This data collection has been deaccessioned; it is no longer distributed by ICPSR.
Additional information may be available in Collection Notes.
Additional information regarding the General Social Surveys can be found at the General Social Survey (GSS) Web site and the Roper Center Web site.
The GSS is in transition from a replication cross-sectional design to a design that uses rotating panels. In 2008 there were two components: a new 2008 cross-section with 2,023 cases and the first reinterviews with 1,536 respondents from the 2006 GSS, to be available in the future.
2011-08-08 This data collection has been deaccessioned and is no longer available.
Summary
The General Social Surveys (GSS) were designed as part of a data diffusion project in 1972. The GSS replicated questionnaire items and wording in order to facilitate time-trend studies. The latest survey, GSS 2008, includes a cumulative file that merges all 27 General Social Surveys into a single file containing data from 1972 to 2008. The items appearing in the surveys are one of three types: Permanent questions that occur on each survey, rotating questions that appear on two out of every three surveys (1973, 1974, and 1976, or 1973, 1975, and 1976), and a few occasional questions such as split ballot experiments that occur in a single survey. The 2008 surveys included nine topical modules: knowledge about and attitude towards science, self-employment, Jewish identity, social inequality, terrorism preparedness, global economics, CDC high risk behaviors, sexual orientation, and clergy sex. The International Social Survey Program (ISSP) module included in the 2008 survey was religion. Specific topics included social-welfare and economic regulation, civil liberties, spending priorities, and political efficacy. The data also contain several variables describing the demographic characteristics of the respondents.
Funding
National Science Foundation (SBR-96-17727)
Subject Terms
Geographic Coverage
Smallest Geographic Unit
census region
Time Period(s)
1972 -- 2008
Data Collection Notes
Additional information regarding the General Social Surveys can be found at the General Social Survey (GSS) Web site and the Roper Center Web site.
The GSS is in transition from a replication cross-sectional design to a design that uses rotating panels. In 2008 there were two components: a new 2008 cross-section with 2,023 cases and the first reinterviews with 1,536 respondents from the 2006 GSS, to be available in the future.
2011-08-08 This data collection has been deaccessioned and is no longer available.
Sample
Please see Appendix A of the ICPSR Codebook.
Universe
All noninstitutionalized, English and Spanish speaking persons 18 years of age or older, living in the United States.
Unit(s) of Observation
individual
survey data
Mode of Data Collection
computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI)
face-to-face interview
telephone interview
Response Rates
Approximately 70 percent.
Original Release Date
2009-10-16Version Date
2013-09-18
Version History
2010-02-08 In the update of this collection, a compressed Stata system file replaces the uncompressed version of the Stata system file. In addition, the value labels for several variables have been added to the SPSS, SAS, and Stata setup and system files, and the SDA for this collection has been updated.