Quality of Life Survey IV (2015/16)

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The biennial Quality of Life (QoL) survey measures the quality of life, socio-economic circumstances, attitudes to service delivery, psycho-social attitudes, value-base and other characteristics of the GCR. It serves as a tracking and diagnostic tool, affording a rich information resource for policy makers and the public wanting to see where progress is being made, and where concerns remain.

The first QoL survey, with 6 636 respondents in Gauteng and the economic hotspots in the broader GCR, was commissioned in 2009. A second QoL survey was completed in 2011, this time with 16 729 sample points across Gauteng. The third QoL survey conducted in 2013 saw the initiation of a provincial/local sphere partnership and provided data to ward level, with a massive sample of 27 490 respondents. The fourth QoL survey commissioned in 2015 is the largest social attitudes survey ever conducted in the Gauteng province and boasts over 30 000 respondents.

The fourth QoL survey builds on the success of the first three surveys and provides robust results at provincial, municipal and ward levels. The three metros – Ekurhuleni, Johannesburg and Tshwane – and the Gauteng Department of Health contributed significant funding which allowed us both to realise a ward-representative sample and to facilitate a robust working partnership across the various spheres of government in the GCR. The questionnaire has been refined and, with the input from a range of stakeholders, tries to get to the heart of some of the key challenges facing the GCR. In the 2015 QoL survey, respondents were asked over 200 questions, many of which remained unchanged from previous surveys. The survey asked questions on a range of factors that shape the quality of daily life in the city-region, including provision of basic services, satisfaction with government, transport and mobility, livelihoods, local community and neighbourhood dynamics, health and well-being, migration, as well as political and social values and attitudes.

The survey aims to equip all spheres of government with critical, local-level data needed to ensure the effectiveness of their programmes. The large sample increases GCRO’s ability to analyse, map and model the data through the enhanced capabilities and methods. As in previous surveys, Ross Jennings (Statistics South Africa) and Professor Emeritus Paul Fatti (University of the Witwatersrand) assisted with ensuring the quality of the survey design, sampling methodology and weighting. Despite some challenges in field, rigorous checking and quality control processes have ensured high quality data.

The results of the 2015 Survey were launched in June 2016, and a range of reports, maps and vignettes that highlight the key results have been and are being made available. In time the 2015 QoL survey will be made accessible via the GCRO QoL Survey Viewer (together with the 2009, 2011 and 2013 data). Most of the variables will be selectable, with an option to crosstab by local municipal boundaries or a few other demographic variables. The results are presented as tables and/or graphs and may be printed or downloaded.

All Quality of Life survey data is freely available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license. Data can be downloaded from the DataFirst service at UCT, or requested from the GCRO.

For the June 2016 launch event GCRO developed a number of headline briefs that highlight key findings of the Survey in a variety of thematic areas. Please click on each link below to download each brief:

Quality of Life Survey 2015 Infographics

Quality of life tabulated indexes and dimensions 2009 - 2015

Marginalisation tabulated indexes and dimensions 2009 - 2015

Full press pack

GCRO Quality of Life survey IV (2015/16) launch presentation

GCRO Quality of Life survey IV (2015/16) city benchmarking presentation (Johannesburg version). Slightly adapted versions have also been done for Tshwane and Ekurhuleni.

Quality of Life IV (2015/16) questionnaire