Early childhood

Chromosome abnormalities – can be numerical or structural. A numerical abnormality mean an individual is either missing one of the chromosomes from a pair or has more than two chromosomes instead of a pair. A structural abnormality means the chromosome's structure has been altered in one of several ways.

Congenital disorders – diseases that are substantially determined before or during birth and which are in principle recognizable in early life. Congenital malformation can be defined as structural or functional anomalies.

Day carer – one of the forms of care for children under 3 years of age. A natural person who is self-employed or employed by local government units (gminas, powiats, voivodships), public institutions, natural persons, legal persons and organizational units without legal personality, on the basis of an employment contract or a contract for the provision of services. Day carer takes care of children from 20 weeks of age.

Herd immunity – (population immunity or group immunity) protection of non-immune individuals as a result of vaccinating a high percentage of the population.

Infant – a child below the age of 1 year.

Infant mortality rate – the ratio of infant deaths in a given period to the number of live births in that period – expressed in ‰ (i.e. per 1000 population).

Lifetime fertility – the average number of children that would be born by a woman during her whole reproductive period (15-49 years) assuming that in particular phases of this period she would give birth to children with the intensity observed among women in a year under observation.

Live birth - the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of a newborn, irrespectively of the pregnancy duration, that after such expulsion or extraction breathes or shows any other signs of life, such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord or muscle contractions depending on the will, whether or not the umbilical cord has been cut or the placenta has been separated.

Nanny – one of the forms of care for children under 3 years of age. A natural person caring for children under a service contract called an 'activation contract', concluded in writing between the nanny and the parents or a single parent. Nanny takes care of children from 20 weeks of age. Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) pays contributions for a nanny on the amount of remuneration is not greater than the amount of the minimum wage, and the excess of this amount, contributions paid parent of a child.

Neonate – child aged up to 28 days.

Nursery, children's club – an organizational unit having the care of children under the age of 3, making functions of caring, upbringing, education and entered in the register kept by the mayor, president of the city.

Perinatal period – the perinatal period commences at 22 completed weeks of gestation, and ends seven completed days after birth.

Post neonatal mortality – deaths of children who have reached the age of 28 to 364 days.

Preterm – babies born alive before 37 weeks of pregnancy are completed.

Preventive vaccination – application of vaccine against infectious disease for artificial immunization against the disease.

Reproductive age – age at which a woman is biologically capable of giving birth to a child.

Total fertility rate – the number of children that would be born on average by a woman during her whole reproductive period (15–49 years), assuming that in particular phases of this period she would give birth to children with the intensity observed in a given year, i.e. the age-specific fertility rates are treated as constant. With a total fertility rate of 2.1, we are talking about generation replacement.

Education and volunteering

Degree programmes - first-cycle, second-cycle or long-cycle programmes of study provided by a higher education institution authorised to do so.

Digital skills - are classified based on the number of skills (out of five) possessed and their level:
• using information and data,
• communicating and collaborating,
• creating digital content,
• security,
• problem-solving.
We distinguish the following levels of digital skills:
• above-basic – people have every type of digital skill,
• basic – people have every type of digital skill, but at least one type at a basic level,
• low – people have four out of five digital skills,
• narrow – people have three out of five digital skills,
• limited – people have two out of five digital skills,
• none – people have one digital skill or none at all.

Early leavers from education and training – percentage of the population aged 18-24 who have completed at most lower secondary education and are not in any further education or training (in the total population of the same age group).

Eighth-grader exam – an exam covering the knowledge and skills specified in the core curriculum of general education for primary schools. It is a compulsory exam in writing form without a specified minimum score necessary to pass it. Eighth-grade-student takes the examination in three compulsory subjects: Polish; Mathematics and a selected modern foreign language (English, French, Spanish, German, Russian, Ukrainian or Italian), which the student learned at school as part of compulsory educational activities.

Homeschooling – a form of education in which parents or guardians take responsibility for educating their children at home, instead of sending them to a traditional school. This form of education applies to a child who is between 6 and 18 years old, i.e. is subject to compulsory pre-school, school and education.

Individual volunteering (directly) – unpaid work that is not performed within organizational structures. It includes: helping friends, acquaintances and neighbors, helping strangers and activities for the benefit of society, the natural environment, the place where one lives or stays or the local community.

Matriculation exam - an exam conducted at the end of secondary school, and its results determines further education. Since 2015, the matriculation examination has been carried out in a new formula. It is taken by graduates of post-primary schools, including general secondary and technical secondary schools. To pass the exam and obtain a certificate, it is required to: score a minimum of 30% of the points available in each mandatory subject in the oral and in the written part, and proceed to the written examination of an additional option subject (no credit threshold). An examinee must sit two oral exams: Polish language, a modern foreign language and four exams in the written part of examination: at a standard level: Polish language, a foreign modern language and mathematics, and an option subject at an extended level.

Net enrollment rate - a ratio of the number of pupils or students in a given age group (as of the beginning of the school year) at a given level of education to the population (as of 31 December) in the age group defined as corresponding to this level of education. The result is given in percentage terms.

Nursery school - an establishment for children between the age of 3 years and the beginning of their education in a primary school, supporting individual development, providing care adequate for the children's needs and preparing them for school education.

Persons with disabilities – person, who has appropriate judgment issued by a body, authorized to this or a person, who does not have a judgement but feels constraints in the ability of performing basic activities for its age.

PISA Survey – Programme for International Student Assessment supervised by OECD; the purpose of PISA is to measure the ability to apply knowledge acquired at school and beyond school in three fields: reading literacy, mathematics and science knowledge; the survey covers randomly drawn students aged 15-16 years. The survey is conducted every three or four years since 2000.

Post-primary school - a school conducting educational tasks following the core curriculum of an eight-year primary school. Post-primary schools include the following types of schools: a four-year general secondary school, a five-year technical secondary school, a three-year stage I sectoral vocational school, a three-year special job-training school, a two-year stage II sectoral vocational school and a post-secondary school where the education lasts a maximum of 2.5 years.

Pre-primary education - covers children from the beginning of the school year in the calendar year when the child turns 3 until the end of the school year in the calendar year when the child reaches the age of 7. It is implemented in nursery schools, pre-primary sections in primary schools and in other forms of pre-school education (pre-primary education units and pre-primary centres).

Primary school - an eight-year school in which the pupils/students take the final examination at the end of the eight grade and the completion of which gives access to a post-primary school. The organisational structure of primary school comprises grades 1-8 in which education is compulsory.

Special education - education that covers children and youth with disabilities, socially maladjusted and at risk of social maladjustment, requiring the use of special organization of teaching and working methods.

Volunteer – an individual who voluntarily and without remuneration provides services to organizations, institutions, individuals outside the volunteer's family, the wider community or the natural environment. The provision of these services is referred to as community service or volunteering.

Volunteering (social work) – an action (activity) undertaken voluntarily and without remuneration, aimed at bringing benefits to individuals or a group of people outside the household (excluding the volunteer's family); it can also be provided for the benefit of society, the natural environment, a specific location or community. Volunteering involves devoting free time to it. An activity classified as volunteering should have the nature of work, i.e. payment (remuneration) could be obtained for its performance, but the person performing this work did not expect remuneration for it and did not receive it. Volunteering can be performed individually or as part of the activities of an organization/institution.

Volunteering performed within an organization or institution (formal volunteering) – unpaid work (volunteer work, social work) performed within organizational structures by members of a given organization or persons supporting the activities of an organization, association, foundation, committee, public institution, cooperative, church or other organizational unit. This also applies to activities, programs and initiatives operating at the above-mentioned organizational units.

Health and lifestyle

BMI (Body Mass Index) – body weight monitoring index that represents the relationship between body mass and height, calculated using the formula:
BMI = body mass (kg) / height (cm)2 / 10 00
For adults, there are four weight categories:
normal weight (BMI: 18.50–24.99),
• underweight (BMI⩽18.49) – a state of insufficient body mass,
• overweight (BMI: 25.00-29.99) – abnormal or excessive fat accumulation, posing a threat to human life and health,
• obesity (BMI⩾30.00) – abnormal or excessive fat accumulation, posing a threat to human life and health; obesity is a chronic disease caused by an excessive supply of energy in food relative to the body's requirements; obesity is most commonly associated with numerous complications involving the cardiovascular system and other organs.

Completed suicide – a situation in which a person consciously and deliberately takes actions leading to their death, resulting in an actual fatality.

Juniors – all persons practicing sport who are not seniors, i.e. juniors, younger juniors, sub-juniors and children; there is no definitive age limit for this category of competitors because it might be different in particular kinds of sports and even in each sports event within one type of sport.

Member of sports club – a person who possess a valid membership card of a club or who complies with other definite requirements, if the club has accepted other rules of membership.

Recreational activity – the form of physical activity, connected with sport, undertaken for active leisure and regeneration of psychophysical strength.

Self-perceived health – general, not current health status. It covers the different dimensions of health, i.e. physical, social and emotional functioning and biomedical signs and symptoms. It omits any reference to age. Self-perceived of health status is researched by the Statistics Poland as a part of the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC).

Sports club – a basic organizational unit running sports activity which acts as a legal person.

Suicide attempt (non-fatal suicide) - a deliberate act aimed at taking one’s own life that does not result in death. This attempt may lead to various consequences, including physical or psychological injuries, but without a fatal outcome.

Care and upbringing of children

Adoption – the ratio of family law entered between the adopter and the adoptee similar to the relationship between parents and children.

Care and education centre – provides a child who is deprived of full or partial parental care with full-time or periodic care and education, and fulfil its needs, especially emotional, development, health, living, social and religious needs; provides access to eligible healthcare services and education.
A care and education centre shall be run as:
• socialization centre – provides a child with full-time care and education, and fulfil its needs, especially emotional, development, health, living, social and religious needs; implements a child assistance plan prepared in cooperation with a family assistant; enables contact with parents and other close persons; unless otherwise decided by a court, takes actions aimed at the child’s return to a family; provides a child with access to education adjusted to his/her age and development skills; provides a child with therapeutic actions, provides access to eligible healthcare services;
• intervention centre – provides immediate care for a child in the crisis situation, especially if it is required for the centre to place the child under immediate care
• family centre – educates children of various age groups, including adolescents and those becoming independent; enables common education and care for numerous siblings; cooperate with a family foster care coordinator and a family assistant;
• specialist therapy centre – provides care for a child with individual needs, in particular: a child with a disability certificate or a certificate of high or moderate level of disability; a child requiring the application of special education methods and specialist therapy; a child requiring dealing with their developmental and emotional retardation. The centre provides educational, sociotherapeutic, corrective, compensating, speech therapy, and therapeutic activities compensating for lacks in upbringing in a family and preparing for social life, as well as proper rehabilitation for disabled children;
• combining tasks centre – provides care and education through the implementation of the tasks specified for the socialization, intervention and specialist therapy centres.

Crime against freedom – deprivation of liberty including punishable threat, unlawful threat, violence against persons and breach of the inviolability of the home.

Crime against freedom of conscience and religion – act prohibited threatening individual or community freedom of conscience and religion including creed discrimination, disrupting public performance of the religious act, outraging religious feelings.

Crime against life and health – act prohibited with the Penal code, chapter XXVII covering: homicide, infanticide, euthanasia, abetting or aiding to commit suicide, termination of a woman's pregnancy with or without her consent, woman's death as a result of abortion, unintentional killing, bodily harm, participation in violation or assault.

Crime against property – crime including theft, burglary, robbery, theft with assault, criminal coercion, larceny, appropriation of a telecommunication device, fraud, computer fraud, destroying or damaging property, joyriding, forestry theft, fencing of stolen property.

District education centre – a facility where the educational measure - placement of a juvenile in a district educational center - is carried out. The center is intended for:
• juveniles in the intellectual norm;
• juveniles with intellectual disabilities (mild and moderate).

Family nucleus - defined in the narrow sense as two or more persons who live in the same household and who are related as husband and wife, as cohabiting partners, or as parent and child.

Foster care – family or institutional form of care, exercised in case when it is impossible for the parents to provide care and education for a child:
• Institutional foster care – shall be exercised in the form of:
- care and education centre;
- regional care and therapy centre;
- pre-adoptive intervention centre.
• Family foster care shall be exercised in case when it is impossible for the parents to provide care and education for a child. It guarantees a work with a family to make possibility for a child to return to its family, or when it is impossible – efforts aimed at child’s adoption or preparation of a child to live an independent and responsible life, satisfaction of children’s emotional needs, in particular the needs related to welfare, healthcare, education, culture, recreation and religious. The forms of family foster care are the following:
- foster family;
- foster home.

Foster family – provides a child who is deprived of full or partial parental care with full-time or periodic care and education. We distinguish the following types of foster families:
• related - established by ascendants or siblings; a family is entitled to receive a payment for each entrusted child to cover the cost of its maintenance;
• not-professional - established by persons other than ascendants or siblings; a family is entitled to receive a payment for each entrusted child to cover the cost of its maintenance; placed in it may be not more than 3 children (except for numerous siblings);
• professional – established by persons other than ascendants or siblings; in addition to a payment for each entrusted child to cover the cost of its maintenance, a family is entitled to remuneration on the account of performance of a foster family function; placed in it may be not more than 3 children (except for numerous siblings); may operate for example as:
- performing the function of a family emergency house – shall receive a child on the basis of a court ruling, case when a child was escorted by Police or Border Guard, upon consent of parents, child or another person in case of immediate threat to the life or health of the child in connection with domestic violence
- specialized - shall receive in particular: children with a disability certificate or a certificate of high or moderate level of disability, children on the basis of the Law on Support and Resocialization of Juveniles, underage mothers with children.

Foster home – form of the family foster care, which provides a child with a round-the-clock care and upbringing, in which may be placed not more than 8 children or persons that reached the age of majority while being under foster care.

Informal relationship – means the maintenance of psychological, physical and/or economic ties of a marital nature (without marriage) between two persons. In the editions of the National Census of Population and Housing before 2021, this item in the typology of families used in the statistics was defined as partners with or without children.

Juvenile (within the meaning of the Act of 9 June 2022 on the support and resocialization of juveniles) – a person who:
• committed the punishable act after completing 13 years, but before the age of 17
• become demoralized being under the age of 18,
• has an educational or corrective measure adjudged, provided that he is under the age of 21.

Juvenile correctional centre - resocialisation centre for juvenile aged 13-17 - the most severe corrective measure adjudicated by the family court. This measure applies when the educational measures previously applied have not resulted in the expected improvement in the behaviour of the minor. A minor may stay there for no longer than until the age of 21.

Pre-adoptive intervention centre – centre where shall be placed children up to the 1 year old, requiring special care who, waiting for adoption, cannot be covered by family foster care.

Private household – group of people living together in a housing unit and jointly maintaining themselves. Persons living alone and independently maintaining themselves constitute a one-person household.

Punishable act - an act committed by a juvenile, prohibited by law as an offence, a fiscal offence or petty offence.

Regional care and therapy centre – a centre which provides round-the clock care and upbringing of a child deprived in part or in full of paternal care, who due to their health condition require specialist care and rehabilitation and cannot be placed in family foster care or a care and education centre.

Single-parent family - the family of one parent and the child/children living in the same household.

Shelter for detained juveniles – diagnostic and correctional establishment intended for detained juveniles over the age of 13.

Youth education centre – a facility for socially maladjusted children and youth who require special organisation of education and working and methods, psychological and educational support and social rehabilitation. The purpose of the centre is to eliminate the causes and symptoms of social maladjustment and to prepare students for life in accordance with valid social and legal norms.

Youth socialtherapy centre – a facility for children and youth who, due to developmental disorders, learning difficulties and problems in social functioning, are at risk of social maladjustment and require special organisation of education and working methods, psychological and educational support and sociotherapy, and who have a statement of special educational needs issued due to the risk of social maladjustment. The tasks of the youth sociotherapy centre include eliminating manifestations of behavioural disorders and preparing students for an independent and responsible life after leaving the centre, in accordance with valid social and legal norms.

Poverty and deprivation

At risk of poverty or social exclusion – persons are considered at risk of poverty or social exclusion who are materially deprived or living in households with very low work intensity.

At-risk of poverty rate after social transfers – percentage of persons with an equivalised disposable income (after social transfers) is below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold set at 60% of the national median of equivalised disposable income.

Biological type of household – determined based on the degree of relationship of household members to the reference person. The following biological types of households are distinguished:
• married couple with no dependent children,
• married couple with one dependent child,
• married couple with two dependent children,
• married couple with three dependent children,
• married couple with four or more dependent children,
• mother with dependent children,
• father with dependent children,
• married couple with at least one dependent child and other persons,
• mother with at least one dependent child and other persons,
• father with at least one dependent child and other persons,
• other persons with dependent children,
• single-person households,
• other.

Economically active population (by LFS) – persons aged 15-89 who are considered as employed or unemployed.

Extreme poverty – households are considered to be affected by extreme poverty where the level of expenditures (including a value of free-of-charge articles as well as natural consumption) was lower than the adopted extreme poverty threshold (subsistence minimum, setting the level of satisfaction of needs below which occurs a biological threat to life and psychophysical human development.

Income poverty – households are considered to be affected by income poverty if their monthly monetary income was less than the official poverty threshold during the reference year.

Large family – a family with at least three children.

Material deprivation – lack of ability to fulfill needs regarded as basic in European conditions due to financial problems.

Overcrowding rate - defined as the percentage of the population living in an overcrowded household, i.e. one that does not have at least:
• one room for the household,
• one room by couple in the household,
• one room for each single person aged 18 and more,
• one room by pair of single people of the same sex between 12 and 17 years of age,
• one room for each single person between 12 and 17 years of age and not included in the previous category,
• one room by pair of children under 12 years of age.


Subsistence minimum – also called as biological minimum; is calculated by the Institute of Labour and Social Studies. It takes into account only these needs, fulfilment of which cannot be postponed. Consumption below this level leads to biological destruction.

Severe material and social deprivation rate – the proportion of the population experiencing an enforced lack of at least 7 out of 13 deprivation items (6 related to the individual and 7 related to the household).

List of items:
• At the household level:
- Capacity to face unexpected expenses
- Capacity to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home
- Capacity to being confronted with payment arrears (on mortgage or rental payments, utility bills, hire purchase instalments or other loan payments)
- Capacity to afford a meal with meat, chicken, fish or vegetarian equivalent every second day
- Ability to keep home adequately warm
- Have access to a car/van for personal use
- Replacing worn-out furniture
• At individual level:
- Having internet connection
- Replacing worn-out clothes by some new ones
- Having two pairs of properly fitting shoes (including a pair of all-weather shoes)
- Spending a small amount of money each week on him/herself
- Having regular leisure activities
- Getting together with friends/family for a drink/meal at least once a month

Very low work intensity – occurs in households in which adults aged 18-64 work less than 20% of their total work potential during the past year.

Characteristics of selected surveys of Statistics Poland

European Health Interview Survey (EHIS) – the representative survey carried out every five years. In Poland that survey has conducted by Statistics Poland since 2009. EHIS results provide data for comparisons between EU countries. The objective of EHIS is to assess the health status of the Polish population, considering subjective assessments, both physical and mental. This survey covers topics such as the frequency of the most serious, long- term health problems (e.g. chronic diseases), the level of fitness and limitations in performing basic life activities, as well as emotional well-being and preventive care. The survey also allows monitoring selected aspects of both anti- and pro-heath behaviors, including sports activities, fruit and vegetable consumption, tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption.

European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) – an annual, representative survey conducted by Statistics Poland (GUS) since 2005. The main objective of EU-SILC is to provide data comparable to the EU countries on living conditions of the population in the broad sense. EU-SILC results provide information on income, poverty, material and social deprivation, self-assessment of health, and selected aspects of social exclusion. EU-SILC also entails the conduct of survey modules, answering the current needs of the EU institutions.

Households Budget Survey – an annual, representative survey conducted by Statistics Poland (GUS) since 1957 on an annual basis. The survey covers mainly household budget, i.e. the amount of revenues and outgoings (in cash and in kind) of all members of a given household and the quantitative consumption of selected goods and services. It allows to analyze the material aspects of living conditions of the population and to assess the impact of various factors on the diverse living conditions of the basic groups of households.

Labour Force Survey (LFS) – a representative survey carried out by Statistics Poland (GUS) since 1992 on a quarterly basis. The objective of this survey is to assess the situation in terms of economic activity of the population. LFS provides information on the size and structure of the employed, unemployed and economically inactive persons and, among others, sources of income and self-assessment of health. Since 2021, the survey has covered all persons aged 15-89 living in the sampled dwellings.

National Census of Population and Housing – the main survey and source of data on population statistics, which aims to collect information on its state and structure according to established demographic and socio-occupational characteristics at a specific moment on a defined territory. Censuses cover the entire population and housing. This means that data obtained from a national census are derived from all citizens. Importantly, for many demographic and social characteristics, such as religion, nationality, or degree of disability, censuses are the only source of data for the state. Censuses are conducted approximately every 10 years, in accordance with recommendations and standards of international organizations such as the EU and the UN, enabling international comparisons.

Surveys in the area of Information Society Indicators – conducted annually since 2004 and closely related to measuring the development of a knowledge-based society. The objective of the surveys includes the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in enterprises, households and individuals and, from 2019, in public administration units. This surveys aims to obtain indicators that allow for the assessment of individual stages of the development of the information society and the analysis of the processes taking place in it, as well as making comparisons between EU countries (excluding the study on the use of ICT in public administration units).

Time use survey – is conducted every 10 years on a representative sample of respondents using interviews and a “time diary”. It provides information on the daily time-use structure of society and its variations by demographic, social, economic, and territorial characteristics. The goal of the survey is to value household working time, which supports national accounts and the preparation of balance sheets for working time. It has practical applications, for instance, in courts when awarding child support for individuals involved in household work. The survey enables international comparisons and detailed analyses of various topics, such as changes in time-use structure across different life stages, valuation of unpaid domestic work, and work-life balance. With its ten-year cycle, it allows observation of lifestyle changes, such as the impact of modern technologies in everyday life. The survey is a source of essential indicators of living standards and quality of life, providing information that supports social policy and labor market decision-making.

Unpaid work outside the household – the survey was conducted for the first time in 2011 as a module for the Labour Force Survey. The second edition was carried out in 2016, the third in 2022. The goal of the survey is to measure the economic and social dimension of work provided voluntarily and free of charge by Polish residents who have reached the age of 15. Apart from social work provided in various organisational units (e.g. associations, foundations, churches, trade unions, etc.), the survey also covers the work performed free of charge outside any organisational structures, e.g. for relatives and friends outside their own household, for strangers, as well as for the environment, town and community.