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Household, Geography & Contextual Variables
Household Composition
Created Variables
CV_HH_SIZE: Identifies the household size.
CV_HH_UNDER_6: Provides the number of household members under the age of 6 as of the survey date.
CV_HH_UNDER_18: the number of household members under the age of 18 as of the survey date.
CV_YTH_REL_HH_CURRENT. Reports the relationship of the youth to the primary adults in the household at the time of the survey (e.g., both biological parents, biological mother, adoptive parent[s]). This variable is included in rounds 1-7 only. In round 1, this variable was also created for various points in the youth's childhood (CV_YTH_REL_HH_AGE_x).
Created variables describing household net worth and total household income are discussed in Parent Characteristics, Assets & Debts, and Income.
Important Information About Using Household Composition Data
1. During the interview, the respondent's answers to questions about household members are organized into a "household roster." This roster (grid of data) is considered the most complete source of information about household members. Survey staff strongly recommend that researchers use the roster information whenever possible as it is more accurate and easier to use than the raw data. Edits to the household composition are posted to the rosters and not necessarily to the raw data. Roster items are presented as consolidated blocks of data in the data set and can be identified through their unique question names (For example, HHI_UID.01). Prefixes for the round 1 household roster question names begin with "HHI2_" and subsequent rounds question names are prefixed with "HHI" (the "2" is dropped). For detailed information on how to link household roster items across survey rounds, see the tutorial on Linking Roster Items across Rounds in the NLSY97.
2. In Round 1 through 6, the respondent's household is based on what the respondent considers to be his or her permanent household as reported in the household information section. This is not necessarily the same as where he or she is living at the time of the survey. Respondents who are in the military (or away at college or incarcerated) may report their spouse or children as being in the household, even though the answers in the fertility and marriage sections have the respondent separated from them. Beginning in round 7, the respondent's household is considered to be current residence.
3. Exercise caution when drawing conclusions based on household characteristics using NLSY97 data. The large number of multiple respondent households in the sample may skew the data on certain characteristics if the analysis is performed at the respondent level rather than at the household level.
4. Users should note that a number of inconsistencies were discovered during a review of the round 1 relationship data, and the relationship codes in the household roster were substantially revised for the release of the round 2 data. Relationships involving NLSY97 youth respondents were given top priority; some relationships between other household members were updated in the process. Survey staff place greater confidence in the accuracy of codes for relationships involving youth respondents. Corrections are posted to the household roster but not necessarily to the raw variables.
In each survey round, The NLSY97 collects basic demographic information about each member of the respondent's household and establishes the relationships among household members.
Collection of Data on Household Composition
1. Screener and Household Informant (round 1)
Age and date of birth information collected in the screener determine whether any household residents were in the age range for the NLSY97. If a potentially eligible youth lived in the household, the extended screener solicited basic demographic data for each household occupant. In this section, the household informant reported the gender, ethnicity (e.g., Hispanic, Latino, of Spanish origin), and race (e.g., white; black or African American; American Indian, Eskimo, or Aleut; Asian or Pacific Islander; or other) of each occupant.
The household roster, also administered to the household informant, collected further demographic information on household occupants: Highest grade level completed by each household occupant, highest degree received by those age 17 and above, and marital status of each occupant. Employment information included number of weeks that each resident above the age of 15 was self-employed or worked for pay at an employee job in 1996, usual number of hours worked per week during that period, and his or her current employment status.
The round 1 household roster established the relationship of each person in the household to the youth and to each other. Follow-up questions verified the exact relationship; see Figure 1 for definitions of relationships. For example, if the household informant identified an occupant only as a "mother," an additional question asked the household informant if this person was a biological, adoptive, step-, or foster mother. The survey collected the same type of information for a person only identified as a "father." If occupants were listed as half siblings, the interviewer questioned the household informant on whether they shared a biological mother or a biological father. Another set of questions determined if full siblings whose reported birth dates differed by a month or less were multiple births; if they were the same gender, the household informant was asked if they were identical or fraternal twins. In addition, a person listed only as a "grandmother" was further identified as a maternal, paternal, or social grandmother. The survey solicited similar information for a household occupant listed only as a grandfather, a great-grandmother, or a great-grandfather.
Figure 1. Definitions of Relationships in Household Roster
Biological Relationship: Two people are related by blood or conception and birth. For example, one's biological father is the same as one's natural father or the man who made one's biological mother pregnant. Step Relationship: Two people are related through a marriage where the husband and/or wife had children with another partner. For example, a stepchild is the biological offspring of one's spouse (with some other partner). A stepmother is the wife of one's biological father (if he is not married to one's biological mother). A stepbrother is the biological son of one's stepmother who is not the biological son of one's biological father. Adoptive Relationship: The permanent legal rights and duties with respect to a child have been transferred from one person or institution to another. The parental rights to an adopted child have been permanently and legally transferred from the birth parents to the adoptive parents. Any other children of the adoptive parents become adopted siblings of the adopted child. Foster Relationship: Someone assumes a legal and financial obligation for a child but there is no permanent adoptive relationship. In-law Relationship: Two people are related through marriage. A mother-in-law is the mother of one's spouse. A son-in-law is the spouse of one's daughter. A sister-in-law is the sister of one's spouse or the spouse of one's brother. Full Relationship: The youth and his or her siblings share the same biological mother and biological father. Half Relationship: Siblings share only one common biological parent. Half-siblings have the same biological mother but different biological fathers, or vice versa. Social Relationship: A person functions in a particular family role but is not biologically related. For example, one's social grandparent would be someone who functions as a grandparent but is not biologically related. |
Source: Interviewer Reference Manual for Screener, Household Roster, and Nonresident Roster Questionnaire, 1997. |
2. Parent Questionnaire (round 1)
For the round 1 survey, the responding parent provided additional information on the 1996 earnings (self-employment earnings and earnings from an employee job) of each household member older than 14 at the time of the survey. Another question determined the income each household member received from any other sources such as Social Security, pensions, welfare, interest, gifts, etc.
3. Youth Questionnaire
In rounds 2 through 6, the household information section of this instrument verified characteristics of the respondent's parents listed in the previous round and asked the youth to describe any times since the last interview when he or she did not live with each parent. Parents who no longer lived with the youth were moved to the nonresident roster (see Characteristics of Non-Residential Relatives). Starting with round 7, this information was no longer collected.
The household information section next asked the respondent to review the list of household members from the last interview. If any members moved out of the household or had died, this information was recorded and the person was moved to the nonresident roster. The nonresident roster is maintained across rounds so that if anyone moves back into the household, that person can be identified and matched to their old information by ID number, which remains the same, thus allowing that person to be tracked across rounds. Finally, the respondent reported any new household members, listing their age or birth date and relationship to the respondent. All of the information about current members from the previous round's roster and about new members was then used to create the household roster for the current round.
After the roster was created, the respondent provided additional information about the household members: gender and race/ethnicity for all new household members, all members transferred from the nonresident roster, and any previous members for whom the information was missing. Marital status, employment status, and highest degree received were recorded for all household members age 16 or older. Current enrollment status was collected for all members age 4 or older; highest grade attended was gathered for all new members and anyone currently enrolled in school. Respondents reported their relationship to any members from the previous round who were not blood relatives or whose relationship was missing. Finally, if the new household member was a stepparent, an adoptive parent, or the partner of the respondent's parent, the date he or she joined the household was recorded.
The classification of a stepparent who has legally adopted a child may differ between the Screener, Household Roster, and Nonresident Roster Questionnaire and the other survey instruments. In the former, help screens instructed interviewers to categorize such parent-figures as stepparents rather than adoptive parents. Since the respondent defines this relationship in the self-administered section of the Youth Questionnaire, he or she may choose to list this parent-figure as an adoptive parent.
In round 1, most household information was collected during the administration of the Screener, Household Roster, and Nonresident Roster Questionnaire. This part of the survey also asked questions about any nonresident relatives of the NLSY97-eligible youth, including biological, step-, and adoptive parents and biological children; these data are discussed in detail in Characteristics of Non-Residential Relatives. The following paragraphs contain a description of the collection and organization of the household roster information. Researchers interested in using these data should first read this discussion.
Cohorts
- NLSY97
- Topical Guide to the Data
- Intro to the Sample
- Using & Understanding the Data
- Other Documentation
- Get Data
- NLSY79
- Topical Guide to the Data
- Asterisk Tables
- Education
- Employment
- Employment: An Introduction
- Work Experience
- Jobs & Employers
- Class of Worker
- Discrimination
- Fringe Benefits
- Industries
- Job Characteristics Index
- Job Satisfaction
- Job Search
- Labor Force Status
- Military
- Occupations
- Time & Tenure with Employers
- Wages
- Work History Data
- Employer History Roster
- Business Ownership
- Retirement
- Household, Geography & Contextual Variables
- Family Background
- Marital History, Childcare & Fertility
- Income
- Health
- Attitudes
- Crime & Substance Use
- Intro to the Sample
- Using & Understanding the Data
- Other Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- NLSY79 Attachment 3: Industrial and Occupational Classification Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 4: Fields of Study in College
- NLSY79 Attachment 5: Index of Labor Unions and Employee Associations
- NLSY79 Attachment 6: Other Kinds of Training Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 7: Other Certificate Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 8: Health Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 100: Geographic Regions
- NLSY79 Attachment 101: Country Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 102: Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)
- NLSY79 Attachment 103: Religion Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 106: Profiles of American Youth (ASVAB Data/AFQT Scores)
- NLSY79 Appendix 1: Employment Status Recode Variables (1979-1998 and 2006)
- NLSY79 Appendix 2: Total Net Family Income Variable Creation (1979-2014)
- NLSY79 Appendix 3: Job Satisfaction Measures
- NLSY79 Appendix 4: Job Characteristics Index 1979-1982
- NLSY79 Appendix 5: Supplemental Fertility and Relationship Variables
- NLSY79 Appendix 6: Urban-Rural and SMSA-Central City Variables
- NLSY79 Appendix 7: Unemployment Rate
- NLSY79 Appendix 8: Highest Grade Completed & Enrollment Status Variable Creation
- NLSY79 Appendix 9: Linking Employers Through Survey Years
- NLSY79 Appendix 11: Round 12 (1990) Survey Administration Methods
- NLSY79 Appendix 12: Most Important Job Learning Activities (1993-94)
- NLSY79 Appendix 13: Intro to CAPI Questionnaires and Codebooks
- NLSY79 Appendix 14: Instrument Rosters
- NLSY79 Appendix 15: Recipiency Event Histories
- NLSY79 Appendix 16: 1994 Recall Experiment
- NLSY79 Appendix 17: Interviewer Characteristics Data
- NLSY79 Appendix 18: Work History Data
- NLSY79 Appendix 19: SF-12 Health Scale Scoring
- NLSY79 Appendix 20: Round 20 (2002) Early Bird and Income Recall Experiments
- NLSY79 Appendix 21: Attitudinal Scales
- NLSY79 Appendix 22: Migration Distance Variables for Respondent Locations
- NLSY79 Appendix 23: Revised Asset and Debt Variables and Computed Net Worth Variables
- NLSY79 Appendix 24: Reanalysis of the 1980 AFQT Data from the NLSY79
- NLSY79 Appendix 25: Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale
- NLSY79 Appendix 26: Non-Response to Financial Questions and Entry Points
- NLSY79 Appendix 27: IRT Item Parameter Estimates, Scores and Standard Errors
- NLSY79 Appendix 28: NLSY79 Employer History Roster
- Geocode Codebook Supplement
- Appendix 7: Unemployment Rates
- Appendix 10: Geocode Documentation
- Attachment 100: Geographic Regions
- Attachment 101: Country Codes
- Attachment 102: State FIPS Codes
- Attachment 104, Part A: 1981 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas (SMSAs)
- Attachment 104, Part B: 1983 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs)
- Attachment 104, Part C: 1983 Consolidated MSAs and Associated Primary MSAs (CMSAs and PMSAs)
- Attachment 104, Part D: 1983 PMSAs and Associated CMSAs
- Attachment 104, Part E: 1988 MSAs, CMSAs, and Associated PMSAs
- Attachment 104, Part F: 2004 MSAs, CMSAs, and Associated PMSAs
- Attachment 104, Part G: 2006 Core-Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs)
- Attachment 105: Addendum to FICE Codes
- Attachment 106: Codebook Pages for Geocode and Zipcode Variables
- Questionnaires
- Tutorials
- Errata
- Technical Sampling Report
- School & Transcript Surveys Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- Get Data
- Topical Guide to the Data
- NLSY79 Child/YA
- Topical Guide to the Data
- Intro to the Sample
- Using & Understanding the Data
- Other Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- Appendix A: HOME-SF Scales (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix B: Composition of the Temperament Scales (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix C: Motor & Social Development (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix D: Behavior Problems Index (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix D, Part 1: Composition of the BPI subscales
- Appendix D, Part 2a: BPI Anxious/Depressed Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2b: BPI Antisocial Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2c: BPI Dependent Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2d: BPI Headstrong Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2e: BPI Hyperactive Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2f: BPI Peer Conflicts/Withdrawn Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2g: BPI Full Scale
- Appendix D, Part 3a: BPI Internalizing Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 3b: BPI Externalizing Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 3c: BPI Total Scores
- Appendix E: Sample SPSSx Program for Merging NLSY79 Child/YA & Mother Files
- Appendix F: Sample SAS Program for Merging NLSY79 Child/YA & Mother Files
- Appendix G: NLSY79 Child Assessment Scores, Reference Numbers (2010-2014)
- Appendix H: Identification Codes in the Child and Young Adult Database
- Attachment 100: Codebook Pages for Young Adult Geocode Data
- Questionnaires
- Errata
- Errata for 2014 Child/Young Adult Release
- Data Addition: New Work and School Status Variables Created
- Errata for 2012 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2010 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2008 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2006 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2004 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2002 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2000 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for NLSY79 Child Interview Dates 1986-1992
- Research/Technical Reports
- Codebook Supplement
- Get Data
- NLS Mature and Young Women
- NLS Older and Young Men