About the Survey
Price County is a great place to live. There have always been jobs available if kids wanted to stay in the community after high school. If kids wanted to go on to college the community encouraged it and often supported it. So what happened? What is so different now? That is what the people of Price County are asking themselves as they are looking at a double digit decline in population over the last decade.
As the population declines it continues to age. The number of young adults 18-39 living in Price County is declining as well.From the 1980 census to the 2009-2013 population estimate there has been a decline of 7.7% of the population aged 18- 34. The current total population of Price County is 14,569 with 2,054 being between age of 18 and 34. This phenomenon is not unique to Price County. The out migration of young adults is happening across rural America. The question is what can and should the people of Price County do to stop the trend?
In May of 2014 the Price County UW-Extension Staff convened a group of 10 young adults to serve as a focus group to get a better perspective of what young people value and look for in a place they call home. The group provided valuable input on how they felt the community engaged and accepted young adults. They advised UW-Extension to seek input from other young adults both living in and out of the county through social media.
Price County UW-Extension staff reviewed sample survey instruments from surrounding counties and with assistance from their advisory group selected 23 factors they felt impacted people’s decision on where to live. Participants were asked to rate how strong Price County was on each factor on a scale of 1 to 7 with seven being most positive. Participants later identified the top five most important factors they considered when choosing a place to live. The intent of the study was to identify data to help Price County communities engage, retain and attract young adults.
The survey was administered electronically through Qualtrics in 2014. Promotion was done at community events and tablets were utilized to get young people to complete surveys. The intended population was young adults 18-39, with 206 surveys completed. The survey was designed to divide the respondents into two categories, those currently living in the county and those who are not.
The Community Capitals Framework developed by Sociologists Cornelia and Jan Flora was used to organize and analyze the data. This approach was taken because it incorporates a broader view of the elements necessary for a healthy community building. The Community Capitals Framework looks at resources and assets of a community and divides them into seven categories: Built Capital, Financial Capital, Human Capital, Social Capital, Political Capital, Natural Capital and Cultural Capital.
The information from the survey tells us about the wants and needs of the participants and the perceptions they have about living inPrice County. Often the data will be divided between those who live here and those who do not to help people see the difference in perspectives, if any. The report will utilize numeric figures where appropriate. The comment section of the survey identified some prevalent themes. Themes based on comments will be identified to help the community better understand participants’ responses.
This report is a summary of the data collected and is intended to serve as a snapshot of what young adults value and perceive. It is meant to highlight Price County’s assets, look at challenges and create opportunities for conversations on how to engage, retain and attract young people.
Summary of Findings
The Price County UW-Extension staff administered the Attracting & Retaining the Next Generation of Price County Residents survey electronically utilizing Qualtrics. The survey was administered between May and October 2014. To boost participation intercept surveys were conducted at various community events throughout the summer utilizing tablets.
Residency in Relation to Price County
A total of 206electronic surveys were completed. The majority or 71% of those answering the residency questiondescribed themselves as currently living in Price County. Date and time stamps of survey results indicate that intercept surveys likely influenced the number of local residents participating in the survey. Six individuals taking the survey are not counted in the resident count at all; meaning they most likely never lived in Price County but took the survey anyway. Only 6% of those that moved away from Price County reported they would like to return to the area.
(Figure1)
Educational Attainment
Only the survey participants currently residing in Price County answered the question about educational attainment. The majority of the participants (72%) had invested in higher education. Technical Degrees and Bachelor’s Degrees are almost dead even at 35% and 34%. These numbers are remarkably high when compared to educational attainment numbers gathered in census data, where BS attainment or higher is listed at 15.3%. This could be the difference in the age breakdown or the fact that those with higher educational attainment are more apt to complete electronic surveys. Continual growth and expansion of the local technical college and access to online learning may also have contributed to the increase of educational attainment in this age cohort. It was interesting to note that all participants leaving Price County reporting a maximum ofhigh school diploma attainmentreturned to the county to live. Those moving in from outside of the county tended to be those with higher educational attainments coming for employment purposes.
(Figure 2)
(Figure 3)
Future Educational Plans
Participants were asked if they planned on pursuing any additional formal education. Respondents’ future educational plans were split across the board. There is evidence that this group recognizes learning is a continual process no matter what their educational attainment. Survey comments found some respondents currently in school; others identified a need for continuing education credits, some looking for advancement degrees and others a desire or need to retool for other employment opportunities.
(Figure 4)
Employment Status
The employment status of those living in Price County varies greatly in this age cohort. The survey results reported here represent those people living in the county at the time they participated in the survey. Overall 8% reported themselves unemployed at the time they took the survey. At that same time period unemployment for the county averaged 5.4%. An additional9% reported being under employed.
Employment StatusEmployed Full Time / 48%
Employed Part Time, and Wanting Something Full Time / 9%
Employed Part Time and Satisfied / 8%
Unemployed / 8%
Self Employed / 9%
Student / 9%
Choose not to be Employed Outside / 9%
(Figure 5)
Education is definitely a contributing factor in the employment success of the respondents. The less education the participant has the more likely they were to find themselves unemployed or underemployed. Thirty one percent of the respondents with only a high school diploma found themselves unemployed or underemployed compared to the 17% of the large group. This number drops to 20% with those with a Technical or Associate Degree and 4% with Bachelor’s.
(Figure 6)
Career Choice and Job Satisfaction
During the period of the Great Recession (December 2007-2009) we heard a lot of talk of people being unemployed, underemployed or possibly employed in fields not ideal. Some of that same dialogue is still heard in the community today. To get a better understanding of the workforce in this age category participants were asked if they were currently working in their career or occupation of choice. Only those respondents currently living in Price County reported their career or occupation choice. These fell within many different categories, with the greatest number of responses in the medical fields. Overall, only 58% of the respondents reported that they were currently working in the career or occupation of their choice. Educational attainment clearly played a role in helping respondents obtain employment in their desired career or occupation choice. Overall, when we asked these same participants to rank their satisfaction with their employment on a scale of 1-5 with 1 being not satisfied at all and 5 being totally satisfied, the group had a mean of 3.78 satisfactions.
Currently in Career/Occupation of ChoiceYES NO
TOTAL 58% 42%
High School 31% 69%
Tech/Assoc. 57% 43%
Bachelor’s 78% 22%
Advanced 75% 25%
(Figure7)
Qualitative data was also gathered to give a richer view of respondent’s perspective. Respondents commented on the difficulty of finding jobs locally. They said they were unaware of professional positions available because they weren’t generally advertised locally. On the flip side some not native to the area felt like they were at a disadvantage because they weren’t related to the locals. They perceived they would never get hired because they were considered as an outsider. Comments gathered suggest that improvements could be made on employers’ part to understand the workforce and employees to understand the job market. The young adults suggested pulling key factor from the reportemphasizing economics and employment and creating a fact sheet for the business community. This could be followed up with at chamber sponsored events with young adults participating in the conversations. Additional suggestions including sharing the entire report with economic development organizations, employment agencies elected officials who work with the business community. These would be enhanced by presentations by led by community influentials from this age cohort and UW-Extension.
Decision Process for Selecting Price County
We wanted to get a better understanding about the key factors that led some young people to choose to live in Price County. Those represented in figure 8 were currently residing in the county at the time of the survey. It is clearthe number one reason for young people to reside in Price County is the proximity to family at 50%, followed by employment of themselves or a spouse/partner at 34%.
(Figure 8)
We are not naïve to think in this mobile society that just because these young adults are living here now, they will always want to make Price County their home. It was surprising however to find that 56% of them are committed to staying indefinitely in the county. These are the people who will lay deep roots in a community and can become a long term asset.
Time Intended to Reside in Price CountyIndefinitely / 56%
At least a Few More Years / 13%
I Would Leave When a Better Opportunity Comes / 19%
I Would Leave If I Lost My Job / 6%
I Will Leave As Soon As Possible / 5%
(Figure 9)
Most Important Qualities to Consider When Choosing a Place to Live
What qualities do young adults look for in a place they want to call home? Over the past several decades much has been written about this new generation of workers. Rebecca Ryan in her book, Live First, Work Second Getting inside the Head of the Next Generation talks about this group’s tendency to select a place to live before finding employment. If that be the case, what are the qualities young people are searching for and is there a difference in preferences between those who reside in Price County and those who do not?
All 206 survey participants were given a list of 23 attributes and asked to select the top 5 factors important to them when choosing a place to live. Quality of Life, A Great Place to Raise a Family and Employment were 3 factors that all groups ranked among their top priorities.
Top 5 Qualities to Consider in Choosing a Place to Live -All ParticipantsQuality of Life / 1St
Employment / 2nd
Great Place to Raise a Family / 3rd
Natural Scenic Beauty / 4th
Cost of Living / 5th
(Figure 10)
Top 5 Qualities to Consider in Choosing a Place to Live – Those Currently Living In Price CountyGreat Place to Raise a Family / 1st
Quality of Life / 2nd
Natural Scenic Beauty / 3rd
Employment / 4th
Rural Atmosphere / 5th
(Figure 11)
Top 5 Qualities to Consider in Choosing a Place to Live – Those Currently Not Living in Price CountyEmployment / 1st
Quality of Life / 2nd
Cost of Living / 3rd
Education Opportunities / 4th
Great Place to Raise a Family / 5th
(Figure 12)
We asked ourselves if the top considerations in selecting a location to live were so similar in ranking, where werethe greatest differences? To determine this, we looked at the spread in rankings between the 2 groups.
Greatest Difference Considered in Choosing a Place to LivePrice Co Residents / Non-Residents
Rural Atmosphere / 3rd / 11th
Natural Scenic Beauty / 6th / 15th
Cultural Opportunities / 15th / 7th
Lots of Interesting People / 19th / 9th
Diversity / 20th / 11th
(Figure 13)
It is easy to see that the people who call Price County home value its natural assets and the social culture that comes with rural living. Qualitative data reveals local residents identify and value the social aspects of family, knowing their neighbors and community.
Quantitative and qualitative data show low population density, lack of diversity (ethnic, racial, religious, sexual preference etc.) and perceived intolerance of differences has some none-residents searching for larger urban areas to reside. This group also looks for cultural and social activities beyond the family that aren’t available in the rural community.
Community Capitals
Every community no matter what its size or where it is located has resources or assets. If a community is going to survive and thrive it will need to build on those assets. When a community is able to invest these resources and assets to create new resources it becomes capital.
Sociologists Cornelia Butler Flora and Jan L. Flora have developed a Community Capitals Framework in an effort to better understand how communities function. They have divided community resources and assets into seven categories for analysis through a holistic approach. According to Flora, “Sustainable Communities are those with economic security for all, a heathy ecosystem, and social inclusion for all residents”. They believe if one capital is emphasized over the others, the remaining will be compromised.
(Figure 14)
Defining the capitals helps to ensure that all properties are accounted for in a community. Natural Capital is probably the easiest for people to identify, as it is air, water, soil, weather and biodiversity that surround communities. Cultural Capitalis determined by the way a group sees the world and how they define their values and beliefs. Cultural norms allow groups to impose expectations on other groups.Human Capitalis composed of the skills and abilities of individuals as determined by nature and nurture. Human capital includes education, skills, health and self-esteem. Social Capital includes the relationships and networks formed within the community. Social capital takes time and trust to develop. It begins at the individual level and extends outward to families, neighborhoods, groups, organizations and communities. Political Capitalis a community’s ability to turn its norms into standards and then ensure those standards are protected by rules and regulations. A community with strong political capital controls its inner circle as well as its ability to influence a larger political circle. Financial Capital is often the most talked about in a community because it is easy to measure and often wheels influence. It includes savings, incomes generation, taxes, loans, credit, gifts and philanthropy. Built Capital refers to the human constructed infrastructure in a community. These are the bricks and mortar of our community, our streets, schools, bridges our factories.
The seven Community Capitals defined by Flora were utilized to analyze the Price County survey data. Each desirable attribute was divided among the seven community capitals. Note that the survey design emphasized five of the 7 capitals;Natural, Cultural, Social, Financial and Built. Although Political and Human Capital factors were given as selections the number of options given, was less, so may require further study. During survey development, the focus group identified fewer desirable factors in these categories. That is not to say that participants don’t value those factors but may view the same from a different perspective.
View of Price County
When we use the community of capital framework as a lens to review the data from the survey we begin to see commonalities among factors. Participants were asked to rate Price County on a scale of 1-7 on important factors when choosing a place to live.
Qualities that survey participants perceived as strong or very strong characteristics of Price County included: Natural Scenic Beauty, Safe and Stable Communities, Outdoor Recreation, Rural Atmosphere, Friends and Family, Affordable Place to Live and a Great Place to Raise a Family.
It is not surprising that participants see and appreciate Price County’s many natural resources. Two of the seven most desirable ranked characteristics, Natural Scenic Beauty and Outdoor Recreation fell in the Natural Capital category.Price County has an opportunity to capitalize on these assets.
Price County was also perceived to have a great deal of valuable social capital. Survey participants identified Safe and Stable Communities, Rural Atmosphere and a Great Place to Raise a Family in the Social Capital category. Social Capital is also perceived differently by some. Although, those currently living in Price County identified it to be rich in Social Capital those from outside perceive it lacking social opportunities. This message was evident in the written comments. Many young people were searching for social activities with people their own age. Focus group participants commented on the need to create a welcoming program for new comers to help introduce them to community resources and possible social networks. It was suggested that the community capitalize on the assets present, abundant outdoor recreational opportunities and community events. The business community already sponsoring events could be approached to host and advertise to this age cohort. Utilizing social media to advertise such events and activities was identified as a key for success.