Material and Social Deprivation Index

Background

The Material and Social Deprivation Index (MSDI) was created at the end of the 1990 with the aim of measuring deprivation among Quebecers and Canadians at the small-area level.^1,2 The MSDI consists of specific socioeconomic characteristics of the population living in a small area. It has often been used as a proxy (substitute) for lacking information on socioeconomic status of individuals in administrative databases. The index facilitates the documentation and identification of the presence of inequalities in health and health system use associated with inequality in access to material and social resources. In a larger perspective, the MSDI has been used for decision-making and public resource allocation in regions and local communities.

Objective

The MSDI has the aim of characterizing and highlighting the deprivation at the small area level. This information is useful for regional resource planning in the health and social services system. More specifically, the MSDI can be used for research on social inequalities in health, monitoring of their evolution, the elaboration of public policies and programs, for resource allocation and the evaluation of services.

Structure

The MSDI is composed of two dimensions. The material deprivation involves deprivation of the goods and conveniences that are part of modern life, such as adequate housing, possession of a car, access to high speed internet, or a neighbourhood with recreational areas. This deprivation marks the consequences of lack of material resources associated with low education, insecure job situation and insufficient income. Social deprivation refers to a fragile social network, starting with the family and encompassing the community. It is characterized by individuals living alone, being a lone parent and being separated, divorced or widowed. The MSDI groups six indicators chosen for their relationship with health and either one of the two forms of deprivation.^3,4,5

Using the MSDI

The table below contains the different Census years (1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021). Click on a version to download all files needed to use the MSDI.

For a better understanding and use of the MSDI, please refer to The Material and Social Deprivation index 2021 or refer to one of the methodological documents.

To consult maps of the deprivation index, please refer to the Géoportail de santé publique du Québec (in french only).

To download data in shapefile format for mapping, please refer to Données Québec web site (in french only).

For a list of papers having used the MSDI, published outside of INSPQ, view our list of papers.

If you have comments or questions about the MSDI or if you would like to be added to our mailing list with updates on the MSDI, please send us a short email ([email protected]) with the subject « Material and social deprivation index ». You can also proceed in this way if you have published a paper, report, or thesis or any work you do with the MSDI and would like us to add it to our list of papers.

Support, data or additional information can be requested by completing our online form.

How to cite the index : Institut national de santé publique du Québec (INSPQ). Index of material and social deprivation compiled by the Bureau d'information et d'études en santé des populations (BIESP) from 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 and 2021 Canadian Census data. [https://www.inspq.qc.ca/en/deprivation/material-and-social-deprivation-index]

Methodological documents

The following texts contain information and methodological details needed to understand and correctly use the different versions of the MSDI.

M. Azevedo Da Silva, N. Gravel, J. Sylvain-Morneau et al. 2024. Material and social deprivation index 2021.

This document applies to all index versions and years from 1991 to 2021. This is an update of Gamache, P., D. Hamel, et C. Blaser 2019. L’indice de défavorisation matérielle et sociale : en bref (only available in french). It presents the construction of the deprivation index, its different versions produced according to censuses and various geographical levels, and their uses.

Gamache, P., D. Hamel, et C. Blaser 2019. L’indice de défavorisation matérielle et sociale : en bref (only available in French).

This document applies to all index versions and years from 1991 to 2016. It presents the construction of the deprivation index, its composition, the geographical level for the different versions and suggests how to combine the quintiles from the material and the social dimensions of the index. It also explains some methodological particularities of the 2011 index based on the National Household Survey (NHS) rather than on the Census. It presents the products offered with the MSDI while a final section contains advice on the use of the index. Finally, a reference list with papers in English and in French reports the main studies with the MSDI published by the team which developed the index in order to illustrate the possible uses and interpretation of the index of deprivation. 

Gamache, P. and Hamel, D. 2017. The Challenges of Updating the Deprivation Index with Data from the 2011 Census and the National Household Survey (NHS) 

In this document, the authors present the challenges associated with the update of the Material and Social Deprivation index using data from the National Household Survey (NHS) in 2011. They explain the potential non-response bias which could lead to imprecise results. Four versions of the 2011 index were tested in order to compare their quality and to identify the most comparable and precise version for longitudinal analyses. The version without any correction appeared to yield the most similar results compared to the other 2011 versions and best continuity with earlier versions. The authors conclude that the index of deprivation remains a very good measure for social health inequality at the Canadian, provincial and regional level, particularly when individual socioeconomic information is missing in administrative databases.

Pampalon, R., Gamache, P. and Hamel, D. 2011. The Québec Index of Material and Social Deprivation: Methodological Follow-up, 1991 through 2006

The intent of this paper is to offer an overview of the index’ methodological components from 1991 to 2006. Not all index construction components are explored in minute detail—other publications have already done so. Instead, the authors cover only components that have been modified. They present their status at four points which coincide with index revisions. The components are: the basic area units, the socio-economic indicators that comprise the index, the way these indicators are combined, and the socio-economic profile associated with the index. The discussion is based on the Québec version of the index, although some geographic variations are noted. 

Specific details related to the 2011 and 2016 versions of the index are documented in « The material and social deprivation index: a summary» (to be published).

Pampalon, R., Hamel D. and Raymond G. 2004. Indice de défavorisation pour l’étude de la santé et du bien-être au Québec - Mise à jour 2001 (only available in French)

The authors describe the updated Québec deprivation index based on Census information from 2001 and compare it to previous (1996) Census data. They document the changes in the index construction such as the new geographical base unit (dissemination area - DA) and adjusted factors for inclusion and exclusion. The authors present the equivalence tables and the assignation procedure for the inclusion of the deprivation quintile in tables containing postal codes and test the method with two data bases in the health domain (i.e. mortality and births). In conclusion, they discuss the consequences of the update and the next steps and make available a list of tools for the use of the 2001 deprivation index.

See also

• Deprivation index
• Surveillance des inégalités sociales de santé (in French)
• Suivre les inégalités sociales de santé au Québec – Santéscope (in French)

Other interesting websites

• Townsend Archives