General Social Surveys, 1972-2006 [Cumulative File] (ICPSR 4697)

Version Date: Sep 18, 2013

Principal Investigator(s):
James A. Davis, National Opinion Research Center; Tom W. Smith, National Opinion Research Center; Peter V. Marsden, Harvard University

https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR04697.v4

Version V4

This version of the data collection is no longer distributed by ICPSR.

Additional information may be available in Collection Notes.

2011-08-08 This data collection has been deaccessioned and is no longer available.

In 2006 there were two important changes to the General Social Surveys. First, Spanish interviews were conducted, so the target population is now adults living in households in the United States who speak English or Spanish. Second, a third sample was added to accommodate more supplements. This led to a total sample size in 2006 of 4,510.

This data collection includes a searchable, machine-readable PDF codebook. Hard copy versions of the codebook are no longer available.

Please see the codebook for important errata and processing 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.

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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. This data collection includes a cumulative file that merges all 25 General Social Surveys into a single file containing data from 1972 to 2006. The 2006 survey was composed of permanent questions that appeared on each of the previous surveys, rotating questions that appeared on two out of every three surveys (e.g., 1973, 1974, 1976), and a small number of occasional questions that occurred in a single survey. The GSS included 11 topical modules: quality of working life, attitudes towards firearms, shared capitalism, level of disability, use of foreign languages, mental health attitudes and experiences, number of people known, participation in congregations, knowledge about and attitude towards science, religious trends, and sexual behavior. The International Social Survey Program (ISSP) modules included in the 2006 survey were: the role of government, and work orientation. 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.

Citation

Davis, James A., Smith, Tom W., and Marsden, Peter V. General Social Surveys, 1972-2006 [Cumulative File]. Ann Arbor, MI: Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, University of Connecticut [distributor], Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2013-09-18. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR04697.v4

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Funding

National Science Foundation (SBR-96-17727)

Subject Terms

abortion   citizen participation   civil rights   community participation   compensation   computer literacy   computer use   crime   environmental attitudes   ethnicity   families   family life   feminism   freedom   gender roles   government programs   health status   human rights   information literacy   information systems   law enforcement   life cycle   mental health   military strength   morale   morality   national identity   occupational status   occupations   patients   physicians   political participation   politics   poverty   prejudice   race relations   racial attitudes   reactions to crime   religion   sexual behavior   social attitudes   social control   social indicators   social inequality   social issues   social justice   social mobility   social networks   social services   social values   socioeconomic status   wages and salaries   work   work attitudes

Geographic Coverage

Smallest Geographic Unit

census region

Distributor(s)

Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, University of Connecticut, Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research
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Time Period(s)

1972 -- 2006

Date of Collection

1972 -- 2006 (February, March, and April of 1972-1978, 1980, 1982-1991, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006)

Data Collection Notes

  1. 2011-08-08 This data collection has been deaccessioned and is no longer available.

  2. In 2006 there were two important changes to the General Social Surveys. First, Spanish interviews were conducted, so the target population is now adults living in households in the United States who speak English or Spanish. Second, a third sample was added to accommodate more supplements. This led to a total sample size in 2006 of 4,510.

  3. This data collection includes a searchable, machine-readable PDF codebook. Hard copy versions of the codebook are no longer available.

  4. Please see the codebook for important errata and processing notes.

  5. Additional information regarding the General Social Surveys can be found at the General Social Survey (GSS) Web site and the Roper Center Web site.
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Sample

National Opinion Research Center national probability sample. For the 2006 survey, a new sample frame based on the 2000 United States Census was implemented. Block quota sampling was used in 1972-1974 and for half of the 1975 and 1976 surveys. Full probability sampling was employed in the in half of the 1975 and 1976, and the 1977, 1978, 1980, 1982-1991, 1993-1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006 surveys. As with the 2004 survey, the 2006 survey subsampled nonrespondents. (See Appendix A of the codebook for more information.)

Universe

All noninstitutionalized, English- and Spanish-speaking persons 18 years of age or older, living in the United States.

Unit(s) of Observation

individual

Data Type(s)

Mode of Data Collection

Response Rates

Approximately 71 percent.

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Original Release Date

2007-05-31

Version History

2018-02-15 The citation of this study may have changed due to the new version control system that has been implemented. The previous citation was:
  • Davis, James A., Tom W. Smith, and Peter V. Marsden. General Social Surveys, 1972-2006 [Cumulative File]. ICPSR04697-v4. Storrs, CT: Roper Center for Public Opinion Research, University of Connecticut/Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributors], 2009-12-04. http://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR04697.v4

2009-12-04 In the update of this collection, a compressed Stata system file and SAS transport (CPORT) file replace the uncompressed version of the Stata system file and the SAS transport (XPORT) file, respectively. 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 and the bookmarks in the codebook have been updated.

2009-09-22 This update of the dataset includes variables that were not previously released, the coding of three variables, numerous recodes, corrections to the codebook, and the drop of the variable VIGVER06, among others. Please see the updated codebook for more information regarding all of the changes to this version.

2007-09-10 The data files for the General Social Survey, 1972-2006 have been updated to include corrected missing data specifications for responses of "Don't Know". In addition, the codebook has been updated to include the most up-to-date errata.

2007-05-31 ICPSR data undergo a confidentiality review and are altered when necessary to limit the risk of disclosure. ICPSR also routinely creates ready-to-go data files along with setups in the major statistical software formats as well as standard codebooks to accompany the data. In addition to these procedures, ICPSR performed the following processing steps for this data collection:

  • Created online analysis version with question text.
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Weight

(1) WTSS or WTSSNR: GSS users need to use one of the weight variables for the 2004 and 2006 GSS's. The memo for weight variables can be found in the codebook. (2) WTSSALL: The weight variable WTSSALL is the same as WTSS for 2004 and 2006. It takes into consideration the subsampling of initial nonrespondents and the selection of one adult per household. See Appendix A for further discussion of WTSS. For years 1972-2002, WTSSALL takes into consideration the selection of one adult per household by adjusting for the number of adults in the household. See the general discussion of number of adults adjustment in Appendix A. In order to generalize to adults living in households and including more than just 2004 and 2006, this weight should be utilized. (3) Additional information regarding weight variables for this data collection can be found in Appendix A of the codebook.

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