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U.S. Census Data for Research

The Census is a publicly available wealth of census, survey, and increasingly administrative data spanning several topics. This guide focuses on the 2020 decennial census and other widely used Census Bureau products including the American Community Survey

References

References

Overview of the Census

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census Bureau Data. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://data.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). About the Decennial Census of Population and Housing. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/about.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census Academy. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/academy.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census Bureau Homepage. census.gov. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census Survey Explorer (beta). Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/data-tools/survey-explorer/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). How-to Materials for Using data.census.gov. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/what-is-data-census-gov/guidance-for-data-users/how-to-materials-for-using-data-census-gov.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). What We Do. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/about/what.html

Census Bureau. (2022, August 3). List of All Surveys and Programs. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/surveys-programs.html

Census Bureau. (2022, September 14). Survey and Topic One-Pagers - Data. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/academy/resources/one-pagers.html

Census Bureau. (2023, May 15). American Community Survey (ACS). Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/

Census Frequently Asked Questions. (n.d.). Ask Census. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://ask.census.gov/prweb/PRServletCustom/app/ECORRAsk2_/YACFBFye-rFIz_FoGtyvDRUGg1Uzu5Mn*/!STANDARD?pzuiactionzzz=CXtpbn0rTEpMcGRYOG1vS0tqTFAwaENUZWpvM1NNWEMzZ3p5aFpnWUxzVmw0TjJpQS85RkNvUXZDRVRQWWtWSDFQaWZj*

Census Reporter. (n.d.). Census Reporter Homepage. Census Reporter: Making Census Data Easy to Use. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://censusreporter.org/

Morse, C. (2023, May 1). Research Guides: U.S. Census and Demographic Information: Cite Census Data. Research Guides. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://guides.lib.umich.edu/c.php?g=283004&p=1885634

Social Explorer. (n.d.). How do I cite information on Social Explorer? | General | Knowledge Base and FAQ. Social Explorer. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.socialexplorer.com/help/faq/general/how-do-i-cite-information-on-social-explorer

Social Explorer. (n.d.). Social Explorer Homepage. Social Explorer. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.socialexplorer.com/pub/home/home.aspx

Social Science Data Editors. (n.d.). Guidance on Data Citations. Data and Code Guidance. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://social-science-data-editors.github.io/guidance/addtl-data-citation-guidance.html

Current Census

Census Bureau. (n.d.). About the Decennial Census of Population and Housing. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/about.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Available APIs. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census Survey Explorer (beta). Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/data-tools/survey-explorer/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). data.census.gov. Census Bureau Data. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://data.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Developers. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/developers.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Household Pulse Survey. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/experimental-data-products/household-pulse-survey.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Household Pulse Survey - Food Scarcity. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data-tools/demo/hhp/#/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Job-to-Job Flows Explorer. Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://j2jexplorer.ces.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). LED Extraction Tool. Longitudinal Employer Household Dynamics. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://ledextract.ces.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics Homepage. Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://lehd.ces.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). OnTheMap Tool. Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://onthemap.ces.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). QWI Explorer. Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://qwiexplorer.ces.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). 2020 Census Results. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/2020-census-results.html

Census Bureau. (2021, September 27). Redistricting Data Program Management. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/about/rdo/program-management.html

Census Bureau. (2021, November 22). About this Survey. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/cps/about.html

Census Bureau. (2022, May 17). Decennial Census of Population and Housing Data. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/data.html

Census Bureau. (2022, June 2). About the ACS. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/about.html

Census Bureau. (2022, December 15). Current Population Survey Datasets. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/cps/data/datasets.html

Census Bureau. (2023, January 25). Data Equity Tools. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/about/what/data-equity/tools.html

Census Bureau. (2023, February 22). ACS and the Decennial Census. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/about/acs-and-census.html

Census Bureau. (2023, April 11). Experimental Data Products. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/experimental-data-products.html

Garcia, A. (n.d.). Intro to Census Bureau Data [Presentation]. https://www2.census.gov/about/training-workshops/2020/2020-02-12-clmso-presentation.pdf

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). Citation of IPUMS USA. IPUMS USA. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://usa.ipums.org/usa/cite.shtml

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). CURRENT POPULATION SURVEY DATA FOR SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND HEALTH RESEARCH. IPUMS CPS. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://cps.ipums.org/cps/

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). IPUMS CPS. IPUMS CPS. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://cps.ipums.org/cps/citation.shtml

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). IPUMS CPS Terms of Use. IPUMS CPS. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://cps.ipums.org/cps/terms.shtml

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). IPUMS USA Terms of Use. IPUMS USA. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://usa.ipums.org/usa/terms.shtml

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). U.S. CENSUS DATA FOR SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND HEALTH RESEARCH. IPUMS USA. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://usa.ipums.org/usa/

Morse, C. (2023, May 25). Research Guides: U.S. Census and Demographic Information: Census Introduction. Research Guides. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://guides.lib.umich.edu/c.php?g=283004&p=1885627

NCSU Libraries. (n.d.). Printed Materials by Decade | NC State University Libraries. NCSU Libraries. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/formats/census/print

Social Explorer. (n.d.). Social Explorer Homepage. Social Explorer. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.socialexplorer.com/pub/home/home.aspx

The University of Chicago Library. (n.d.). Finding Census Data. The University of Chicago Library. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/research/help/census/

Walker, K., & Herman, M. (2023, May 27). Load US Census Boundary and Attribute Data as tidyverse and sf-Ready Data Frames. WALKER DATA. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://walker-data.com/tidycensus/

Historical Censuses

Barrett, A. (n.d.). The Evolution of the American Census. The Pudding. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://pudding.cool/2020/03/census-history/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). data.census.gov. Census Bureau Data. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://data.census.gov/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). How-to Materials for Using data.census.gov. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/what-is-data-census-gov/guidance-for-data-users/how-to-materials-for-using-data-census-gov.html

Census Bureau. (2022, July 27). Decennial Census Digitization and Linkage (DCDL) Project. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/dcdl.html

Census Bureau. (2022, August 4). Decennial Census of Population and Housing by Decades. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade.html

Census Bureau. (2022, December 5). Overview - History - U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/history/www/through_the_decades/overview/

Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research. (2005, December 22). Historical, Demographic, Economic, and Social Data: The United States, 1790-1970 (ICPSR 3). ICPSR. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://dx.doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR00003

Minnesota Population Center. (n.d.). | National Historical Geographic Information System. IPUMS NHGIS. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.nhgis.org/

Morse, C. (2023, May 25). Research Guides: U.S. Census and Demographic Information: Census Introduction. Research Guides. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://guides.lib.umich.edu/c.php?g=283004&p=1885627

NCSU Libraries. (n.d.). Printed Materials by Decade | NC State University Libraries. NCSU Libraries. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.lib.ncsu.edu/formats/census/print

Social Explorer. (n.d.). Social Explorer Homepage. Social Explorer. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.socialexplorer.com/pub/home/home.aspx

The University of Chicago Library. (n.d.). Finding Census Data. The University of Chicago Library. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.lib.uchicago.edu/research/help/census/

Census Geographies and Glossary

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Census Glossary. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/glossary/

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Geographies | Census Survey Explorer. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/data/data-tools/survey-explorer/geo.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). When to Use 1-year or 5-year Estimates. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/guidance/estimates.html

Census Bureau. (2021, October 8). Geography Mapping Files. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/geography/geographies/mapping-files.html

Census Bureau. (2023, March 23). American Community Survey Data Tables. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data/data-tables.html

Walker, K. (2023, January 30). tigris. Documentation. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.rdocumentation.org/packages/tigris/versions/2.0.1

Data Ethics and The Census

Asiala, M. (2021, October 27). An Assessment of the COVID-19 Pandemic's Impact on the 2020 ACS 1-Year Data. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/library/working-papers/2021/acs/2021_CensusBureau_01.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). 2020 Decennial Census: Processing the Count: Disclosure Avoidance Modernization. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/planning-management/process/disclosure-avoidance.html

Census Bureau. (n.d.). Understanding Differential Privacy. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/planning-management/process/disclosure-avoidance/differential-privacy.html

Census Bureau. (2019, October 10). A History of Census Privacy Protections. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.census.gov/library/visualizations/2019/comm/history-privacy-protection.html

Census Bureau. (2023, May 1). 2020 Census Data Quality. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from http://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/planning-management/process/data-quality.html

Census Bureau. (2023, May 1). 2020 Census Data Quality. Census Bureau. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/decade/2020/planning-management/process/data-quality.html

Christ, M., Radway, Bellovin, S. M., "Differential Privacy and Swapping: Examining 

De-Identification’s Impact on Minority Representation and Privacy Preservation in the 

U.S. Census," 2022 IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy (SP), San Francisco, CA, 

USA, 2022, pp. 457-472, doi: 10.1109/SP46214.2022.9833668.

Kenny, C., Kuriwaki, S., McCartan, C., Rosenman, E., Simko, T., & Imai, K. (2021, October 6). The use of differential privacy for census data and its impact on redistricting: The case of the 2020 U.S. Census. Science Advances, 7(41). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abk3283

Kreiger, N., Nethery, N., Chen, J., Waterman, P., Wright, E., Rushovich, T., & Coull, B. (2021, January 13). Impact of Differential Privacy and Census Tract Data Source (Decennial Census Versus American Community Survey) for Monitoring Health Inequities. American Journal of Public Health, 111(2). https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305989

Schuster, M., Osherov, A., & Chung, P. (2020, August 27). Why Counting Black Lives Matters — The 2020 Census. New England Journal of Medicine, 383(60). DOI: 10.1056/NEJMp2022162

Warren, R. (2022). 2020 American Community Survey: Use with Caution, An Analysis of the Undercount in the 2020 ACS Data Used to Derive Estimates of the Undocumented Population. Journal on Migration and Human Society, 10(2), 134-145. DOI: 10.1177/23315024221102327