CJ 315: Research Methods

The Profile of Older Americans is an annual summary of critical statistics related to the older population in the United States. Relying primarily on data offered by the U.S. Census Bureau, the Profile illustrates the shifting demographics of Americans age 65 and older. It includes key topic areas such as income, living arrangements, education, health, and caregiving. The 2020 Profile includes special sections on COVID-19 and mental health.

Provides FastFacts data and links to reports.

The CMS Program Statistics (CPS) includes high-level summary reports focused on Medicare populations, use, and payment, as well as counts for Medicare-certified institutional and non-institutional providers.

The National Archive of Computerized Data on Aging (NACDA), located within ICPSR, is funded by the National Institute on Aging. NACDA's mission is to advance research on aging by helping researchers to profit from the under-exploited potential of a broad range of datasets.

This report provides the latest data on the 40 key indicators selected by the Forum to portray aspects of the lives of older Americans and their families. It is divided into six subject areas: population, economics, health status, health risks and behaviors, health care, and environment.

The Population Bulletin, “Aging in the United States,” examines recent trends and disparities among adults ages 65 and older, and how baby boomers born between 1946 and 1964 are reshaping America’s older population.

HRS is a longitudinal panel study that surveys a representative sample of approximately 20,000 people in America, supported by the National Institute on Aging and the Social Security Administration. Through its unique and in-depth interviews, the HRS provides an invaluable and growing body of multidisciplinary data that researchers can use to address important questions about the challenges and opportunities of aging.

ACF data and reports highlight various programs and grants that improve the lives of America's most vulnerable children, families, communities and individuals. Research includes evaluations of existing programs as well as new, innovative approaches to helping low-income children and families.

Founded in 1966, Casey Family Programs works in all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and with tribal nations across North America to influence long-lasting improvements to the well-being of children, families and the communities where they live.

Using information collected through various monitoring and reporting systems, the Children's Bureau analyzes and reports data on a variety of topics, including adoption, foster care, and child abuse and neglect.

The Child Trends DataBank is an online resource for indicators of child and family well-being and associated measures. The DataBank includes close to 100 population-based measures, covering the domains of health and safety, child care and education, and behaviors linked to positive and negative well-being.

Find reports, databases, and other sources of statistical data on child abuse and neglect, foster care, adoption, and well-being.

Established in 2014 with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, diversitydatakids.org set out to fill an urgent need for a rigorous, equity-focused research program with a clear mission to help improve child wellbeing and increase racial and ethnic equity in opportunities for children.

Includes access to the survey, America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being.

The Fragile Families & Child Wellbeing Study consists of a core survey with mothers, fathers, primary caregivers, and the focal child. Additionally, collaborative projects have enriched the core study by adding new questions to the surveys or by collecting new data on a subset of parents and children. See below for more details about the core and collaborative projects.

KIDS COUNT® is a project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation and a premier source of data on children and families. Each year, the Foundation produces a comprehensive report — the KIDS COUNT Data Book — that assesses child well-being in the United States.

NDACAN acquires microdata from leading researchers and national data collection efforts and makes these datasets available to the research community for secondary analysis in the field of child maltreatment.

NCCP conducts research and translates evidence into actionable recommendations that advocates and policymakers can use to improve the lives and futures of low-income children and their families.

The New Jersey Child Welfare Data Hub, a collaboration between the New Jersey Department of Children and Families and the Institute for Families at the Rutgers University School of Social Work. The Data Hub seeks to improve the lives of children and families by disseminating New Jersey child welfare data.

Provides reports, empirical data, and research regarding children and safety worldwide.

Each year, Boys & Girls Clubs of America surveys Club kids and teens across the nation. Youth Right Now features survey results from more than 100,000 Boys & Girls Club members, ages 9-18, across more than 3,000 Clubs scattered across the United States – to our knowledge, the world’s largest data set in the youth-serving sector.

The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) monitors six categories of health-related behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults. YRBSS is a system of surveys. It includes 1) a national school-based survey conducted by CDC and state, territorial, tribal, and 2) local surveys conducted by state, territorial, and local education and health agencies and tribal governments.

Reviewing, gathering and obtaining data is essential to determining the root causes of issues surrounding American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) who have gone missing, as well as those who have been murdered, so that issues can be understood and addressed. At the federal level, the U.S. government collects public safety and public health data across all populations, which includes data on AI/AN who have gone missing or have been murdered. States and Tribes also collect and analyze data, including state and Tribal task forces.

The National Research Center on Hispanic Children & Families (Center) is a hub of research to help programs and policy better serve low-income Hispanic children and families. Our research focuses on poverty reduction and economic self-sufficiency; fatherhood, family structure, and family dynamics; and early care and education.

The Office of Minority Health provides the most current quantitative information related to minority health. This includes sourcing and maintaining a body of expert knowledge on minority health status initiatives, and demographic statistics and analyses on minority populations, compiled by the National Center for Health Statistics, the Census Bureau, private foundations, clinical practitioners, private data sources and public agencies.

In January 2021, Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, prioritized a “a comprehensive approach to advancing equity for all, including people of color and others who have been historically underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by persistent poverty and inequality.” In response, the Social Security Administration (SSA) is assessing the current and historical equity of its programs.
To support that assessment, they have compiled the following list of currently available information on the racial and/or ethnic characteristics of the Social Security–covered population. In addition to research and statistical publications, they include survey data.

UnidosUS is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that serves as the nation’s largest Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization.

The Urban Institute is a nonprofit research organization that provides data and evidence to help advance upward mobility and equity. We are a trusted source for changemakers who seek to strengthen decision making, create inclusive economic growth, and improve the well-being of families and communities.

This analysis cutting tool, from the Department of Education, was designed to provide rapid customized reports for public inquiries relating to campus crime and fire data. The data are drawn from the OPE Campus Safety and Security Statistics website database to which crime statistics and fire statistics.

DoD SAPRO is committed to conducting comprehensive, accurate assessments of sexual assault in the military. SAPRO's dedication to scientifically-based, trauma-informed assessment methods are used to develop its reports on sexual assault in the military.

The Extremist Files database contains profiles of various prominent extremists and extremist organizations. It also examines the histories and core beliefs – or ideologies – of the most common types of extremist movements.

The report presents the first global systematic review of scientific data on the prevalence of two forms of violence against women: violence by an intimate partner (intimate partner violence) and sexual violence by someone other than a partner (non-partner sexual violence). It shows, for the first time, global and regional estimates of the prevalence of these two forms of violence, using data from around the world. Previous reporting on violence against women has not differentiated between partner and non-partner violence.

GTD is an open-source database including information on terrorist events around the world from 1970 through 2020 (with annual updates planned for the future).

This database is a curated collection of documents and statistics related to a wide range of homeland security topics.

NACJD hosts several large-scale datasets, including the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), the FBI's Uniform Crime Reports (UCR), the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), and the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN).

Includes the Annual NCIC Missing and Unidentified Person Statistics.

NISVS is an ongoing survey that collects the most current and comprehensive national- and state-level data on intimate partner violence, sexual violence and stalking victimization in the United States. CDC developed NISVS to collect data on these important public health problems and enhance violence prevention efforts.

NamUs is a national information clearinghouse and resource center for missing, unidentified, and unclaimed person cases across the United States.

The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV) is a social change organization dedicated to creating a social, political, and economic environment in which violence against women no longer exists.

NSVRC is the leading nonprofit in providing information and tools to prevent and respond to sexual violence.

NVDRS collects data from medical examiners, coroners, police, crime labs, and death certificates to understand the circumstances surrounding violent deaths, including suicide. NVDRS can also provide details on the circumstances that may have led to violent deaths, including mental illness and mental disorders.

Here, you will find data sets, analyses, and visualizations that present information about and derived from grant funding investments awarded by OJP.

OJJDP supports high-quality, rigorous research, evaluations, and statistical analyses across a range of juvenile justice topic areas. These activities are central to OJJDP's mission to prevent and respond to youth delinquency and victimization.

"Sexual violence is notoriously difficult to measure, and there is no single source of data that provides a complete picture of the crime. On RAINN’s website, we have tried to select the most reliable source of statistics for each topic."

START takes a multidisciplinary and mixed-methods approach (including qualitative and quantitative methods) to generate new and objective data and analyses.

The Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program generates reliable statistics for use in law enforcement. It also provides information for students of criminal justice, researchers, the media, and the public. The program has been providing crime statistics since 1930.

The Violence Policy Center (VPC) works to stop gun death and injury through research, education, advocacy, and collaboration.

The Luxembourg Income Study Database (LIS) is the largest available income database of harmonised microdata collected from about 50 countries in Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Australasia spanning five decades. LIS datasets contain household- and person-level data on labour income, capital income, pensions, public social benefits and private transfers, as well as taxes and contributions, demography, employment, and expenditures.

The International Monetary Fund's (IMF) eLibrary simplifies analysis and research with direct access to the IMF’s periodicals, books, working papers and studies, and data and statistical tools. You will find information and perspective on macroeconomics, globalization, development, trade and aid, technical assistance, demographics, emerging markets, policy advice, poverty reduction, and so much more.

OECD publishes its recommendations, analysis and data on OECD iLibrary to help inform policy makers, researchers and analysts to implement the best possible responses in their countries. OECD iLibrary’s Books, Papers, and Statistical content provide the foundation for international planning and research projects delivered on an award-winning platform following solid and reliable standards.

USAspending.gov is the official source for spending data for the U.S. Government. Its mission is to show the American public what the federal government spends every year and how it spends the money. You can follow the money from the Congressional appropriations to the federal agencies and down to local communities and businesses.

The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) is the statistics, research, and evaluation arm of the U.S. Department of Education. They are independent and non-partisan. Their mission is to provide scientific evidence on which to ground education practice and policy and to share this information in formats that are useful and accessible to educators, parents, policymakers, researchers, and the public.

Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education.

PNPI provides current and prospective policymakers with a substantive and collegial foundation on which to build federal higher education policies that drive positive outcomes for students and their families.

SHPPS is a national survey assessing school health policies and practices at the state, district, school, and classroom levels. Collected data includes mental health and social service policies.

The platform analyzes more than 340 measures of behaviors, social and economic factors, physical environment and clinical care data. Data is based on public-use data sets, such as the U.S. Census and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), the world’s largest, annual population-based telephone survey of over 400,000 people.

The Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics (StatsRRTC) facilitates evidence-based decision making in many different service and policy arenas to benefit persons with disabilities, leading to improved social outcomes. Large quantities of survey data and administrative records related to people with disabilities are collected each year.

The CHR&R program provides data, evidence, guidance, and examples to build awareness of the multiple factors that influence health and support leaders in growing community power to improve health equity.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the White House and a coalition of leading research groups have prepared the COVID-19 Open Research Dataset (CORD-19). CORD-19 is a resource of over 1,000,000 scholarly articles, including over 400,000 with full text, about COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, and related coronaviruses.

We collect, cross-check, and publish COVID-19 data from 56 US states and territories in three main areas: testing, hospitalization, and patient outcomes, racial and ethnic demographic information via The COVID Racial Data Tracker, and long-term-care facilities via the Long-Term-Care tracker. March 7, 2021 data last updated.

The Dartmouth Atlas Project has documented glaring variations in how medical resources are distributed and used in the United States. The project uses Medicare and Medicaid data to provide information and analysis about national, regional, and local markets, as well as hospitals and their affiliated physicians.

The Census Bureau collects health insurance data using three national surveys: the Current Population Survey's Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC), American Community Survey (ACS), and Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP).

Includes U.S. statistics, global statistics, and impacts on racial and ethnic minorities.

More than 800 up-to-date health indicators at the state level can be mapped, ranked, and downloaded.

In addition to the now 9000+ pieces of curated content included in the Collection, The Living Library features research-based knowledge offerings, like the Index, a collection of statistics on topics relevant to governance innovation

Offers easy access to broad topics in health.

The National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report presents trends for measures related to access to care, affordable care, care coordination, effective treatment, healthy living, patient safety, and person-centered care. The report presents, in chart form, the latest available findings on quality of and access to healthcare, as well as disparities related to race and ethnicity, income, and other social determinants of health.

CHS publishes official reports on births, deaths, chronic illnesses, injuries, and behavioral risk factors, among other types of information.

Includes the NJ Household Survey on Drug Use and Health, Intoxicated Driving Program, and State Psychiatric Hospital reports.

Includes data on air quality, health care access, environmental factors, immunization, diseases, and much more.

The OECD Health Database offers the most comprehensive source of comparable statistics on health and health systems across OECD countries.

PLACES is a collaboration between CDC, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the CDC Foundation. PLACES provides health data for small areas across the country. This allows local health departments and jurisdictions, regardless of population size and rurality, to better understand the burden and geographic distribution of health measures in their areas and assist them in planning public health interventions.

The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program provides information on cancer statistics in an effort to reduce the cancer burden among the U.S. population.

The United Nations Statistics Division collects, compiles and disseminates official national statistics on births, deaths and life expectancy through the Demographic Yearbook data collection system.

The World health statistics report is the World Health Organization’s (WHO) annual compilation of the most recent available data on health and health-related indicators for its 194 Member States.

The Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) is a HUD report to the U.S. Congress that provides nationwide estimates of homelessness, including information about the demographic characteristics of homeless persons, service use patterns, and the capacity to house homeless persons. The report is based on Homeless Management Information Systems (HMIS) data about persons who experience homelessness during a 12-month period, point-in-time counts of people experiencing homelessness on one day in January, and data about the inventory of shelter and housing available in a community.

ICPH researches the causes of family homelessness, the demographics of this growing population, the conditions that make it difficult for homeless families to become self-sufficient, and the programs that are most effective in helping them transition out of poverty.

Our Center produces a wide range of working papers, research briefs, and major reports about homeownership, rental housing, affordability, aging, remodeling, and more. Our annual State of the Nation’s Housing report has been the definitive source of information about US housing markets for over thirty years.

The Alliance is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization committed to preventing and ending homelessness in the United States.

Provides data on homelessness in New Jersey.

SAMHSA’s Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) funds services for people with serious mental illness (SMI) experiencing homelessness.

Includes maps that show state-level estimates of individuals and families experiencing homelessness.

The American Immigration Council works to strengthen America by shaping how America thinks about and acts towards immigrants and immigration and by working toward a more fair and just immigration system that opens its doors to those in need of protection and unleashes the energy and skills that immigrants bring.

The Center's Data Portal identifies and consolidates government agencies' most recent immigration statistics into one location.

The Immigration Research Library is a free, online collection of contemporary, U.S. immigration reports, briefs, fact sheets, infographics, news and events. The Library hosts (with links to original sources) more than 1,500 U.S. immigration research reports with simple, straightforward abstracts drawn from respected universities and research institutes from across the country.

The nonpartisan Migration Policy Institute seeks to improve immigration and integration policies through authoritative research and analysis, opportunities for learning and dialogue, and the development of new ideas to address complex policy questions.

Contains data on immigration and citizenship including student and exchange visitor programs.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the nation’s largest federal law enforcement agency charged with securing the nation’s borders and facilitating international travel and trade.

"ICE identifies and apprehends removable noncitizens, detains these individuals and removes noncitizens from the United States."

The Report of the Visa Office is an annual report providing statistical information on immigrant and non-immigrant visa issuances by consular offices, as well as information on the use of visa numbers in numerically limited categories.

The American Jail Association (AJA) is a national, nonprofit organization that supports the professionals who operate our Nation's jails.

The Death Penalty Information Center is a national non-profit organization serving the media and the public with analysis and information on issues concerning capital punishment. The Center releases an annual report on the death penalty, highlighting significant developments and featuring the latest statistics. The Center also produces groundbreaking reports on various issues related to the death penalty such as arbitrariness, costs, innocence, and race

NIC is the only federal agency with a legislative mandate (Public Law 93-41 5) to provide specialized services to corrections from a national perspective. This source provides lists of resources related to local, state, and federal statistics displayed to help you see the current state of the corrections industry as of the last set of reported data.

The non-profit, non-partisan Prison Policy Initiative produces cutting edge research to expose the broader harm of mass criminalization, and then sparks advocacy campaigns to create a more just society.

The U.S. Sentencing Commission, a bipartisan, independent agency located in the judicial branch of government, was created by Congress in 1984 to reduce sentencing disparities and promote transparency and proportionality in sentencing. The Commission collects, analyzes, and distributes a broad array of information on federal sentencing practices.

Provides some basic data about the number of LGBTQ+ people in the United States, including the number of LGBTQ+ families in the United States and how their families were formed.

The LGBT Data & Demographics site was originally built and published in 2016 by The Williams Institute. The LGBT Data & Demographics site was originally built and published in 2016 by The Williams Institute

Data from Mental Health America.

Captures the experiences of nearly 34,000 LGBTQ youth ages 13 to 24 across the United States, with 45% of respondents being LGBTQ youth of color and 48% being transgender or nonbinary.

The American Association of Suicidology makes available a summary of national suicide statistics as soon as they become available from the National Center for Health Statistics.

ADAA is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention, treatment, and cure of anxiety, depression, OCD, PTSD, and co-occurring disorders through the alignment of science, treatment, and education.

Includes access to Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), Household Pulse Survey, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), National Post-Acute and long-term Care Study (NPALS), WISQARS and more.

The Center for Workplace Mental Health provides employers the tools, resources and information needed to promote and support the mental health of employees and their families.

Mental Health America (MHA) is the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the
needs of those living with mental illness and promoting the overall mental health of all.

NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is the lead federal agency for research on mental disorders. NIMH is one of the 27 Institutes and Centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the largest biomedical research agency in the world. NIH is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that leads public health efforts to advance the behavioral health of the nation. SAMHSA's mission is to reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illness on America's communities.

The World Happiness Report uses global survey data to report how people evaluate their own lives in more than 150 countries worldwide.

DRH monitors maternal and infant mortality, the most serious reproductive health complications. In addition, attention is focused on gathering data to better understand the extent of maternal and infant morbidity, adverse behaviors during pregnancy, and long-term consequences of pregnancy.

The Guttmacher Institute is a leading research and policy organization committed to advancing sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) worldwide.

Aggregating data from nine government agencies and organizations, PeriStats provides access to the most current maternal and infant health statistics on topics such as preterm birth, infant mortality, tobacco use, cesarean births, and health insurance coverage. Detailed information by race, ethnicity, and maternal age for many indicators is also available.

PRAMS collects data on maternal attitudes and experiences before, during, and after pregnancy. Surveillance research includes the prevalence of self-reported postpartum depression and anxiety symptoms.

The Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) advises the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on policy development in health, disability, human services, data, and science; and provides advice and analysis on economic policy.

BLS Reports provide analytical information related to the labor force, consumer spending, earnings, and work injuries and illnesses. Typically, reports contain a few pages of written analysis followed by statistical tables, which allow you to gather detailed information on economic conditions. Most reports have an annual cycle.

Data provided by the Kids Count Data Center.

USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) plays a leading role in research on food security and food security measurement in U.S. households and communities. ERS provides data access and technical support to social science scholars to facilitate their research on food security.

ICPH researches the causes of family homelessness, the demographics of this growing population, the conditions that make it difficult for homeless families to become self-sufficient, and the programs that are most effective in helping them transition out of poverty.

Founded at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in 1989, NCCP has worked for over 30 years to advance family-oriented research and translate findings into actionable recommendations that reduce the number of families experiencing hardship.

PIP helps data users find historical and current information related to key development indicators such as poverty, inequality, and shared prosperity. In addition, PIP can be used for following trends and monitoring progress towards development targets. The platform reports national, regional, and global estimates.

The Census Bureau provides poverty data from several household surveys and programs. Here you can find poverty estimates, learn about these surveys and programs, and get guidance on how to choose the right estimate for your needs.

Offers research reports on food security, child nutrition, and food assistance programs.

The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that engages in research and dissemination to shape public policy and improve the lives and opportunities of women from diverse backgrounds.

The Status of Women in the States provides data on women’s progress in 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the United States overall. families, communities, and societies.

The WomanStats Project began in 2001 with the aim of investigating the link between the security and behavior of states and the situation and security of the women within them.

The World's Women 2020 takes stock of progress in advancing women's rights, empowering women and girls and ensuring gender equality in the world community.