Methodology of the study

Abstract

This chapter describes the methods of analysis. The first section presents an overview of the four levels of analyses: ecocultural, social structural, family roles, and individual. Some analyses are at the country level and others at the individual level. The second section describes characteristics of the sample; both the sample of countries employed in the study and the characteristics of the samples of students in each country. The third section describes the variables in the study. A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE LEVEL OF ANALYSES AND THE VARIABLES Ecocultural variables The ecocultural variables are conceived widely, including economic, social structural, and sociopolitical variables. They are measured by archival data at the country level: (1) the ecological variables: percentage of the population engaged in agriculture; a number of economic indices labeled affluence, and highest monthly temperature; (2) the sociopolitical variables: education which measures access to education, and percentage of population per religious denomination. Social structural variables The social structural variables are the interaction with family networks. Three variables are employed: geographic proximity, frequency of visits, and frequency of telephone calls with members of the nuclear and extended family. Family roles Family roles for nine family positions are as follows: for mother and father, the three family roles are expressive, childcare, and finances. For grandfather, grandmother, uncle/aunt, 20-year-old male and female, 10-year-old boy and girl, the two family roles are expressive and instrumental (e.g., Parsons, 1943, 1949). © Cambridge University Press 2006.