Measuring Intermediary Determinants of Early Childhood Health: A Composite Index Comparing Colombian Departments

In recent years there has been growing interest in composite indicators as an efficient tool of analysis and a method of prioritizing policies. This paper presents a composite index of intermediary determinants of child health using a multivariate statistical approach. The index shows how specific d...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Child indicators research 2013-06, Vol.6 (2), p.297-319
Main Authors: Osorio, Ana María, Bolancé, Catalina, Alcañiz, Manuela
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Averages
Capital cities
Child and School Psychology
Child Health
Childhood
Children
Childrens health
Classification
Departments
Early Childhood Education
Health
Health care
Health surveys
Multivariate Analysis
Principal components analysis
Principals
Prioritizing
Psychosocial factors
Quality of Life Research
Social factors
Social Sciences
Social Work
Young Children
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Summary:In recent years there has been growing interest in composite indicators as an efficient tool of analysis and a method of prioritizing policies. This paper presents a composite index of intermediary determinants of child health using a multivariate statistical approach. The index shows how specific determinants of child health vary across Colombian departments (administrative subdivisions). We used data collected from the 2010 Colombian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) for 32 departments and the capital city, Bogotá. Adapting the conceptual framework of Commission on Social Determinants of Health (CSDH), five dimensions related to child health are represented in the index: material circumstances, behavioural factors, psychosocial factors, biological factors and the health system. In order to generate the weight of the variables, and taking into account the discrete nature of the data, principal component analysis (PCA) using polychoric correlations was employed in constructing the index. From this method five principal components were selected. The index was estimated using a weighted average of the retained components. A hierarchical cluster analysis was also carried out. The results show that the biggest differences in intermediary determinants of child health are associated with health care before and during delivery. According to child health conditions, the departments grouped differently when compared to the traditional classification by Colombian geographical regions.
ISSN:1874-897X
1874-8988
DOI:10.1007/s12187-012-9172-4