Beyond the USPS CDs File: Extending the Coverage of ABS Frames

• Activity Number: 633
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Thursday, August 2, 2012 : 10:30 AM to 12:20 PM
• Sponsor: Section on Survey Research Methods
• Author(s): Bonnie Elizabeth Shook-Sa*+ and Doug Currivan and Joseph McMichael and Vincent Iannacchione
• Companies: RTI International and RTI International and RTI International and RTI International
• Keywords: USPS No-Stat File ; in-person surveys

Abstract

Until 2009, Address-Based Sampling (ABS) frames were restricted to the Computerized Delivery Sequence (CDS) file, which the United States Postal Service (USPS) makes available through licensing agreements with qualified vendors. Research based on the CDS has found the coverage of ABS frames for in-person surveys to be sufficient in urban areas but problematic in rural areas. In 2009, the USPS made available the No-Stat file, a supplement to the CDS file that contains approximately 8 million predominately rural addresses not found on the CDS. As such, the No-Stat file has the potential to significantly improve rural coverage of ABS frames.

We explore the added coverage provided by the No-Stat file using data from the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The NSDUH provides national, state, and substate data on substance use and mental health in the civilian, non-institutionalized population age 12 and older. The current sampling frame for the NSDUH relies on field enumeration. If the No-Stat file sufficiently improves rural coverage, adding an ABS frame could be a viable option for the NSDUH to reduce costs while maintaining coverage.