The Adult Literacy and Life Skills (ALL) Survey: Education, Work and Literacy
This report presents an overview of New Zealanders’ skills in relation to educational and labour force characteristics and compares results from the 1996 International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) with results from the 2006 ALL survey. It was originally published in May 2008 and revised in April 2009. Please note that the original version of this report, published in May 2008, contained errors in Figures 6.1-6.5 and the associated commentary of Chapter 6: Occupation. This current and revised version rectifies these errors. You can also download each amended section independently on this page.
Author: Paul Satherley, Elliot Lawes, Saila SokDate Published: 9 May 2008 (Revised version April 2009)
5. Income
How did the distributions of document literacy and numeracy skill1 among the adult population of New Zealand vary according to income?
This section examines this question.
Surveys such as ALL and IALS routinely report income by “quintile”. For the purposes of this document, a quintile is one of five subpopulations of approximately equal size into which a population can be divided. For example, the lowest income quintile is the fifth of the population with the lowest income.
The reason for reporting income by quintile is that it controls for changes in all incomes over time. This allows incomes from 2006, for example, to be meaningfully compared with those from 1996.
The income quintile ranges for the ALL survey are as follows:
- lowest: $0 − $10,000
- low: $10,001 − $24,000
- middle: $24,001 − $39,000
- high: $39,001 − $57,000
- highest: $57,001 and higher.
Document literacy and income
Document literacy skill was measured by both the IALS and ALL surveys, and its distribution among the adult population of New Zealand by income quintile is shown in Figure 5.1. Figure 5.2 compares the mean document literacy score of the ALL and IALS surveys for each income quintile.
Higher document literacy skill was associated with those in the high-income quintile, and particularly with those in the highest-income quintile.
Figure 5.1 shows the percentages of the adult population of New Zealand at each document literacy level, by income quintile.
Figure 5.1: Document literacy and income, ALL only
Note:
- Levels 4 and 5 are combined to give more robust statistical information.
- Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number.
Figure 5.1 shows little difference between the document literacy skill distributions of those populations with the lowest, low and middle income. For example, the percentage of the population at levels 4 or 5 for the lowest and middle quintiles was 15% and that for the low quintile was 12%. However, the percentage of the population at levels 4 or 5 for the high quintile (around 21%) was substantially greater, and that for the highest income quintile (around 36%) was substantially greater again.
Figure 5.2: Document literacy means and income, IALS and ALL
Figure 5.2 shows that there have been increases in the mean document literacy scores in each of the income quintiles. These increases have been about the same size.
Numeracy and income
Numeracy skill was measured in the ALL survey only, and its distribution among the adult population of New Zealand by income quintile is shown in Figure 5.3.
As with prose literacy, higher numeracy skill was associated with those in the high-income quintile, and particularly with those in the highest income quintile.
Figure 5.3 shows the percentages of the adult population in New Zealand at each numeracy level, by income quintile.
Figure 5.3: Numeracy and income, ALL only
Note:
- Levels 4 and 5 are combined to give more robust statistical information.
- Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number
Figure 5.3 shows that the relationship between numeracy and income was similar to that between document literacy and income.
There was little difference between the numeracy skill distributions of the lowest, low and middle income (the percentage of the population at levels 4 or 5 for the lowest and middle quintiles was 12% and for the low quintile was 10%).
Again, the percentage of the population at levels 4 or 5 for the high quintile (around 20%) was substantially greater than for the lower quintiles, and that for the highest income quintile (around 35%) was substantially greater again.