Measuring What We Spend
Measuring What We Spend

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2013-02-15

Total Pages: 217

ISBN-13: 0309265789

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The Consumer Expenditure (CE) surveys are the only source of information on the complete range of consumers' expenditures and incomes in the United States, as well as the characteristics of those consumers. The CE consists of two separate surveys: (1) a national sample of households interviewed five times at three-month intervals; and (2) a separate national sample of households that complete two consecutive one-week expenditure diaries. For more than 40 years, these surveys, the responsibility of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), have been the principal source of knowledge about changing patterns of consumer spending in the U.S. population. In February 2009, BLS initiated the Gemini Project, the aim of which is to redesign the CE surveys to improve data quality through a verifiable reduction in measurement error with a particular focus on underreporting. The Gemini Project initiated a series of information-gathering meetings, conference sessions, forums, and workshops to identify appropriate strategies for improving CE data quality. As part of this effort, BLS requested the National Research Council's Committee on National Statistics (CNSTAT) to convene an expert panel to build on the Gemini Project by conducting further investigations and proposing redesign options for the CE surveys. The charge to the Panel on Redesigning the BLS Consumer Expenditure Surveys includes reviewing the output of a Gemini-convened data user needs forum and methods workshop and convening its own household survey producers workshop to obtain further input. In addition, the panel was tasked to commission options from contractors for consideration in recommending possible redesigns. The panel was further asked by BLS to create potential redesigns that would put a greater emphasis on proactive data collection to improve the measurement of consumer expenditures. Measuring What We Spend summarizes the deliberations and activities of the panel, discusses the conclusions about the uses of the CE surveys and why a redesign is needed, as well as recommendations for the future.

Improving the Measurement of Consumer Expenditures
Improving the Measurement of Consumer Expenditures

Author: Christopher D. Carroll

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2015-06-16

Total Pages: 517

ISBN-13: 022612665X

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Robust and reliable measures of consumer expenditures are essential for analyzing aggregate economic activity and for measuring differences in household circumstances. Many countries, including the United States, are embarking on ambitious projects to redesign surveys of consumer expenditures, with the goal of better capturing economic heterogeneity. This is an appropriate time to examine the way consumer expenditures are currently measured, and the challenges and opportunities that alternative approaches might present. Improving the Measurement of Consumer Expenditures begins with a comprehensive review of current methodologies for collecting consumer expenditure data. Subsequent chapters highlight the range of different objectives that expenditure surveys may satisfy, compare the data available from consumer expenditure surveys with that available from other sources, and describe how the United States’s current survey practices compare with those in other nations.

Methodology of Longitudinal Surveys
Methodology of Longitudinal Surveys

Author: Peter Lynn

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2009-01-26

Total Pages: 414

ISBN-13: 9780470743911

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Longitudinal surveys are surveys that involve collecting data from multiple subjects on multiple occasions. They are typically used for collecting data relating to social, economic, educational and health-related issues and they serve as an important tool for economists, sociologists, and other researchers. Focusing on the design, implementation and analysis of longitudinal surveys, Methodology of Longitudinal Surveys discusses the current state of the art in carrying out these surveys. The book also covers issues that arise in surveys that collect longitudinal data via retrospective methods. Aimed at researchers and practitioners analyzing data from statistical surveys the book will also be suitable as supplementary reading for graduate students of survey statistics. This book: Covers all the main stages in the design, implementation and analysis of longitudinal surveys. Reviews recent developments in the field, including the use of dependent interviewing and mixed mode data collection. Discusses the state of the art in sampling, weighting and non response adjustment. Features worked examples throughout using real data. Addresses issues arising from the collection of data via retrospective methods, as well as ethical issues, confidentiality and non-response bias. Is written by an international team of contributors consisting of some of the most respected Survey Methodology experts in the field