DOI: 10.3886/icpsr06209.v1
title: Consumer Expenditure Survey, 1991: Interview Survey
title: Version 1

description: The ongoing Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES) provides a continuous flow of information on the buying habits of American consumers and also furnishes data to support periodic revisions of the Consumer Price Index. The survey consists of two separate components: (1) a quarterly Interview Survey in which each consumer unit in the sample is interviewed every three months over a 15-month period, and (2) a Diary Survey completed by the sample consumer units for two consecutive one-week periods. The Interview Survey was designed to collect data on major items of expense, household characteristics, and income. The expenditures covered by the survey are those that respondents can recall fairly accurately for three months or longer. In general, these expenditures include relatively large purchases, such as those for property, or expenditures that occur on a fairly regular basis, such as rent, utilities, or insurance premiums. Excluded are nonprescription drugs, household supplies, and personal care items. The Consumer Unit Characteristics and Income (FMLY) files in this collection contain consumer unit characteristics, consumer unit income, and characteristics and earnings of both the reference person and the spouse. Summary expenditure data are also provided. The Member Characteristics and Income (MEMB) files present selected characteristics for each consumer unit member, including reference person and spouse. Each record in the FMLY and MEMB files consists of three months of data. Detailed Expenditures (MTAB) files provide monthly data at the Universal Classification Code (UCC) level. In these files expenditures for each consumer unit are classified according to UCC categories and are specified as gifts or nongifts. There may be more than one record for a UCC in a single month if that is what was reported to the interviewer. The Income (ITAB) files supply monthly data at the UCC level for consumer unit characteristics and income.
description: The Consumer Expenditure Survey is based on a national probability sample of households. Households are selected from primary sampling units (PSUs), which consist of counties (or parts thereof), groups of counties, or independent cities. The set of sample PSUs used for the survey is composed of 101 areas, of which 85 urban areas have also been selected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the Consumer Price Index program. The sampling frame from which housing units were selected was generated from the 1980 Census 100-percent detail file, augmented by new construction permits and coverage improvement techniques used to eliminate recognized deficiencies in that census. The sample design is a rotating panel survey in which one-fifth of the sample is dropped and a new group added each quarter. Each panel is interviewed for five consecutive quarters and then dropped from the survey.
description: Datasets: DS0: Study-Level Files DS1: 1991 First Quarter: Family Characteristics and Income DS2: 1991 First Quarter: Member Characteristics and Income DS3: 1991 First Quarter: Monthly Expenditures DS4: 1991 First Quarter: Monthly Income DS5: 1991 Second Quarter: Family Characteristics and Income DS6: 1991 Second Quarter: Member Characteristics and Income DS7: 1991 Second Quarter: Monthly Expenditures DS8: 1991 Second Quarter: Monthly Income DS9: 1991 Third Quarter: Family Characteristics and Income DS10: 1991 Third Quarter: Member Characteristics and Income DS11: 1991 Third Quarter: Monthly Expenditures DS12: 1991 Third Quarter: Monthly Income DS13: 1991 Fourth Quarter: Family Characteristics and Income DS14: 1991 Fourth Quarter: Member Characteristics and Income DS15: 1991 Fourth Quarter: Monthly Expenditures DS16: 1991 Fourth Quarter: Monthly Income DS17: 1992 First Quarter: Family Characteristics and Income DS18: 1992 First Quarter: Member Characteristics and Income DS19: 1992 First Quarter: Monthly Expenditures DS20: 1992 First Quarter: Monthly Income DS21: 1991-1992: Publication Aggregation DS22: 1991-1992: Publication Labels DS23: 1991-1992: Universal Classification Codes and Titles DS24: 1991-1992: Codebook for All Parts
description: Total civilian, noninstitutionalized population of the United States.
description: A new Interview Survey questionnaire was introduced beginning in April 1991, resulting in significant changes to the 1991 Interview Survey data files. Several files, including Purchases of Household Appliances, Inventory of Household Appliances, Inventory and Purchases of Owned Vehicles, Disposal of Owned Vehicles, Trips and Vacations, and Vehicle Make/Model Codes and Titles, have been moved to the CONSUMER EXPENDITURE SURVEY: INTERVIEW SURVEY, DETAILED EXPENDITURE FILES for 1991 and subsequent years.Record counts listed in the documentation are incorrect for Parts 7, 11, 15, and 19. The Bureau of Labor Statistics will issue an erratum to the documentation in the future.