly earnings and a lower proportion of people with non-school qualifications. However, the case study will show that Tasmania has a similar overall life satisfaction score to other states and territories. Tasmanians are still participating and having a say in their communities, and experiencing strong levels of trust. A case study on people who have experienced homelessness is also featured. The release is complemented by detailed data and explanatory materials including: a glossary where concepts are defined; explanatory notes; the survey questionnaire; a data item list. Additional commentary on the survey data will be released separately, including more detailed analysis of voluntary work and an investigation of multiple social disadvantage. All differences described in this summary of findings are statistically significant unless otherwise stated