The Country Similarity Index attempts to quantify how similar countries are to each other relative to other countries. The index is a statistically-based way to measure this. 20% of the index is based on demographics. 10% of a country’s demographic score (2% of the overall Country Similarity Index score) is allocated for family status. Family status included the percentage of married and divorced people, as well as the average number of children per woman and average household size. The following is an explanation on how they were calculated:
Married People
There is a large difference in the percentage of married people between different countries. Bhutan has the highest percentage at around 80%. However, there are many countries that have a percentage less than half of that. Jamaica has one of the lowest percentages at around 30%. A lot of countries in the Caribbean and Europe also have a low percentage.
The United Nations is the main source of the data:
http://chartsbin.com/view/3214
Countries were categorized into the following groups by percentage of married people:
30-40, 40-50, 50-60, 60-70, 70-80, 80-90
Divorced People
The percentage of divorced people is far lower worldwide, but varies dramatically. It is also important to realize that this is not the same as divorce rate, which is only concerned with the percentage of marriages that end in divorce. If a country has a low marriage rate, then it may also have a low percentage of divorced people, despite having a high divorce rate. Eastern Europe tends to have a high number of divorced people. While due to religious reasons, many Muslim countries have low divorce rates.
The United Nations is the main source of the data:
http://chartsbin.com/view/3209
Countries were categorized into the following groups by percentage of divorced people:
5-7.5, 7.5-10, 10-12.5, 12.5-15, 15-17.5, 17.5-20
Fertility Rate
Poorer African nations tend to have a high number of children per women. Women in Niger, Chad, Somalia, and Burundi have an average of over 7 children. The birthrate is especially low for, East Asia, Eastern Europe and Mediterranean countries. Ukraine has an especially low rate with women there averaging less than 1.2 children.
Our World in Data is the main source of the data:
https://ourworldindata.org/fertility-rate
Countries were categorized into the following groups by number of children per woman:
1-1.5, 1.5-2, 2-3, 3-4, 4-5.5, 5.5-7
Household Size
Household size does not always correspond with the number of children women tend to have. In some countries, it is common for several generations of one family to live together. This is most common in Muslim countries. Afghanistan, Senegal, and Gambia have the highest averages, with more than 7 people per household. In contrast, European countries typically have between 2-3 people in their household.
The United Nations is the main source of the data:
https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/ageing/household_size_and_composition_around_the_world_2017_data_booklet.pdf
Countries were categorized into the following groups by number of people in their household:
2-3, 3-4, 4-5, 5-6, 6-7, 7-8
Obviously there is no one clear way to determine how similar one country is to another. How would you quantify how similar one country is to another?
Please leave any thoughts in the comments section.
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