Qualities of Coverage: Who Is Included or Excluded by Decisions of Frame Composition?

• Activity Number: 654
• Type: Topic Contributed
• Date/Time: Thursday, August 5, 2010 : 10:30 AM to 12:20 PM
• Sponsor: Section on Survey Research Methods
• Author(s): Edward Marks English*+ and Colm O'Muircheartaigh and Katie Dekker and Michael Latterner
• Companies: NORC and NORC and NORC and NORC
• Keywords: Area probability ; DSF ; National Children's Study ; Sampling Frame

Abstract

Motivated by the high costs associated with traditional listing, survey organizations have looked to the United States Postal Service Delivery Sequence File (DSF) as a replacement for traditional listing, particularly in urban areas. However, several different vendors offer DSF-derived datasets and we do not know how they compare with respect to coverage. Working with the National Children's Study (NCS), we continue our work to understand the coverage properties of these databases. After matching traditionally-listed addresses with three versions of the DSF, we returned to housing units excluded from one or more source to collect additional data. We use GPS-enabled photography and NCS screening and interview data to uncover "patterns of missingness" describing the types of housing units and households that may be included or excluded by traditional or DSF-based lists.