# Presentation: 552937

## Using Data From the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG)

**Using Data From the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG)**

**William Mosher, Ph.D.**
**Stephanie Willson, Ph.D.**

## Presentation Overview

- Purposes and uses of NSFG data
- Cycle 6 (2002) sample design and methodology
- Similarities between Cycles 5 and 6
- New in Cycle 6
- Questionnaire content
- Using NSFG data

## Social factors

**Social factors**

**Intercourse variables:**

**Intermediate variables**

- Timing of first intercourse
- Percent of women who
-   ever had intercourse
- Time spent in marriage
-   (separation, divorce)
- Frequency of intercourse

**Fertility**
**(live**
**births)**

- Race/ethnicity
- Religion
- Labor force
-   participation
- Education
- Income
- Access to
-   health care
- Family
-   background
- Community
-   environment
-   (economic,
-   social, etc.)

**Pregnancy outcome**
**(gestation) variables:**

- Miscarriage and
-   stillbirth
- Induced abortion

**Conception variables:**

- Contraceptive use
- Sterilization
- Infertility

## Collect periodic data on the “intermediate variables”
“Snapshot” of U.S. fertility, family formation, and reproductive health
Complement vital statistics

**“****Snapshot” of U.S. fertility, family formation, and reproductive health**
**Complement vital statistics**

**Track national health objectives (e.g. Healthy People 2010)**
**Evaluate health and social policies**
**Research: demographic and public health**

- Uses of NSFG Data

## NSFG History in Brief

| Cycle | Year | Scope | Number of Interviews | Over-Samples | Average Length | Incentive Payment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | 1973 | Ever-Married Women 15-44 | 9,797 | Black Women | 60 Minutes | No |
| 2 | 1976 | Ever-Married Women 15-44 | 8,611 | Black Women | 60 Minutes | No |
| 3 | 1982 | All Women 15-44 | 7,969 | Black Women Teens | 60 Minutes | No |
| 4 | 1988 | All Women 15-44 | 8,450 | Black Women | 70 Minutes | No |
| 5 | 1995 | All Women 15-44 | 10,847 | Black Women Hispanic Women | 100 Minutes | $20 |
| 6 | 2002 | Women 15-44 
Men 15-44 | 12,572
(W=7,643
M=4,929) | Blacks
Hispanics
Teens | F=85 Min
M=60 Min | $40 |

## Public use files of Cycles 1-5 of the NSFG are available now on CD-ROM

Cycle 6 will be available on CD-ROM this Fall

**Cycle 6 will be available on CD-ROM this Fall**

**If you have questions, want to request a CD, or wish to be notified when Cycle 6 data are available, please email:**
- William Mosher (_[wdm1@cdc.gov](mailto:wdm1@cdc.gov)__) _
- Anjani Chandra (_[ayc3@cdc.gov](mailto:ayc3@cdc.gov)__) _
- Joyce Abma
- 	(_[jza2@cdc.gov](mailto:jza2@cdc.gov)__)_
- Gladys Martinez (_[gmm7@cdc.gov](mailto:gmm7@cdc.gov)__)_
- Stephanie J. Willson (_[zex8@cdc.gov](mailto:zex8@cdc.gov)__)_

- Obtaining Data Files

- National Center for Health Statistics
- 3311 Toledo Rd. Room 7318
- Hyattsville, MD 20782

## Cycle 6 Sample Design

**Nationally representative sample of women & men 15-44 years of age.  **
**Civilian non-institutionalized population.**
** ****In-person (not telephone) interviews with one person (15-44) per household.**

## Cycle 6 Design

**Interviews in both English and Spanish**
**Over-samples: Blacks, Hispanics, 15-24 year olds**
**Informed Consent: **
**Signed consent for adults (18-44 years of age)**
**Signed assent and signed parental consent for minors (15-17 years of age)**

## Breakdown of Sample Sizes for Cycles 3-6

|  | NSFG Cycles |  |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  | 1982 | 1988 | 1995 | 2002 |
| Total | 7,969 | 8,450 | 10,847 | 12,572 |
| Hispanic women  | 550 | 641 | 1,553 | 1,589 |
| Black women | 3,099 | 2,684 | 2,446 | 1,530 |
| White/other women | 4,320 | 5,125 | 6,848 | 4,524 |
| Men  | - |     - |    - | 4,929 |

## Cycle 6 Sample Sizeby Subgroup

|  | FEMALE | MALE | TOTAL |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| TOTAL | 7,643 | 4,929 | 12,572 |
| 15-19 years | 1,150 | 1,122 | 2,272 |
| 20-24 years | 1,363 | 938 | 2,301 |
| 25-44 years | 5,130 | 2,869 | 7,999 |
|  |  |  |  |
| Hispanic | 1,589 | 1,124 | 2,713 |
| Black | 1,530 | 930 | 2,460 |
| White/other | 4,524 | 2,875 | 7,399 |

## Sample Weights

- Adjust for:
- Differential probability of selection
- Non-response rates
- Post-stratification (age, race, sex).

## Cycle 6 Response Ratesby age & sex

|  | FEMALE | MALE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 15-19 years | 82% | 81% |
| 20-24 years | 81% | 80% |
| 25-44 years | 80% | 74% |

- Overall response rate = 79%

## Examples of Topics in Cycle 5  Also Covered in Cycle 6

## Probability that 1st Marriage Dissolves Within Ten Years

**Probability that 1****st**** Marriage Dissolves Within Ten Years**

**Percent**

- Source: Bramlett & Mosher, 2002 (based on 1995 NSFG)

**Age at marriage**

**Race and Hispanic Origin**

## Cumulative percent of females 15-19 years of age who have had sex before reaching selected ages, 1988 and 1995

**Age in years**

- Source: Abma and Sonenstein, 2000

- 77

- 70

- 19

- 11

- 1

- 3

**Percent**

## Percent of Current Contraceptors using the Pill, 

**1982-1995**

- Source: Piccinino & Mosher, 1998

- Percent

## Percent Living with Father at Time of Most Recent Delivery

**Percent Living with Father at Time of Most Recent Delivery**

**Percent **

- Source: Chandra, poster presented at PAA 1998

**Wantedness at Conception**

## Percent Breastfed among Babies Born 1990-1993

**Percent Breastfed among Babies Born 1990-1993**

- Source: Abma et al., 1997, Table 57

**Wantedness of Pregnancy at Conception**

**Percent**

## Percent of Births 1991-95 Unwanted by Mother at Time of Conception

**Percent of Births 1991-95 Unwanted by Mother at Time of Conception**

- Source: Abma et al., 1997, Table 15

**Percent**

**Race and Hispanic Origin**

## Use of Family Planning or Medical Services in Past Year Among Women 15-44:  U.S., 1995

**Use of Family Planning or Medical Services in Past Year Among Women 15-44:  U.S., 1995**

- Percent

- Source:  Abma et al., 1997, Table 74

## 1982

**1982**

**1988**

**1995**

**Ever-Married Childless Women Age 35-44: Childbearing Expectations and Fecundity**

- (Expect 1 or more)

- (Expect 0, fecund)

- (Expect 0, impaired fecundity)

- Source: Abma & Martinez, Paper Presented at PAA, 2002

## Percent Uninsured Among Women 15-44

- Source: 1995 National Survey of Family Growth

**Percent**

**Percent Uninsured Among Women 15-44**

**Race and Hispanic Origin**

**Notes:**
Source: 1995 National Survey of Family Growth, NCHS

## New in Cycle 6

## Definition of Sex (CAPI vs. Audio-CASI)

- Most of interview (CAPI) continues practice in Cycles 1-5:
- 	Heterosexual vaginal intercourse
-     The kind of sex  Babies
- New in Cycle 6:
- All types of sexual activities (Audio-CASI)
- 	 including vaginal, oral, & anal sex
-  	Sex  risks for STDs and HIV

## New in Cycle 6: Male Data

- Activities with children
- For children he lives with
- For children he does not live with
- Military service

- Male fertility
- Marital
- Non-marital
- Child support

**Some examples include:**

## Data that’s available for both men & women--1

-  Demographic characteristics
-  Birth expectations
-  Marital Status and Cohabitation
-  Attitudes: Sex, childbearing, family
-  Contraceptive use and Sterilization

## Data that’s available for both men & women--2

-  Health insurance, use of health care
-  Number of sexual partners
-  HIV/STD risk behaviors
-  Substance use
-  Sexual orientation, attraction, behavior

## Female Questionnaire: 2002 

- Section A:
- Age, race, marital/cohabitation status, education
- Household roster
- Family & parental background
- Section B:
- Pregnancy history
- Nonbiological children ever raised
- Adoption (including current plans to adopt)

## Female Quex 2002 (cont’d)

- Section C:
- Marital & cohabitation history
- First sexual partner
- Sex education (for 15-19 year olds)
- Numbers of partners
- Sexual partner history for last 12 months
- Section D:
- Sterilization operations (self & current H/P)
- Fecundity impairments

## Female Quex 2002(cont’d)

- Section E:
- All methods ever used
- Contraceptive history, month-by-month, for last 3 years
- Partner-specific use for 3 most recent partners in last 12 months
- Consistency of condom use
- Wantedness of pregnancies

## Female Quex (cont’d)

- Section F:
- Use of medical care in the last 12 months for
- family planning
- general health
- Section G:
- Desires & intentions for future children

## Female Quex 2002(cont’d)

- Section H:
- Use of infertility services
- Reproductive health-related conditions
- HIV testing
- Section I:
- Health insurance; religion; work; child care Attitudes on sex, parenthood & marriage
- Section J (ACASI):   Income

## Male Questionnaire 2002(by section)

- (Largely the same as female Section A)
- Ever/never had sex; partners in lifetime and last 12 months; vasectomy; sex educ (if 15-19)
- _Current wife or cohabiting partner_: characteristics; when married or began living together; Children with her; contraceptive use
- _3 most recent sexual partners in the last 12 months_; first sexual partner ever; Children with them; contraceptive use
- _Former wives and first premarital cohabiting partner_; Children with them; contraceptive use

## Male Questionnaire (cont’d)

- F. 	Other births and pregnancies fathered: characteristics of their mothers
- Activities with biological and adopted children he lives with, and does not live with
- Desires and intentions for future children
- Health conditions, use of family planning and other health care services, HIV testing
- Religion; military service; work;
- 	attitudes on sex, marriage, parenthood

## Using NSFG Data

## Public Use Data Files

** ****Cycles 1 -  5 are available on CD-ROM now.**
** ****Main files for Cycle 6 (on CD-ROM and web soon) will include:  **
** ****User’s Guide, **
** ****Codebook, and  **
** ****Questionnaires**

## Web-Doc for Public Use Files

** ****Standard components of the Codebook**
-  Variable names & column locations
-  Question text
-  Frequencies with response labels
-  Universe statements (“who got this question”)
** ****New user-friendly features**
-  Hyperlinks to questionnaires, recode specs, and other variables in codebook
-  Revised online so updates can be “rolled out” to users more quickly
-  Less need for paper copies!

## Omitted items data File

-  Will be available soon after the forthcoming Cycle 6 public use file.
-  Access procedures are being worked on now.

## Omitted Items File

**Audio-CASI data**
- Pregnancy re-reporting
- Drug and alcohol use
- Numbers of sexual partners (opposite-sex and same-sex)
- Non-voluntary sexual intercourse (18-44 only)
- STD/HIV risk behaviors
- Sexual orientation & attraction
- Sexually transmitted infections
**Interviewer Observations**** **

## Contextual data files:Cycle 5

** ****Cycle 5 contextual data files currently available**
**  ****Access: apply to  NCHS RDC **
** ****Linkage to over 1,000 contextual variables**
** ****Community characteristics**
- 4 levels (state, county, census tract, block group)
- 3 points in time (1990, 1993, 1995)

## Percent of Women 18-29 Who Had a Birth Before 18

**Percent of Women 18-29 Who Had a Birth Before 18**

- Source: 1995 National Survey of Family Growth, Contextual Data Files

**Median Family Income at Block Level**

**Percent**

## Contextual data files:Cycle 6

** ****Community characteristics**
** **2 points in time (2000 & 2002)
-  data at 4 levels:
-  state
- county
- census tract
- block group

##  Contact us
 Go to www.cdc.gov/nchs/r&d
 Short application emphasizes what data you will  use  (not a big literature review)
Access options:
 Remote access (by e-mail from your office)
 In person in the RDC
 Staff-assisted (for follow-up & revisions)

-  Go to _[www.cdc.gov/nchs/r&d](http://interdev2.nchs.cdc.gov/nchs/)_
-  Short application emphasizes what data you will  use  (not a big literature review)
_*Access options:*_
-  Remote access (by e-mail from your office)
-  In person in the RDC
-  Staff-assisted (for follow-up & revisions)

- Applying to use contextual data

## Public Use: Fieldwork Data File

- Includes all persons in the sampling frame
- Data on respondents and non-respondents
- Response rates
- Field work effort
- Observations of neighborhood
- Cycle 5 is available
- Cycle 6 will be available in 2005

## How to stay current with the NSFGGo to: www.cdc.gov/nchs/nsfg.htm

- The NSFG website contains:
- PDF files of all NSFG reports published by NCHS
- A list of 360+ publications from the NSFG
- PDF files of the 2002 female & male questionnaires
- Information on how to obtain data files

## Questions?

**Questions?**