🚀 go-pugleaf

I thought SOS-DATA folks would be interested in this note:

From:   CDE::KEHOE        "Erin Kehoe 608-262-8139" 15-JUN-1993 09:11:43.27
Subj:   FYI - errors in 1990 PUMS codebook

I spoke yesterday (6/14) with Romala Basu at the Census Bureau about 3 variables
on the person record which we were having difficulty understanding.  It turns
out 2 of them have the codes reversed in the codebook, while the other is just
unclear.  Here is her explanation:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ROWNCHLD (P32)  SHOULD BE:
        1 = Own Child
        0 = Not Own Child

(these are reversed on page 5-19 of the codebook)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RRELCHLD (P34)  SHOULD BE:
        1 = Related Child
        0 = Not Related Child

(again, these are reversed on page 5-19)

Another note about rrelchld -- the housing record has a variable with the exact
same name, so one should be changed slightly in any dictionary being used to
avoid strange results.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RAGECHLD (P33)  is Presence and age of own children FOR FEMALES -- this last
part about females is not made clear.  The values, which are also unclear when
you start working with them, are as follows:

0 = N/A ( males ; OR females under 16 years old)
1 = FEMALES with own children under 6 years only
2 = FEMALES with own children 6-17 years only
3 = FEMALES with own children under 6 years and 6-17 years
4 = FEMALES 16 YEARS OR OVER with no own children
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Romala said that the variables with an extra 'R' on the front such as these 3
are recodes that were created to help users avoid complex select statements
(this is explained somewhere in the codebook).  Unfortunately, not only is the
codebook wrong on some and confusing on others, but some do not have enough
values.  Two examples are ROWNCHLD and RRELCHLD, above.  They should both have
an N/A category, since a person living alone has no children in the household
which need to be described as, say, 'own child' or 'not own child'.

The Bureau is suggesting users avoid using these 'recode' variables if they do
not give feasible results.  Each of them can be obtained by using a combination
of other variables in the file, it's just the select statements will become
more complex.

Please pass this information along to others who may be using 1990 PUMS data.
We will watch for other errors that may surface.


-Erin Kehoe
 kehoe@ssc.wisc.edu   or  kehoe@wiscssc.bitnet
 Applied Population Lab
 Dept. of Rural Soc.
 6/15/93