Survey of Consumer Attitudes and Behavior, August 1978 (ICPSR 8735)

Principal Investigator(s): Economic Behavior Program. Survey Research Center. University of Michigan

Summary: These surveys were done to measure changes in consumer attitudes and expectations, to understand why these changes occur, and to evaluate how they relate to consumer decisions to save, borrow, or make discretionary purchases. This type of information is essential for forecasting changes in aggregate consumer behavior. Each quarterly survey contains approximately 40 questions, each of which probes a different aspect of consumer confidence. Open-ended questions are asked concerning e... (more info)

Series: Survey of Consumer Attitudes and Behavior Series

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Economic Behavior Program, Survey Research Center, University of Michigan. SURVEY OF CONSUMER ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR, AUGUST 1978. Ann Arbor, MI: Survey Research Center [producer], 1978. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 1988. doi:10.3886/ICPSR08735.v1

Persistent URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR08735.v1

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Summary:   These surveys were done to measure changes in consumer attitudes and expectations, to understand why these changes occur, and to evaluate how they relate to consumer decisions to save, borrow, or make discretionary purchases. This type of information is essential for forecasting changes in aggregate consumer behavior. Each quarterly survey contains approximately 40 questions, each of which probes a different aspect of consumer confidence. Open-ended questions are asked concerning evaluations and expectations about personal finances, employment, price changes, and the national business situation. Additional questions probe buying intentions for automobiles and the respondent's appraisals of present market conditions for purchasing houses, automobiles, and other durables.

Subject Terms:   business conditions, consumer attitudes, consumer behavior, consumer expectations, consumer expenditures, disposable income, durable goods, economic conditions, employment, inflation, interest rates, national economy, personal finances, price fluctuations, purchasing

Geographic Coverage:   United States

Time Period:  

• 1978-08

Date of Collection:  

• 1978-08-01--1978-08-31

Universe:   Population of the United States aged 18 and older.

Data Types:   survey data

Data Collection Notes:

The codebook is provided by ICPSR as a Portable Document Format (PDF) file. The PDF file format was developed by Adobe Systems Incorporated and can be accessed using PDF reader software, such as Adobe Acrobat Reader. Information on how to obtain a copy of the Acrobat Reader is provided on the ICPSR Web site.

Sample:   National sample of dwelling units selected by area probability sampling.

Data Source:

personal interviews

Original ICPSR Release:  1988-03-16

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