Understanding Society User Support

Hello Hilary,

There isn't a specific derived variable for this purpose, but there are variables that identify the number of children in the household. These include:
• nchild_dv: Number of own children in the household.
• anychild_dv: Indicates whether an individual has ever had a (biological) child.
• nkids_dv: Total number of children in the household.

Additionally, you can explore the “egoalt” and “xhhrel” files for more detailed relationship data:
• egoalt: Identifies relationships within the household and provides one file per wave.
• xhhrel: A cross-wave file that identifies relationships both inside and outside the household.

The key difference between the two files is that egoalt focuses on within-household relationships for each wave, while xhhrel offers a broader view of family relationships across waves.
For more information on the xhhrel file, please refer to: https://www.understandingsociety.ac.uk/documentation/mainstage/user-guides/main-survey-user-guide/connecting-family-members-and-households-over-time/ and the user guide https://understandingsociety.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/documentation/user-guides/6614_main_survey_user_guide_family_matrix_xhhrel.pdf

You might also want to explore the data management syntax available here (https://www.understandingsociety.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/documentation/main-survey/syntax/stata/stata-using-egoalt-file-create-household-composition-variables.do), which illustrates how to create household composition variables. For example, the syntax shows how to calculate the number of siblings in a household using the egoalt file. To adapt this for parents, simply modify the w_relationship_dv variable to reflect the value you need.

I hope this information is helpful.

Best wishes,

Roberto Cavazos
Understanding Society User Support Team