General Social Survey

DESCRIPTION:  The General Social Survey has been conducted by the National Opinion Research Center annually since 1972 except for the years 1979 and 1981. The Roper Center for Public Opinion Research has prepared the cumulative datasets which merge the years of the General Social Survey into a single file, with each year constituting a subfile. The content of each year's survey changes slightly as some items are added to or deleted from the interview schedule. The items appearing on 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 (e.g., 1973, 1974, 1976; or 1973, 1975, 1976), and a few occasional questions such as split ballots that occur in a single survey. Starting in 1988 items no longer rotate across years but appear on two-thirds of the cases in every year. Annual topical modules designed to investigate new issues or to expand the coverage of an existing subject have been part of the GSS since 1984. The GSS also has expanded in recent years by adding a crossnational component. In 1985 the first multinational collaboration between the United States, Britain, Germany, Italy, and Austria focused on the role of government. Other topics covered have been sociopolitical participation (1987), the feminization of poverty (1986), social networks (1985), and the role of the military (1984). The 1988 topical module concerns religious socialization, behaviors, and beliefs.

ORIGINATING AGENCY / PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR(S):  National Opinion Research Center / James A. Davis, Tom W. Smith, and Peter V. Marsden

RELATED WEB SITES:  
Extract/Analyze GSS data on the web (ICPSR)
GSS Resources (Queens College)
NORC GSS Web Page
The Roper Center GSS Web Page (a disseminator)

ORIGINAL DATA FILES:  Access to unprocessed files limited to Penn State PRI researchers.

DATA DISSEMINATED BY: ICPSR