LibGuides: Writing 118 (Maharaj): Statistics, Polls, Trends

Web Searching

Search

Use keywords that describe the information you want.
Add the name of a geographic area or state.
If you think this may be information collected by the government, use a government search or limit to site:.gov in Google. Example: number microloans agriculture states site:.gov I still had to look for "program data" on the website.
Consider using a term such as data or stats for this type of information. drowning child stats | swim drownings california data

Browse

Think about organizations that may wish to collect this data. Visit the organization's site.
Look at agencies that may have the type of information you need. California State Agencies | FedStats

Polls

Roper Center iPOLL This link opens in a new window
A database of 500,000 questions and answers asked in the US since 1935. Create your own account to access additional functionality including data downloading via RoperExpress and online data analysis via RoperExplorer.

Harris Poll
Use the search box options to locate information on demographic groups. Search with terms like "generation x" or "baby boomers".
Maritz Poll
Maritz® Poll is an award-winning consumer opinion poll that reflects the opinions and attitudes of Americans, Canadians and Europeans on a variety of topics.
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Brows by date or topic, or search, ie "generation y"

Pew Research Center

Pew Research Center
“Fact tank” on issues, attitudes and trends shaping America.
Pew Internet and American Life Project
The Pew Internet & American Life Project studies the social impact of the internet, focusing on topics including health, teens, and broadband.
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Choose TOPICS > DEMOGRAPHICS > GENERATIONS
Pew Social and Demographic Trends Reports
Enter search term, ie "gen x" or view reports by year or topic.
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"Luxury or Necessity? The Public Makes a U-Turn" http://pewsocialtrends.org/2009/04/23/luxury-or-necessity-the-public-makes-a-u-turn/

International Statistics

UNESCO Statistics
Provides global and internationally comparable statistics on education, science, technology, culture and communication. In addition to the rich statistical databases are monographs, articles, surveys, questionnaires, quick facts and much more. (See subpage for screenshots and specific links.)
UNData
includes "World Population Prospects"
WorldBank Data
by country, topics, etc. See "Developing Regions" and "Other Country Groups"

Eurostat This link opens in a new window
Eurostat provides the European Union with statistics at European level that enable comparisons between countries and regions. Useful data for governments, businesses, the education sector, journalists and researchers.

Statistics

Statistical Abstract of the U.S. This link opens in a new window
Provides access to authoritative and comprehensive statistics on the social, political, and economic conditions of the United States.

United States Demographic Profile
Demographic profiles for all 50 United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Consumer Expenditure Survey (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
What consumer spend their money on, e.g. how much 25-34 olds spend on food in 2007. e.g. "Current expenditures tables" by Age of reference person
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See Current Expenditure Tables by "Age of reference person" http://www.bls.gov/cex/2009/Standard/age.pdf
American Time Use Survey (U. S. Department of Labor)
Measures the amount of time people spend doing various activities, such as paid work, childcare, volunteering, and socializing.
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most is broken down by status e.g. employed, married; yet there is some information by age http://www.bls.gov/tus/charts/home.htm
American Factfinder
US Census Bureau profile data available for US locations -- state, county, city, zip code, or street.

Sage Data This link opens in a new window
A web-based research tool that provides access to data from licensed and public domain datasets from 80+ source organizations. It contains more than 157 billion data points from 12.6 billion datasets available in charts, maps, views, rankings, time series and tables. All of the data have been standardized and structured, and are described with up to 37 fields of metadata. Previously Data Planet.

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Writing 118 (Maharaj)