DOI: 10.3886/icpsr35364
title: Survey of Consumer Attitudes and Behavior, August 2004
title: Archival Version

description: The Survey of Consumer Attitudes and Behavior series (also known as the Surveys of Consumers) was undertaken to measure changes in consumer attitudes and expectations, to understand why such changes occur, and to evaluate how they relate to consumer decisions to save, borrow, or make discretionary purchases. The data regularly include the Index of Consumer Sentiment, the Index of Current Economic Conditions, and the Index of Consumer Expectations. Since the 1940s, these surveys have been produced quarterly through 1977 and monthly thereafter.
The surveys conducted in 2004 focused on topics such as evaluations and expectations about personal finances, employment, price changes, and the national business situation. Opinions were collected regarding respondents' appraisals of present market conditions for purchasing houses, automobiles, computers, and other durables. Also explored in this survey, were respondents' types of savings and financial investments, loan use, family income, and retirement planning.
The August 2004 survey includes a section exploring how informed respondents perceive themselves to be about certain science and policy issues as well as questions about science and research. Other topics in this series typically include ownership, lease, and use of automobiles, respondents' use of personal computers at home and in the office, and respondents' familiarity with and use of the Internet. Demographic information includes ethnic origin, sex, age, marital status, and education.
description: The purpose of this survey series is to forecast changes in aggregate consumer behavior.
description: This survey is a rotating panel design. For each monthly sample, an independent cross-section sample of households is drawn. The respondents chosen in this drawing are then reinterviewed six months later. The result is a rotating panel design, and the total sample for any one survey is normally made up of 60 percent new respondents with 40 percent being interviewed for the second time.
description: The data are not weighted, however, this collection contains four weight variables; <strong>WT</strong> (Household head weight), <strong>WT_HH</strong> (Household weight), <strong>WT_ADHD</strong> (Adult head weight), and <strong>WT_AD</strong> (Adult weight) that must be used in any analysis. For more information on weights and sampling, please refer to the documentation and/or visit the Surveys of Consumers Website.
description: National sample of dwelling units selected by area probability sampling.
description: Datasets: 
DS0: Study-Level Files
DS1: Public-Use Data
DS2: Restricted-Use Data
description: Persons aged 18 years or older living in households with telephones within the coterminous United States. Smallest Geographic Unit: FIPS code
description: computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI)Information on the Index of Consumer Sentiment, the Index of Current Economic Conditions, and the Index of Consumer Expectations and how they were created can be found in the P.I. Codebook.Additional information on the Surveys of Consumers can be found by visiting the Surveys of Consumers Website.