DOI: 10.3886/icpsr21984.v1
title: Current Population Survey, March/April 2006 Match Files: Child Support Supplement
title: Version 1

description: This data collection is comprised of responses from the March and April installments of the 2006 Current Population Survey (CPS). Both the March and April surveys used two sets of questions, the basic CPS and a separate supplement for each month.The CPS, administered monthly, is a labor force survey providing current estimates of the economic status and activities of the population of the United States. Specifically, the CPS provides estimates of total employment (both farm and nonfarm), nonfarm self-employed persons, domestics, and unpaid helpers in nonfarm family enterprises, wage and salaried employees, and estimates of total unemployment.In addition to the basic CPS questions, respondents were asked questions from the March supplement, known as the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) supplement. The ASEC provides supplemental data on work experience, income, noncash benefits, and migration. Comprehensive work experience information was given on the employment status, occupation, and industry of persons 15 years old and older. Additional data for persons 15 years old and older are available concerning weeks worked and hours per week worked, reason not working full time, total income and income components, and place of residence on March 1, 2005. The March supplement also contains data covering nine noncash income sources: food stamps, school lunch program, employer-provided group health insurance plan, employer-provided pension plan, personal health insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, CHAMPUS or military health care, and energy assistance. Questions covering training and assistance received under welfare reform programs, such as job readiness training, child care services, or job skill training were also asked in the March supplement.Respondents were asked supplemental questions in April about the economic situation of persons and families for the previous year. All household members 15 years of age and older that are a biological parent of children in the household from an absent parent were asked detailed questions about child support and alimony. Information regarding child support was collected to determine the size and distribution of the population with children affected by divorce or separation, or other relationship status change. Moreover, the data were collected to better understand the characteristics of persons requiring child support, and to help develop and maintain programs designed to assist in obtaining child support. These data highlight alimony and child support arrangements made at the time of separation or divorce, amount of payments actually received, and value and type of any property settlement.The April supplement data were matched to March supplement data for households that were in the sample in both March and April 2006. In March 2006, there were 4,635 household members eligible, of which 1,453 required imputation of child support data. When matching the March 2006 and April 2006 data sets, there were 190 eligible people on the March file that did not match to people on the April file. Child support data for these 190 people were imputed. The remaining 1,263 imputed cases were due to nonresponse to the child support questions. Demographic variables include age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, marital status, veteran status, educational attainment, occupation, and income. Data on employment and income refer to the preceding year, although other demographic data refer to the time at which the survey was administered.
description: A single weight was produced for the child support supplement. Weights were also created for the March and April basic CPS. Users are strongly encouraged to refer to the User Guide for additional information concerning the creation and use of the weight variables.
description: A multistage probability sample based on results of the decennial census was used for the housing unit. In April 2004, the Census Bureau began phasing out the 1990 sample and replaced it with the 2000 sample, creating a mixed sampling frame. Users are strongly encouraged to refer to Appendix F of the User Guide for additional sampling information.
description: Datasets: DS1: Current Population Survey, March/April 2006 Match Files: Child Support Supplement
description: The civilian noninstitutionalized population of the United States living in housing units, and members of the Armed Forces living in civilian housing units on a military base or in a household not on a military base.
description: Computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI); computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI)These data are distributed exactly as they arrived from the data depositor. ICPSR has not checked or processed the data. Consistency checks and standardization of missing values were performed by the principal investigators. Users should contact the principal investigators if further information is desired.In this hierarchical dataset, there are three record types: Household, with 143 variables, Family, with 76 variables, and Person, with approximately 740 variables.The file is sorted by Census state code (GESTCEN), then by core-based statistical area code (GTCBSA).Users are strongly encouraged to read the User Guide, which contains the questionnaires for the supplements and additional technical documentation.