The development of a reference collection is a first step in providing access to data. One of the more frustrating tasks in dealing with data is locating the appropriate file for a user's needs. Several annotated listings of useful reference tools for data service providers are included in this section. Reference tools include paper sources, electronic access, data archives, listservers, and other people. Many excellent newsletters are available free or for a small fee. Increasingly information about data as well as the data themselves are available over the Internet. Principal investigators, data archives and distributors around the world are often only an email message away. Knowing where to look for data is both a talent and a skill.
The following is an annotated, selective list of reference
sources for data files. Emphasis is on the United States,
directories of numeric data files, and those directories which
are most current, most complete, or unique in some useful way.
APDU membership directory / Association of Public Data Users. Princeton, N.J. : Association of Public Data Users. (annual)
APDU was organized in 1976 to encourage interaction among public data users, producers, and distributors. This directory lists all member organizations and their APDU representatives, gives a brief description of each organization, and provides a topical index of members.
American national election studies data sourcebook, 1952-1986 / by WarrenE. Miller and S. Traugott. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1989.
Summary statistics from the NES are compiled here from a cumulative data set that includes all eighteen biennial data files from 1952 to 1986. Tables are arranged by topical chapter.
American Public Opinion Index and American Public Opinion Data Louisville, KY: Opinion Research Service. (annual)
Entries in the Index include questions asked in national, state and local surveys and opinion polls for over 140 polling organizations. Available since 1981. The responses to nearly all of the questions are contained in the companion microfiche set -- American Public Opinion Data. Now available on CD-ROM.
American statistics index / Congression Information Service, Inc. Bethesda: Congressional Information Service, Inc. (annual)
ASI aims to be a master guide and index to all the statistical publications of the U.S. government. Indexes are by subjects and names, categories, titles, agency numbers, and superintendent of document numbers. It is a very useful tool for tracking down data produced and disseminated by U.S. government agencies. Starting in 1994, ASI covers reports and time series that are available in electronic formats. This includes electronic bulletin boards and other sources accessible via The Internet.
Analysis with local census data: portraits of change / by Dowell Myers. New York: Academic Press, Inc., 1992.
Provides a complete overview of the U.S. 1990 census data and a comprehensive hands-on introduction to analysis. A practical and invaluable handbook for anyone interested in using the census.
Catalog of electronic data products / National Center for Health Statistics (U.S.) Hyattsville, MD: U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control, National Center for Health Statistics, 1992.
The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) is the main source of vital and health statistics for the United States. This catalog lists and describes the public use data files produced by NCHS. Information is presented on the content of each file, source of data, technical characteristics of the tape, documentation, and ordering instructions.
Census catalog and guide / United States. Bureau of the Census. Washington, D.C. : U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of the Census : For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O., 1985- .
Lists and describes publications of the U.S. Census Bureau including information available only on computer tape, floppy disk, and compact disk. Updated regularly by the Bureau's Monthly Product Announcement.
A community researcher's guide to rural data / by Priscilla Salant. Washington, D.C., Island Press, 1990.
While intended primarily for researchers in locally based community development organizations, this manual provides a good overview for any inexperienced data user. Topics covered include kinds of data available, relevant concepts including a glossary, major sources for data, and tips for locating and using data.
Continuity guide to the American National Election Studies 1952-1988 / Center for Policy Studies. Ann Arbor: Center for Policy Studies, Institute for Social Research, 1990.
This guide is intended to assist users of election study data to determine whether and when a topic has been addressed in the American National Election Studies series. Every question in the NES surveys is referenced, although variations in coding schmes across time in question wording are not described.
Data acquisitions / the Roper Center. Roper Public Opinion Research Center. Storrs, CT : University of Connecticut.
The Roper Center is an archive of public opinion research data from over seventy countries including Gallup Surveys, ABC News/Washington Post Polls, etc. Data Acquisitions lists and describes new surveys in the archive. Currently there are over 900 studies available through the Center in machine readable form. A newsletter, Data Set News Roper, announces newest acquisitions. Princeton University has put Roper's New Acquisitions up on their gopher and will add them monthly as they are issued. To view them: gopher to gopher.Princeton.EDU. On the main menu choose: Other Libraries and Reference/The Roper Center for Public Opinion Research.
Data Archive on Adolescent Pregnancy and Pregnancy Prevention (DAAPPP): Catalog of Products / Sociometrics Corporation. Los Altos, CA, Sociometrics Corporation, November 1992.
Describes the collection of data sets which comprise the DAAPPPP on topics related to teenage pregnancy, family planning, sexuality, health, and adolescence. Includes key word and original investigator indexes, as well as an extensive list of special data products, and order forms.
Data collections from the National Archive of Computerized Data on Aging / National Archive of Computerized Data on Aging (U.S.). Ann Arbor, MI : Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research. (biannual)
The catalog is sponsored by the National Institute on Aging. The data files included cover demographic, social, economic, and psychological characteristics of older adults. Also, included are data on physical health and health care behaviors. Each study description includes a study summary, design information and technical information. Title, keyword, and principal investigator indexes are provided.
Data collections available from the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data (formerly the Criminal Justice Archive and Information Network) / sponsored by Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice. [Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research], (annual).
Lists data available through the National Archive of Criminal Justice and the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research in all areas of criminal justice including attitude surveys, community studies, adult corrections, juvenile corrections, courts, delinquency, illegal corporate behavior, victimization, etc. The catalog is organized by topic and includes an index of principal investigators and titles.
Data Resources of the National Institute of Justice, 6th edition/ National Insitute of Justice, 1994.
Describes all National Institute of Justice-sponsored data available as of October 1992 and available through the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data housed and administered through the ICPSR. Each entry has an abstract which provides information on the basic purpose and methodology of the original research, unit of observation, number of records, number of variables, and the geographic and temporal coverage of the research. Also included: if information on file, structure, and publications derived from the data
Directory of U.S. government datafiles for mainframes and microcomputers / U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service. [Springfield, Va.]: NTIS. (annual)
Lists and describes over 1,600 datafiles covering business, social and scientific data. Offers readers a convenient reference to datafiles prepared by Federal agencies. The directory is divided into 25 subject area, making it easy to scan. Each entry includes full bibliographic information, summaries, and ordering information. Subject and agency indexes are included.
Directory of United Nations information services. / compiled by the Advisory Committee for the Co-ordination of Information Systems (ACCIS). 5th ed. New York : United Nations, 1994.
For each of the thirty-eight organizations of the United Nations, this directory lists and describes "information systems" (which include over 600 machine readable datafiles as well as libraries, clearing-houses, information centers, etc.). Arranged by UN organization; indexed by subject.
ESRC Data Archive catalogue guide and indexes.
ESRC Data Archive catalogue study descriptions. Cambridge:
Chadwyck-Healey, 1986.
Describes all datasets held in the Archive at the end of 1985. Includes full descriptions, indexed by subject, name, title, geography, and population. ESRC data archives at the University of Essex is a national, multi-disciplinary research facility. The largest British repository of accessible social and economic computer-readable data. Its focus is social and economic life in Britain. Updated by the ESRC Newsletter and BIRON, an online database, available via the Internet.
Eurostat catalogue: publications and electronic services. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities. Brussels, Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications, 1994. (annual)
Eurostat has the responsibility of meeting the information requirements of the Commission of the European Communities and other parties involved in the development of the single market. The statistical documents listed are available in machine-readable form. The Catalogue is arranged by distinct "themes" such as Economy and Finance, Population and Social Trends, and Foreign Trade.
Eurostat index: a detailed keyword subject index to the statistical series published by the Statistical Office of the European Communities / compiled by Anne Ramsay. 5th completely revised and enlarged edition. Stamford [Great Britain]: Capital Planning Information Limited, 1992.
Provides an index to the statistical series published by the Statistical Office of the European Community and includes notes on the series. Denotes availability on-line, on maganetic tape, on diskette, or on CD-ROM.
The Federal data base finder : a directory of free and fee-based data bases and files available from the Federal government / edited by Sharon Zarozny. 2nd ed. Potomac, MD: Information USA, Inc., 1987.
Identifies, describes and tells how to get access to over 4200 databases including electronic bulletin boards. Some of the databases are available directly online through the government, some are available only on computer tape and must be purchased from the government. Almost 300 of the databases listed are commercial databases which contain government produced information. There us a key word index.
Federal statistical data bases : a comprehensive catalog of current machine-readable and online files / compiled by William R. Evinger. Phoenix : Oryx Press, 1988.
Describes 2500 statistical and related data files focusing primarily on statistical information available on computer tape. Also includes information available on diskette and online. Successor to the Department of Commerce 1981 publication Directory of federal statistical data files. It includes files described in that directory with updates plus information on new files. Arranged by agency. Subject and name indexes are provided. A good source, but far from complete.
Gale Directory of Databases. Detroit: Gale Research, Inc., January 1993- .
Consolidates three database directories -- Directory of Online Databases, Directory of Portable Databases, and Computer-Readable Databases -- into one "super" directory. Database products are grouped by format groups in two-volumes. Volume 1 provides descriptions and contact information for more than 5,300 international online databases. Volume 2 covers 3,000 database products offered in "portable formats" such as CD-ROM, diskette, magnetic tape, and through batch processing services offered by the database producers. Each volume includes geographic and subject indexes, as well as a Master Index which organizes information by keywords, product and organization names.
Gallup Polls. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, Inc. (annual)
Available since 1935, this index provides access to Gallup polls whose goal it is to conduct surveys with representative samples of adults living in the United States. Poll questions, answers, and percentages are given along with interview dates. Polls cover current social, economic and political issues.
Guide to resources and services / Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. [Ann Arbor, Mich.] Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. (annual)
This catalog contains over 40,000 data files in nearly 3,000 study titles maintained by the ICPSR. Data files include surveys, censuses, election returns, legislative records, and other data on social, health, and political attitudes and phenomena in over 130 countries. The catalog describes each file and ordering and codebook information. It is arranged by subject categories. A newsletter, ICPSR Bulletin, supplements the catalog between editions. The Guide is also searchable online on the Consortium Data Network (CDNet) and via gopher at icpsr.umich.edu. The ICPSR WWW site can be found at URL: http://icpsr.umich.edu. Regular postings on the CDNet Hotline of new titles added keep the guide up to date; the Hotline is also available on the gopher and WWW sites.
A Guide to state and local census geography / joint venture U.S. Department of Commerce, Economics and Statistics Administration, Bureau of the Census and Association of Public Data Users. For sale by the Supt. of Docs., G.P.O., 1990.
An essential document to assist those using U.S. census data products. Census "geography" refers to all the geographic entities used by the Census Bureau in data collection and tabulation operations. Together with knowledge of census data concepts and definitions, census geography provides the key to analysis of census data.
Guide to the data resources of the Henry A. Murray Research Center of Radcliffe College: A Center for the Study of Lives / Ann Colby, Director. Cambridge, MA: Henry A. Murray Research Center of Radcliffe College, 1991.
The Henry A, Murray research Center is multi-disciplinary center focusing on the study of lives over time. It is a national repository for data on human development and social change especially data that illuminate women's lives. The guide provides a list of data sets by contributor and by title. Each entry includes an abstract, focus of the study, and methods of data collection. The Guide is also available on disk for IBM-compatible personal computers to users wishing to conduct computerized searches of the catalog for certain topics, authors, research instruments, and methodologies. The cost is $15 and it requires that specialized database management software be installed on your computer. Contact the Murray Center for further information.
IASSIST directory of members and institutional subscriptions / IASSIST. (irregular).
The International Association for Social Science Information Services and Technology was founded in 1974 to bring together individuals who provide data services. The members are committed to assisting researchers access data and providing professional support to those new to the field. The Directory provides a useful contact list.
Index to International Public Opinion. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press. (annual)
Prepared by Survey Research Consultants International, Inc. since 1978, this index provides access to surveys conducted by leading worldwide opinion research organizations in over 60 countries. Both single nation surveys and multinational surveys are included. Indexing is by a full range of topical categories covering social, economic, environmental, and political issues; by countries and regions in which surveys were conducted; and by countries and geographic areas referenced in surveys. Full questions and responses with percentages are provided.
Index to international statistics / Congressional Information Service, Inc. Bethesda: Congressional Information Service, Inc. (annual)
Provides a master guide and index to current English language statistical publications of the world's major international nongovernmental organizations. Coverage includes the United Nations system, OECD, EC, OAS, commodity organizations, and development banks. Indexes are by subject, names, and geographic areas; categories; issuing sources; titles; and publication numbers. Useful for identifying who collects data.
Information Industry Directory.. Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 1992
This is a "comprehensive international descriptive guide to organizations, systems, and services involved in the production and distribution of information in electronic form." It is particularly useful for identifying otherwise elusive datafiles including files which are available only offline. In lists publishers, libraries, educational institutions, professional associations, commercial firms, and government agencies. There are over 370 pages listing U.S. Government agencies and over 30 pages listing United Nations agencies, for instance. Volume 1 contains an alphabetical list of organizations with descriptive information about their electronic services and databases; volume 2 has 31 different indexes. Formerly called Encyclopedia of information systems and services.
Instat: International statistics sources / byMichael C. Fleming and Joseph. G. Nellis. London: Routledge, 1995.
This two volume work provides a comprehensive subject guide to sources of international statistical data. Four hundred sources are covered; purely national sources, restricted to data for one country, have been excleded. Each entry indicates specific categories covered for the subject, units of measurement, time series status, geographical coverage, and source.
Inventory of Longitudinal Studies in the Social Sciences / by Copeland H. Young et.al. Newbury Park: Sage Publications, 1991.
Excellent inventory of existing longitudinal studies in the areas of childhood, adolescence, middle age, and old age. Each entry contains information on principal investigator, substantive topics covered, characteristics of the original sample, information on sample attrition, constructs measured, instruments used, references, and current status of study. Includes an author and subject index, and lists of data sets by author and by title.
Inventory of U.S. health care data bases, 1976-1987 / by Peter D. Kralovec. [Bethesda, MD] : U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professionals, Office of Data Analysis and Management, 1988.
This is the second inventory produced by the Health Resources and Services Administration. It covers nonproprietary health care databases valuable to policymakers, researchers, health educators, and health policy analysts and planners. More than 300 abstracts are included. Access is by title of study or by MeSh (Medical Subject Heading) Index.
Macroeconomic Data: a user's guide , 3rd edition / ed. By Robb H. Webb. Richmond: Federal Reseve Bank, 1994.
The object of this book is to help a new user of macroeconomic data effectively interpret some of the most important data series. Chapters cover national income and product accounts, industrial production and capacity utilization, labor market data, monetary agregates, credit aggregates from the flow of funds accounts, international trade and paymenets data, macroeconomic price indexes, medical care indexes, and seasonal adjustments.
The NORC general social survey: a user's guide / by J.A. Davis and T.W. Smith. Newbury Park: Sage, 1992.
Written by two researchers who have directed the GSS since its inception, this volume clearly describes design, samples, oversamples, weights, and coding procedures of the GSS. It also outlines the topics covered in the GSS. A handy tool that makes the GSS more accessible.
OERI Directory of Computer Files compiled by Imelda H. Smallwood, Office of Educational Research and Improvement. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, 1991.
The Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) supports and conducts research on education as well as collects and analyzes education statistics. This directory gives a brief synopsis of the computer tape survey files available from OERI. Each entry includes the survey data file name or survey area; years files are available; and a description which includes the number of respondents, major variables, and brief description of the survey itself.
Overview of Special Surveys Conducted by the Household Surveys Division of Statistics Canada.
The Panel study of income dynamics: a user's guide / by Martha S. Hill. Newbury Park: Sage, 1992.
Describes an extremely complex data set, its main features, and complications of the data. Useful as an introduction to the PSID for new users, as well as serves as a resource for more experienced users. Provides clear answers to the most commom problems encountered when using PSID.
The Preparation of data sets for analysis and dissemination: technical standards for machine-readable data / prepared by P. Collins and Jane L. Powers. Ithaca: National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1991.
This document sets forth technical requirements to ensure the quality and utility of data submitted to a specific archive; however, it is a useful guide to all researchers whose projects result in machine-readable data. Following these guidelines will assist researchers use and maintain their own data and facilitate the use of their data by others.
Programs and Plans of the National Center for Education Statistics. U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvment, 1995.
This is the fourth periodic report on the programs and plans of the NCES. It updates the descriptions of the traditional standard data collections as well as provides information on new work. Names of contacts for the data sets are provided.
SIGCAT CD-ROM compendium / compiled by the Office of Electronic Information Dissemination Services in cooperation with the Special Interest Group on CD-ROM Applications and Technology (SIGCAT), U.S. Government Printing Office. F or sale by the Supt. of Docs., G.P.O., April 1993.
Contains entries of both in process and completed CD-ROMs of federal government information that is published by a federal agency or private industry. Arranged alphabetically by title with separate source and vendor indexes. Each entry contains an abstract of information on the CD-ROM.
State Data and Database Finder / by Matthew Lesko. Chevy Chase, MD: Information, USA, Inc., 1989.
Responding to the enormous increase in the amount of information generated at the state level, this database finder is oriented towards companies who need current information quickly and inexpensively. Broad subject access is available from the table of contents and more specific access through the index. The various chapters list state agencies, state data centers, and corporations along with what kinds of information you might expect to get from them.
Statistical abstract of the United States / United States. Bureau of the Census. Washington, D.C.: For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O. (annual)
This major compendium of statistical tables from a wide range of U.S. statistical agencies is often a first place to look to determine who collects what data. In this way, in can serve as an inexpensive index to a wealth of government data.
Statistical Masterfile / Congressional Information Service. Bethesda: Congressional Information Service. (quarterly)
Covers statistical data published in the United States or by international intergovernmental organizations in the areas of population, business and financial activities, domestic and international trade, government programs, health, and other economic, demographic, social,, and political issues. Comprised of three separate files which corresponds to the print indexes of the same name: American Statistics Index, Index to International Statistics, and Statistical Reference Index. Can be searched singly or simulaneously. Each database is searchable by CIS-assigned index terms or free text.
Statistical reference index / Congressional Information Service. Bethesda: Congressional Information Service. (annual)
Covers statistical publications of thousands of U.S. private organizations and state agencies. It is designed to provide reliable access to a significant body of business, financial and social statistical data, much of which has previously been difficult to locate. Indexed by subjects and names, categories, issuing sources, and titles. An excellent tool for identifying who is collecting data.
Statistical Yearbook / United Nations. New York: United Nations. (annual)
This is based on data compiled by the Statitistical Division of the U.N. from over 40 different international and national sources. Extremely useful in conjunction with the CD-ROM version of the data.
Statistics Canada Catalogue / Statistics Canada. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. (annual)
This catalogue lists publications available for sale from Publications Sales; maps and mapping services available from Geography Division; and electronic products and services. A special guide to finding and using statistics is included, as are separate author/title and subject indexes and details for ordering.
Statistics sources / edited by Jacqueline Wasserman O'Brien and Steven R. Wasserman. 19th edition. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1996.
Covers current sources of quantitative information on more than 20,000 specific subjects. More than 100,000 citations and over 2,000 sources direct users to both print and machine-readable U.S. and international sources for financial, industrial, business, social, educational, and additional topics. Arranged by alphabeticaly subject listing broken down by geographic heading for states and individual countries. Other valuable listings include federal statistical telephone contacts and state data center agencies.
Title list: A preliminary and Partial Listing of the Data Files in the National Archives and Records Administration. Center for Electronic Records, National Archives and Records Administration. (irregular).
Describes holdings of machine readable data in the National Archives. Arranged by Department of the U.S. government and then by record group as in the National Archives Guide. These files are not available online, but most can be purchased on tape. The Title List is available upon request from the National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road College Park, Maryland 20746, (301) 713-6645. The Title List is also available on the WWW at URL: http://www.nara.gov/nara/electronic/.
A User's guide to BEA information: publications, computer tapes, diskettes, and other information services. U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce (annual).
This guide helps locate information collected by the Bureau of
Economic Analysis (BEA) on economic growth, inflation, regional
development, and the United States' role in the world economy. It
also includes BEA telephone contacts for data users and release
dates for BEA estimates.
Increasing amounts of data are available online. There are many vendors that sell access to data (see, in the previous section, the Gale Directory of Databases for a very comprehensive listing of such vendors). There is also a rapidly growing number of datafiles available on The Internet, many available without charge.
The purpose of this section is to simply show a few of these online resources. Both the Data and Program Library Service and the Social Science Data Center at the University of California at San Diego have large, annotated lists of these resources.
BIRON, (http://dasun1.essex.ac.uk/cgi-bin/biron)
BIRON (Bibliographic Information Retrieval On-Line) is the Archive at Essex's Online Catalogue and Subject index. Each BIRON study description includes an extended systematic definition of the study's origin, history, authorship, methodology, and content. You can access data by selecting up to ten of over 100 subject categories, by keyword search, or from a list of over 30 "major studies" such as General Household Surveys, British Election Surveys, Labour Force Surveys, and Gallup Political Polls.
CESSDA INTEGRATED DATA CATALOGUE, (http://dastar.essex.ac.uk/Cessda/IDC/)
The Council for European Social Science Data Archives Integrated Data Catalogue is a unified collection of mainly European social science data archive catalogues, which can be searched through one common interface. It is part of the CESSDA initiative, which encourages the exchange of data and technology and fosters the development of new organisations in Europe. Included are holdings from BDSP, France; DDA, Denmark; DA, UK; NSD, Norway; SSD, Sweden; SSDA, Israel; Steinmetz, Netherlands; ZA, Germany; and SSDA, Australia. Queries can be on titles, names, contents, start year, geographical focus, or any combination thereof.
CIESIN, (http://WWW.ciesin.org/)
The Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) provides online access to data, lists of data, documentation and more. CIESIN specializes in global and regional network development, science data management, decision support, and training, education and technical consultation services. Applications include interactive mapping of 1990 U.S. census data, microdata from the 1940-1990 dicennial U.S. census, and environmental change data.
DPLS (http://dpls.dacc.wisc.edu/archive.html)
The Data and Program Library Service(DPLS) provides access to an increasing number of its archival data via the Internet. These include the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, Slave Movement during the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centures, and the Milwaukee Parental Choice data.
FEDWORLD, (http://www.fedworld.gov)
The Fedworld Information Network provides entry from the internet to many U.S. government bulletin board systems so that you do not have to incur phone charges. It is valuable for accessing many databases. Provides searchable access to a profound amount of information, including an FTP site of over 14,000 files, as well as links to other U.S. government online information sources.
GENERAL SOCIAL SURVEYS via Queens College, NY, (http://www.soc.qc.edu/QC_Software/extract.html) and via the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, (http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/gss/)
These sites provide interactive access to the GSS data and documenation. Both offer extraction and search engines. The Queens site seems to be out of date.
GOVERNMENT INFORMATION SHARING PROJECT, (http://govinfo.kerr.orst.edu/index.html)
The Government Information Sharing Project was initiated with funding from the U.S. Department of Education and is administered at Oregon State University Libraries. The original goal of the Project was to demonstrate improved access to electronic government information, especially for remote users (such as rural Oregon residents) and the general public. Through the Web, the audience of the site has quickly become a national and international one, including libraries, community developers, small and large businesses, researchers, students, journalists, agencies, and many more. Data are provided by the (U.S.) Bureau of the Census, Bureau of Economic Analysis, the National Center for Education Statistics and the MESA Group. They include: population estimates, imports/exports data, county-level economic data and more.
ICPSR, (http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/)
The Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR), located within the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan , is a membership-based, not-for-profit organization serving member colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. ICPSR provides: Access to the world's largest archive of computerized social science data; Training facilities for the study of quantitative social analysis techniques; Resources for social scientists using advanced computer technologies.
LABOR STATISTICS DATA, U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS, (http://stats.bls.gov/datahome.htm)
This site provides access to a vast amount of time series data, much of it disaggregated, in a number of areas, including: Consumer Price Index; Employment, Hours, and Earnings; International Labor Statistics; Producer Price Index; and State, Area Employment, Hours, and Earnings. Besides time series data, recent press releases and at a glance documents are available. The Surveys and Programs section provides access to information about government and government-funded surveys.
MACRO INTERNATIONAL, INC. (http://www.macroint.com/dhs/)
This WWW site provides access to the Demographic and Health Surveys, one of the world's largest primary sources of information on women, men, and their families in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. URL: http://www.macroint.com/dhs/
MISSOURI STATE DATA CENTER, (http://www.oseda.missouri.edu/mscdc/)
The Missouri State Census Data Center (MSCDC) is a cooperative program among the state agencies and the U.S. Bureau of the Census. The program is designed to enchance the awareness, access and use of public data and information. MSCDC holdings consists of over 2,000 public machine readable data files and numerous printed reports. Resources include the MABLE/Geocorr Geographic Correspondence Engine, and UEXPLORE, which allows you browse and run applications on the SAS datasets making up the MSCDC data archive.
U.S. NATIONAL ELECTION STUDIES, (http://www.umich.edu/~nes/)
Data from the 1994 election study and the 1995 pilot study are available along with a wealth of other documentation. NES conducts national surveys of the American electorate in presidential and midterm election years, and carries out research and development work through Pilot Studies in odd-numbered years. The NES time-series now encompasses 23 biennial Election Studies spanning five decades. NES is located within the Center for Political Studies at The University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research.
PENN WORLD TABLES 5.6 (NBER), (http://www.nber.org)
The National Bureau of Economic Research is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization dedicated to promoting a greater understanding of how the U.S. economy works. An impressive and growing number of data sets are available from the NBER including the Penn-World Tables, and U.S. Imports and Exports by SIC Category.
PUBLIC OPINION POLL QUESTIONNAIRE DATABASE, (http://www.irss.unc.edu/data_archive/)
The Database allows researchers to search for specific poll questions by using key-words. The system displays the full question text, study information, and, for most questions, frequency distributions. The Database provides quick and easy access to users interested in looking up previous question wordings in order to develop questions for their own studies, as well as to users interested in frequencies or in locating particular variables for statistical analysis. In addition, depending on the poll, users can also search by date, study number, study title or state. Public opinion data available through the Database include Louis Harris polls, Carolina and Southern Focus Polls, polls conducted by members of the National Network of State Polls, and surveys conducted in several Latin American countries (in the original language).
STATISTICAL ABSTRACT OF THE UNITED STATES, (http://www.census.gov/stat_abstract/)
The 1996 Statistical Abstract contains a collection of statistics (over 1400 tables and graphs) on social, economic, and international subjects. You will find at the on-line site a sampling of the data from this popular reference book. In addition, the Abstract is a Guide to Sources of other data from the Census Bureau, other Federal agencies, and private organizations.
STATISTICS CANADA, (http://www.statcan.ca/start.html)
Statistics Canada publishes a wide variety of information on economic and social conditions in Canada. To access basic statistical information, you can select from one of these broad topics: The Land; The People; The Economy; The State.
STAT-USA, (http://www.stat-usa.gov)
Stat-USA provides access to a number of databases including the NTSB (National Trade Data Bank) and BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis) economic information. Access to Stat-USA can be obtained for free from participating U.S. Depository Libraries, or subscriptions can be obtained.
SOS-DATA (Internet Discussion Group)
This electronic discussion group can be a very useful resource for identifying particular surveys and studies which deal with specific research questions. Few databases provide variable level access to data. The community of data users who subscribe to this BITNET discussion group can assist in recommending useful data sets and identifying questions in surveys that may help you. Contact your local computing center staff or network manager to determine how to subscribe to this discussion group from your site.
SOS-DATA is located at LISTSERV@FROSTY.IRSS.UNC.EDU
U.S. BUREAU OF THE CENSUS (http://www.census.gov)
This is the official site of the U.S. Census Bureau. A huge amount of information can be accessed including online data via the Data Extraction System (DES), which allows you to make extractions from large surveys like the Current Population Survey (CPS), the Survey of Income and Program Participation, and the American Housing Survey. Also available is Ferret, a data extraction and review tool for March CPS data.
WORLD BANK, (http://www.worldbank.org/)
Numerous categories of Topics in Development provide access to data (for example, Development Economics).
WORLD BANK, SOCIAL INDICATORS OF DEVELOPMENT, 1995 (http://www.ciesin.org/ic/wbank/sid-home.html)
Social Indicators of Development contains the World Bank's most detailed data collection for assessing human welfare to provide a picture of the social effects of economic development. Data are presented for over 170 economies, omitting only those for which data are inadequate. Internet access to the Social Indicators of Development, 1994, is being provided as part of a limited-time experiment sponsored by the World Bank and the Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) -- see search access link under Access. There is also a "dataset guide" for this study.
WORLD BANK, TRENDS IN DEVELOPING ECONOMIES, 1995 (http://WWW.ciesin.org/IC/wbank/tde-home.html)
Trends in Developing Economies (TIDE) provides brief reports on most of the World Bank's borrowing countries. This compendium of individual country economic trends complements the World Bank's World Development Report, which looks at major global and regional economic trends and their implications for the future prospects of the developing economies. TIDE digests information from national sources and adds staff commentary to explain recent developments for the benefits of readers who are familiar with macroeconomics but not, perhaps, with every country under review. Internet access to the Trends in Developing Economies, 1994, is being provided as part of a limited-time experiment sponsored by the World Bank and the Consortium for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) -- see search access link under Access. There is also a "dataset guide" for this study.
WORLD BANK, WORLD TABLES, (http://www.ciesin.org/IC/wbank/wtables.html)
World Tables, published annually, provides the most detailed collection of economic data and socioeconomic indicators published by the World Bank. Standardized data presented for numerous inividual countries (161,1994 edition) make this an ideal reference for international comparisons. A Supplement containing revised data is published approximately six months after the main volume. Data are presented as annual times series covering multiple years (1972-1992, 1994 edition), and are presented as Topical Pages or as Country Pages. There is also a "dataset guide" at CIESIN for this study.
ACSPRI Newsletter. Canberra: Australian Consortium for Social and Political Research Incorporated. (biannual)
Incorporates SSDA News from the Social Science Data Archives, Australian National University. Contains brief articles, letters, research notes, conference and summer program information.
American Demographics. American Demographics, 1979 - .
Often includes information on data files of interest to demographers.
The American Enterprise. Washington D.C.: The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research. (bimonthly) Continues Public Opinion.
This magazine includes a regular section of about 20 pages called, "Public Opinion and Demographic Report." The Roper center helps compile this section which includes graphs and charts of public opinion on political and business and social issues.
APDU Newsletter. Princeton: Association of Public Data Users.
Published 10 times a year. Covers public data sources of the U.S. federal agencies. News items are thorough and timely. An excellent source.
Archive Reporter. Los Altos, CA: Sociometrics Corporation. (semiannual).
Provides news and notes about the Data Archive on Adolescent Pregnancy and Pregnancy Prevention (DAAPPP) as well as other archives housed at Sociometrics Corporation including the American Family Data Archive (AFDA), AIDS/STD Data Archive, and the Maternal Drug Abuse Data Archive.
The Archive Updata. Ithaca, NY: National Data Archive on Child Abuse and Criminal Neglect, Family Development Center, Cornell University.
This irregular newsletter includes current holdings of the archive, descriptions of particular studies, an order form and other Archive news.
Census and You. Washington, D.C.: Bureau of the Census.
This monthly newsletter has short informative articles about new census products including datafiles, brief tables ands small graphs highlighting new data releases, and information about the Bureau and how to get Bureau information. Unlike the Monthly Product Announcement, which is an comprehensive listing of new products, this has a friendly and informative approach to the census.
Database: The Magazine of Database Reference and Review. Weston, CT: Online, Inc. (bimonthly)
Includes articles about online searching, CD-ROMs, information industry, software. Emphasis is on major database vendors and use of PCs and Macintoshes and related software in a library environment.
EDUCOM Review. Princeton, NJ: Educom. (bimonthly)
Includes articles of interest to educational computing including networking, multimedia, software, etc. Emphasis is on broad issues rather than specific software or applications.
Electronic Networking: Research, Applications, and Policies. Westport CT: Meckler.
This publication was unavailable for review. The publisher says it covers use of telecommunications networks to provide information services and products.
ESRC Data Archive Bulletin. London: Economic and Social Research Council.
Covers new acquisitions to the ESRC Data Archives, as well as very useful news items about the data community in the United Kingdom; and in other research institutes, data organizations, and archives around the world. Includes notes on software, new books, and forthcoming events. An excellent source.
GSS News. Chicago: National Data Program For the Social Sciences.
An occasional publication edited by Tom W. Smith, the P.I. of the General Social Surveys. Contains information on data updates, releases, future plans, and includes selected bibliographies.
Government Information Quarterly. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
International in focus. Covers resources, services, policies, and practices related to the use of government information worldwide. Includes both substantive articles and book reviews.
Government Publications Review. Elmsford, NY: Pergamon Press.
Published bimonthly. Covers the field of documents production, distribution, library handling and use of documents at all levels of government: federal, state, and municipal, UN and international agencies and all countries.
IASSIST Quarterly. Los Angeles, CA.: International Association for Social Science Information Service and Technology.
Reports on activities related to the production, acquisition, preservation, processing, distribution, and use of machine-readable data carried out by IASSIST members and others in the international social science community. Highly recommended for anyone managing, operating, or using data archives, data libraries, and data services.
ICPSR Bulletin. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research.
Published four times per academic year. Informs ICPSR Official Representatives and interested researchers of the data collections most recently released or updated by ICPSR, and keeps readers informed of ICPSR and related activities through lead articles and notes. Essential for ICPSR member institutions.
ISR Newsletter. Ann Arbor, MI: Institute for Social Research.
Published three times a year. Covers research activities of individuals affiliated with the Institute for Social Research (ISR). Includes selected bibliographies and books published by the Institute.
Journal of Economic and Social Measurement. Continues Review of Public Data Use. Amsterdam, Netherlands: IOS Press.
A quarterly journal concerned with the production, distribution, and use of statistical data. Articles consider the methodology of economic and social measurements, the application of these data to research problems, the development and use of software tools, and the methods and issues associated with the distribution of data.
Monthly Product Announcement. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census.
Available free from the Bureau. Announces new products in print and electronic form along with price information and how to order. Lists products to be release.
Murray Research Center News. Cambridge, MA: Henry A. Murray Research Center, Radcliffe College.
Published twice a year this newsletter includes recent data acquisitions with annotations, as well as reports of research in progress, grants available, and workshops.
NLS Update. Columbus, OH: Center for Human Resource Research.
Published quarterly by the Center for Human Resource Research, Ohio State University, with funding from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. Covers abstracts of research using NLS data, news about data collection and documentation errors, annotations of works-in-progress and completed works which use NLS data, and notes from NLS users. Available free to researchers utilizing NLS data both in print or elctronically via BITNET and The Internet.
NTIS Centerline. Springfield, MA: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service.
Improves public access to U.S. Government computer software, numeric and source textual data files available through NTIS' Federal Computer Products Center. Updates two NTIS annual publications: Computerized Data File Directory and Computer Software Directory.
Online: the Magazine of Online Information Systems. Wilton, CT: Online, Inc. [note change from Weston to Wilton...]
Covers all type of electronic databases including numeric databases. Provides search hints, reviews new products and developments, and discusses end-user issues.
Panel Study of Income Dynamics Newsletter. Ann Arbor, MI: Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research.
Keeps PSID users informed about supplementary questions in the Panel Study, publications resulting from using PSID, and new developments with the files.
Public Opinion Quarterly. Elsevier Science, 1937- .
Regularly publishes results from surveys and usually provides information on where the data are held.
Public Perspective: A Roper Center Review of Public Opinion and Polling. Storrs, CT: Roper Center.
Uses Roper data to review developments in public opinion research and the substance of public opinion. Includes numerous charts and graphs to depict a variety of economic, political and social issues.
Research & Education Networking. Westport CT: Meckler.
This relatively new 9/year publication was not available for review, but the publisher says that it will analyze developments with the National Research & Education Network, Internet, electronic networking, publishing, and scholarly communication, as well as other emerging network issues of interest to the academic, library, government computer and communications communities and educational institutions.
Social Science Computer Review. Continues Social Science Microcomputer Review. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.
Covers social science computing issues for research and teaching. Includes substantive articles, miscellaneous reports, news, and software reviews. A unique and worthwhile journal.
Survey Research Newsletter. Survey Research Laboratory, University of Illinois, 909 W. Oregon Street, Suite 300, Urbana, IL 61801-3327.
News about survey research, new data, reference sources and more.