Concept: Socioeconomic Factor Index (SEFI) - Version 2 (SEFI-2)

Concept Description

Last Updated: 2024-06-10

Introduction

Definition of SEFI-2

Methodology

Census Variables Used to Create the SEFI-2

Major Steps in Creating the Index

Statistical Methodology - Factor Analysis

SEFI-2 Factor Scores

CAUTION

  • As with income quintiles, there will be postal codes that have a missing factor score. This may be because of a variety of reasons including:

    • Census data was suppressed (and a valid value could not be imputed);
    • The postal code was not in the postal code conversion file (PCCF); and
    • The postal code is new, and not in the format

SAS Code Examples and Formats

CAUTION

  • The formats apply the average factor score value for a particular postal code, but some postal codes may contain more than one Dissemination Area (DA)/Enumeration Area (EA) and vice versa. In some situations, especially First Nations communities that are adjacent to a town and share the same postal code, a higher SES value may be assigned to that area. In the case where you are analyzing data by small geographical area or by First Nations community, it is suggested the SAS code available below - Applying the Factor Scores to the Population - SAS Code (internal access only) - should be used to apply the index score to the population, not the formats.

Differences Between the Original SEFI and SEFI-2

MCHP Research Using the SEFI-2 Methodology

Metge et al. (2009)

Brownell et al. (2010)

Fransoo et al. (2011)

Fransoo et al. (2013)

Fransoo et al. (2019)

Pros and Cons of Using the SEFI

SAS code and formats 

Related concepts 

Related terms 

References