Race, Ethnicity & Citizenship

Created and Key Variables:

KEY!RACE. Identifies respondent's race

KEY!ETHNICITY. Identifies respondents of Hispanic and Latino origin.

KEY!RACE_ETHNICITY. Classifies all respondents into four groups: Hispanic or Latino, black, non-black/non-Hispanic, or mixed race/non-Hispanic.

CV_CITIZENSHIP. Provides the respondent's U.S. citizenship status based on his or her parents' residence at the time of the respondent's birth.

CV_CITIZEN_CURRENT. Summarizes citizenship status. Based on questions asked in rounds 5-8 and round 10 and 11.

Important Information for Using Race, Ethnicity & Citizenship Data:

1. To simplify the race/ethnicity identification process, survey staff created a single combined variable, KEY!RACE_ETHNICITY (R14826.). This variable is based on KEY!RACE, KEY!ETHNICITY, household roster information from the HHI2 variables, and biological parent race/ethnicity information. All respondents are classified as Hispanic or Latino, black, non-black/non-Hispanic, or mixed race/non-Hispanic; there are no missing values. While a respondent can be of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity and still be of any race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity was given priority in the creation of this variable. Users who wish to identify, for example, blacks of Hispanic or Latino origin must create their own variable from the screener information.

2. Although the questionnaire contains response categories for white; black or African-American; American Indian, Eskimo, or Aleut; and Asian or Pacific Islander races, some household informants refused to select one race and identified household members only as "mixed race." This category was added in the codebook.

3. In the supplemental PSUs, the information from the Screener, Household Roster, and Nonresident Roster Questionnaire was used to determine whether a youth was eligible for inclusion in the black and Hispanic or Latino oversample. No non-black/non-Hispanic youths from the supplemental PSUs were included in the survey. For more information on sampling procedures, refer to Sample Design & Screening Process.

Data on the respondent's race and ethnicity were collected in the Screener, Household Roster, and Nonresident Roster Questionnaire (round 1) and were based on the household informant's identification. Using the household roster variables, the survey program created KEY!RACE, which describes the respondent's race, and KEY!ETHNICITY, which identifies respondents of Hispanic and Latino origin. These variables can be combined to create a single race/ethnicity variable; however, there are a number of missing observations. Researchers may prefer to use KEY!RACE_ETHNICITY, described in the user notes above. Table 1 summarizes the racial/ethnic composition of the sample.

Table 1. NLSY97 Sample Sizes by Subsample, Race/Ethnicity & Gender

	Cross-sectional sample						Supplemental Sample
	Total sample	Cross-sect. total	Non-black, non-Hisp.	Black, non-Hisp.	Hispanic or Latino	Mixed race	Supp. total	Black, non-Hisp.	Hispanic or Latino	Mixed race
Round 1
Male	4599	3459	2413	537	469	40	1140	632	508	--
Female	4385	3289	2252	544	452	41	1096	622	472	2
Total	8984	6748	4665	1081	921	81	2236	1254	980	2
Round 2
Male	4283	3213	2238	504	433	38	1070	599	471	--
Female	4103	3066	2095	517	417	37	1037	584	451	2
Total	8386	6279	4333	1021	850	75	2107	1183	922	2
Round 3
Male	4169	3143	2193	490	421	39	1026	572	454	--
Female	4039	3029	2076	503	412	38	1010	568	441	1
Total	8208	6172	4269	993	8330	77	2036	1140	895	1
Round 4
Male	4116	3097	2153	485	422	37	1019	580	439	--
Female	3964	2957	2027	489	402	39	1007	570	435	2
Total	8080	6054	4180	974	824	76	2026	1150	874	2
Round 5
Male	3988	3011	2110	455	410	36	977	541	436	--
Female	3894	2907	1991	478	401	37	987	558	427	2
Total	7882	5918	4101	933	811	73	1964	1099	863	2
Round 6
Male	3997	2995	2083	466	410	36	1002	567	435	--
Female	3899	2903	1973	486	408	36	996	568	426	2
Total	7896	5898	4056	952	818	72	1998	1135	861	2
Round 7
Male	3928	2951	2060	460	395	36	977	555	422	--
Female	3826	2831	1916	482	396	37	995	564	429	2
Total	7754	5782	3976	942	791	73	1972	1119	851	2
Round 8
Male	3732	2816	1966	433	383	34	916	506	410	--
Female	3770	2784	1866	491	390	37	986	563	421	2
Total	7502	5600	3832	924	773	71	1902	1069	831	2
Round 9
Male	3663	2731	1907	424	367	33	932	523	409	--
Female	3675	2706	1823	473	376	34	969	561	406	2
Total	7338	5437	3730	897	743	67	1901	1084	815	2
Round 10
Male	3803	2850	1988	445	385	32	953	535	418	--
Female	3756	2774	1867	490	380	37	982	567	413	2
Total	7559	5624	3855	935	765	69	1935	1102	831	2
Round 11
Male	3735	2803	1954	441	374	34	932	519	413	--
Female	3683	2718	1826	483	376	33	965	552	411	2
Total	7418	5521	3780	924	750	67	1897	1071	824	2

Note: This table was created using the following variables: CV_SAMPLE_TYPE (R12358.), KEY!RACE_ETHNICITY (R14826.), KEY!SEX (R05363.), and RNI (R25102., R38297., etc).

Respondent's race and ethnicity were also asked in round 6 as part of an experiment. The wording of this question was updated according to Census guidelines. Prior to this round, new Federal guidelines were established for asking about race and ethnicity. In round 6, respondents were asked to report their race and ethnicity using the original questions from round 1 and from questions based on the new guidelines. The original questions are YHHI-55700A1, which obtained the respondent's ethnicity, and YHHI-55700A2, which asked for race. The new questions are YHEA-50, which asks respondents whether they are Hispanic or Latino, and YHEA-60, which allows respondents to check all that apply with regard to race.

Respondents provided updated information about citizenship status in round 5-8 and again in rounds 10-11. Additional information is available on the Geocode CD, including the state, territory, and country in which the respondent was born.

Comparison to Other NLS Surveys: Race is available for all cohorts; ethnicity is available for all cohorts except the Older Men and Young Men. Users should be aware that coding categories for race and ethnicity have varied among cohorts and over time. For more complete information, refer to the appropriate cohort's User's Guide.

Survey Instruments: This information was collected in the extended screener section of the round 1 Screener, Household Roster, and Nonresident Roster Questionnaire.

Related User's Guide Sections
Household Composition
Characteristics of Non-Residential Relatives
Parent Characteristics

Main Area of Interest
Created Variables
Demographic Indicators

Supplemental Areas of Interest Household Characteristics
Non-Res. Characteristics
Parent Background

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*Related User's Guide Sections*	Household Composition Characteristics of Non-Residential Relatives Parent Characteristics
*Main Area of Interest*	Created Variables Demographic Indicators
*Supplemental Areas of Interest*	Household Characteristics Non-Res. Characteristics Parent Background