Social Security & Disability

Income, Assets & Program Participation
Social Security & Disability
Young Women Social Security & Disability Variables
This section describes income from Social Security, Railroad Retirement, and disability programs such as Workers' Compensation. Refer to the Pension Benefits & Pension Plans section of this guide for information on income from pension plans.
Social Security/Railroad Retirement Payments: The 1983 and 1988-2003 surveys collected information on whether income from Social Security/Railroad Retirement benefits had been received during the past 12 months. If income was received, the survey asked about the amounts received by either the respondent or her spouse. During other years, receipt of such income was incorporated within a residual "all other" income question. The 1991 and 1993 surveys included a question for respondents reporting a current or last job on whether she was covered by Social Security/Railroad Retirement on that job.
Social Security Disability/Other Disability Payments: In 1978, 1983, and 1988-2003, the survey included questions on whether disability income had been received during the past 12 months. If the respondent or her spouse received income, the specific amount received from each of the following sources was collected: Social Security Disability, Veterans Compensation or pension, Workers' (previously Workman's) Compensation, or another disability program. In 1991, each respondent was asked whether she had ever received or applied for a pension or compensation for any existing disability; this series was updated in 1993-2003. Questions asked during the 1968-82 surveys did not differentiate disability income from other income such as rental income, dividends, etc.
Attitudes Towards Possible Future Social Security Program Reforms: In 2003, the survey introduced a series of questions about the respondents' feelings towards possible changes in the Social Security program, including hypothetical investment and payment options. These questions are found in the "Attitudes" section of the 2003 questionnaire and can be found by searching question titles for the phrase "Attitude Toward Social Security."
Survey Instruments: Users can find questions on income from and eligibility for Social Security and disability payments in the "Assets and Income" sections of the 1968-91 and 1997-2003 questionnaires and the "Current Labor Force Status and Work History" sections of the 1991-95 questionnaires.
Mature Women Social Security & Disability Variables
This section describes income from Social Security, Railroad Retirement, and disability programs such as Workers' Compensation. Refer to the Pension Benefits & Pension Plans section of this guide for information on income from pension plans.
Social Security/Railroad Retirement Payments: All survey years except 1968 included a set of income questions on whether one or more family members had received Social Security or Railroad Retirement payments during the past year. Receipt by the respondent, her husband, or another family member was specified during most survey years. During four interviews (1974, 1976, 1979, and 1981), household income from Social Security was not separated from income received from other pension sources, nor were the specific family members receiving such payments identified.
Beginning with the 1979 survey, separate questions address the current/future eligibility of the respondent and, during select years, that of her husband, for Social Security benefits. Respondents interviewed in the 1979, 1982, 1986, and 1989 surveys were asked whether they would be eligible for Social Security based on their own work record when they reached retirement age. Information on the eligibility of the respondent for benefits from her husband's or ex-husband's account was collected during 1982, 1986, and 1989. The total number of years the respondent was employed in jobs covered by Social Security or Railroad Retirement was gathered during 1984, 1986, and 1989. The 1989 and 1992 surveys included a question asking whether the respondent was covered by Social Security or Railroad Retirement in her current/last job.
Social Security Disability/Other Disability Payments: Information on receipt of and amount of benefit payments received as a result of a disability was collected during each survey year except 1968. Separate questions that differentiate income received from Social Security Disability, Veterans Compensation or pension, Workers' (previously Workman's) Compensation, or another disability payment are present in most survey years. The 1974, 1976, 1979, and 1981 question wording merges disability income with income received from interest and dividends, while the 1984 and 1986 interviews asked respondents about whether any (unspecified) disability income from such sources as Social Security Disability, Workers' Compensation, etc., had been received. Both universes (any family member, respondent or other family member, respondent or husband/partner) and time frames (past calendar year, last 12 months) vary across survey years. The 1992-2003 surveys included a set of questions on whether the respondent and/or her husband had applied for or received Social Security Disability benefits either in her lifetime or since the last interview. If so, the survey recorded the age of each family member when receipt began and the year disability benefits were last received.
Survey Instruments & Documentation: Questions on income from and eligibility for Social Security and disability are found in the "Assets & Income," "Retirement" or "Retirement and Pension," and post-1988 "Current Labor Force Status & Work History" sections of the questionnaires. The 1992-2003 retrospectives on Social Security Disability are located in "Income." Each survey year's Interviewer's Reference Manual/Field Representative's Manual contains detailed instructions on the specific types of monies to be included and excluded when recording each income source (see Figure MW1).
Figure MW1. Instructions to Census Interviewers for Coding Social Security, Disability & Other Pension Sources
Social Security Payments | Include [those] Social Security payments received by persons who have worked long enough in "covered" employment, that is, employment in which Social Security payments were made from a person's salary, to be entitled to payments. Social Security payments may also be paid to the spouse or dependent children of covered workers. Exclude Supplemental Security payments. Do not add in Medicare premiums which are automatically deducted. |
Railroad Retirement Benefits | U.S. Railroad Retirement benefits are based on a person's long-term employment (10 years or more) in the railroad industry. Exclude pensions established by railroad companies or unions to supplement Federal Railroad Retirement. |
Social Security Disability Payments | Include any payments made to disabled workers under the Social Security disability insurance program (SSDI). Also include Black Lung payments to coal miners and disability payments made under the Railroad Retirement Act. Do not include payments from Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or any Social Security benefits other than disability payments. |
Any Other Disability Payments | Include payments received from private disability insurance policies and from the type of private health insurance which provides income when the individual is unable to work because of illness or injury. Also include disability payments from unions or employers. |
Veterans Compensation or Pension | Include money received as periodic benefits paid to disabled former members of the Armed Forces by the Veterans Administration for service-connected disability. Exclude [any] veterans pension paid to the survivor of a veteran and compensation paid to the survivor of a veteran. |
Workers' Compensation | Workers' compensation consists of lump sum or periodic payments to employees injured in connection with their jobs. The payments may come from private insurance carriers, State funds, and self-insured employers under Federal and State workers' compensation laws. If the payments come from an insurance company, the insurance must have been paid by the employer, not the employee. |
Source: 1992 Survey of Mature Women Field Representative's Manual (Census Bureau 1992) |
Cohorts
- NLSY97
- Topical Guide to the Data
- Asterisk Tables
- I. Employment, Unemployment, and Job Search (age restrictions as of interview date)
- II. Schooling (age restrictions as of 12/31/96)
- III. Training (age restrictions as of interview date)
- IV. Income, Assets, and Program Participation
- V. Family Formation (age restrictions as of end of previous calendar year--12/31/96 in rd 1, 12/31/97 in rd 2, and so on)
- VI. Family Background (age restrictions as of 12/31/1996)
- VII. Expectations
- VIII. Attitudes, Behaviors, and Time Use
- IX. Health (age restrictions as of 12/31/96)
- X. Political Participation
- XI. Environmental Variables (in main data set)
- Education
- Employment
- Household, Geography & Contextual Variables
- Family Background
- Marital History, Childcare & Fertility
- Income
- Health
- Attitudes
- Crime & Substance Use
- Asterisk Tables
- Intro to the Sample
- Using & Understanding the Data
- Other Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- Introduction to the NLSY97 Created Variable Appendices
- Appendix 1: Education Variable Creation
- Enrollment Status and Highest Grade/Degree - Appendix 1
- Date Received Diploma or Degree - Appendix 1
- Number of Grades Repeated or Skipped - Appendix 1
- Number of Schools Attended - Appendix 1
- Credits Earned toward Bachelor's/Associate's Degree - Appendix 1
- Date Left High School and Highest High School Grade - Appendix 1
- Private or Parochial School - Appendix 1
- SAT/ACT Scores - Appendix 1
- Training: Receipt of Certificate or Vocational License - Appendix 1
- Appendix 2: Employment Variable Creation
- Appendix 3: Family Background and Formation
- Household Size as of Survey Date - Appendix 3
- Marital Status and Marital/Cohabitation History - Appendix 3
- Fertility and Child Status - Appendix 3
- Number of Residences since Age 12 - Appendix 3
- Current Citizenship Status - Appendix 3
- Mother's Age at First Birth/Respondent's Birth
- Relationship to Household Parent Figures (Round 1 Parent Interview) - Appendix 3
- Relationship to Household Parent Figures (Rounds 7-9 Childhood Retrospective) - Appendix 3
- Relationship to Household Parent Figures (Interview Date) - Appendix 3
- Appendix 4: Geographic Variable Creation
- Appendix 5: Income and Assets Variable Creation
- Appendix 6: Event History Creation and Documentation
- Appendix 7: Continuous Month Scheme and Crosswalk
- Appendix 8: Instrument Rosters
- Appendix 9: Family Process and Adolescent Outcome Measures
- Appendix 10: CAT-ASVAB Scores
- Appendix 11: Collection of the Transcript Data (High School)
- Appendix 12: Post-Secondary Transcript Study
- Appendix 13: Cross-Cohort NLSY79/97 Overview
- Attachment 1: Census Industrial & Occupational Classification Codes
- Geocode Codebook Supplement
- Introduction to NLSY97 Geocode Data
- Attachment 100: Census Bureau State and County Codes
- Attachment 101: Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)/Core-Based Statistical Area (CBSA) Codes
- Attachment 102: IPEDS Data and College Identification Codes
- Attachment 103: Migration Distance Variables for Respondent Locations
- Attachment 104: Codebook Pages for Geocode and Zipcode Variables
- Questionnaires
- Errata
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 17 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 16 Release
- Addendum: Additional NLSY97 Speech & Post-Secondary Variables Available
- Addendum: NLSY97 Post-Secondary Data and Transcript Data Files Now Available
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 15 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 14 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 13 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 12 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 11 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 10 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 9 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 8 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 7 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 6 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 5 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 4 Release
- Errata for NLSY97 Round 3 Release
- Tutorials
- Technical Sampling Report
- Codebook Supplement
- Get Data
- Topical Guide to the Data
- NLSY79
- Topical Guide to the Data
- Asterisk Tables
- Education
- Employment
- Employment: An Introduction
- Work Experience
- Jobs & Employers
- Class of Worker
- Discrimination
- Fringe Benefits
- Industries
- Job Characteristics Index
- Job Satisfaction
- Job Search
- Labor Force Status
- Military
- Occupations
- Time & Tenure with Employers
- Wages
- Work History Data
- Employer History Roster
- Business Ownership
- Retirement
- Household, Geography & Contextual Variables
- Family Background
- Marital History, Childcare & Fertility
- Income
- Health
- Attitudes
- Crime & Substance Use
- Intro to the Sample
- Using & Understanding the Data
- Other Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- NLSY79 Attachment 3: Industrial and Occupational Classification Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 4: Fields of Study in College
- NLSY79 Attachment 5: Index of Labor Unions and Employee Associations
- NLSY79 Attachment 6: Other Kinds of Training Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 7: Other Certificate Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 8: Health Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 100: Geographic Regions
- NLSY79 Attachment 101: Country Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 102: Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)
- NLSY79 Attachment 103: Religion Codes
- NLSY79 Attachment 106: Profiles of American Youth (ASVAB Data/AFQT Scores)
- NLSY79 Appendix 1: Employment Status Recode Variables (1979-1998 and 2006)
- NLSY79 Appendix 2: Total Net Family Income Variable Creation (1979-2014)
- NLSY79 Appendix 3: Job Satisfaction Measures
- NLSY79 Appendix 4: Job Characteristics Index 1979-1982
- NLSY79 Appendix 5: Supplemental Fertility and Relationship Variables
- NLSY79 Appendix 6: Urban-Rural and SMSA-Central City Variables
- NLSY79 Appendix 7: Unemployment Rate
- NLSY79 Appendix 8: Highest Grade Completed & Enrollment Status Variable Creation
- NLSY79 Appendix 9: Linking Employers Through Survey Years
- NLSY79 Appendix 11: Round 12 (1990) Survey Administration Methods
- NLSY79 Appendix 12: Most Important Job Learning Activities (1993-94)
- NLSY79 Appendix 13: Intro to CAPI Questionnaires and Codebooks
- NLSY79 Appendix 14: Instrument Rosters
- NLSY79 Appendix 15: Recipiency Event Histories
- NLSY79 Appendix 16: 1994 Recall Experiment
- NLSY79 Appendix 17: Interviewer Characteristics Data
- NLSY79 Appendix 18: Work History Data
- NLSY79 Appendix 19: SF-12 Health Scale Scoring
- NLSY79 Appendix 20: Round 20 (2002) Early Bird and Income Recall Experiments
- NLSY79 Appendix 21: Attitudinal Scales
- NLSY79 Appendix 22: Migration Distance Variables for Respondent Locations
- NLSY79 Appendix 23: Revised Asset and Debt Variables and Computed TOTAL Net Wealth Variables
- NLSY79 Appendix 24: Reanalysis of the 1980 AFQT Data from the NLSY79
- NLSY79 Appendix 25: Attitudinal Scale Scoring
- NLSY79 Appendix 26: Non-Response to Financial Questions and Entry Points
- NLSY79 Appendix 27: IRT Item Parameter Estimates, Scores and Standard Errors
- NLSY79 Appendix 28: NLSY79 Employer History Roster
- NLSY79 Appendix 29: Date of Interview Current Status Variables
- NLSY79/97 Cross-Cohort Data
- Geocode Codebook Supplement
- Appendix 7: Unemployment Rates
- Appendix 10: Geocode Documentation
- Attachment 100: Geographic Regions
- Attachment 101: Country Codes
- Attachment 102: State FIPS Codes
- Attachment 104, Part A: 1981 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas (SMSAs)
- Attachment 104, Part B: 1983 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs)
- Attachment 104, Part C: 1983 Consolidated MSAs and Associated Primary MSAs (CMSAs and PMSAs)
- Attachment 104, Part D: 1983 PMSAs and Associated CMSAs
- Attachment 104, Part E: 1988 MSAs, CMSAs, and Associated PMSAs
- Attachment 104, Part F: 2004 MSAs, CMSAs, and Associated PMSAs
- Attachment 104, Part G: 2006 Core-Based Statistical Areas (CBSAs)
- Attachment 105: Addendum to FICE Codes
- Attachment 106: Codebook Pages for Geocode and Zipcode Variables
- Questionnaires
- Tutorials
- Errata
- Errata for 1979-2016 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2014 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2012 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2010 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2008 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2006 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2004 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2002 Data Release
- Errata for 1979-2000 Data Release
- Technical Sampling Report
- School & Transcript Surveys Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- Get Data
- Topical Guide to the Data
- NLSY79 Child/YA
- Topical Guide to the Data
- Intro to the Sample
- Using & Understanding the Data
- Other Documentation
- Codebook Supplement
- Appendix A: HOME-SF Scales (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix B: Composition of the Temperament Scales (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix C: Motor & Social Development (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix D: Behavior Problems Index (NLSY79 Child)
- Appendix D, Part 1: Composition of the BPI subscales
- Appendix D, Part 2a: BPI Anxious/Depressed Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2b: BPI Antisocial Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2c: BPI Dependent Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2d: BPI Headstrong Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2e: BPI Hyperactive Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2f: BPI Peer Conflicts/Withdrawn Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 2g: BPI Full Scale
- Appendix D, Part 3a: BPI Internalizing Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 3b: BPI Externalizing Subscale
- Appendix D, Part 3c: BPI Total Scores
- Appendix E: Sample SPSSx Program for Merging NLSY79 Child/YA & Mother Files
- Appendix F: Sample SAS Program for Merging NLSY79 Child/YA & Mother Files
- Appendix G: NLSY79 Child Assessment Scores, Reference Numbers (2010-2014)
- Appendix H: Identification Codes in the Child and Young Adult Database
- Attachment 100: Codebook Pages for Young Adult Geocode Data
- Questionnaires
- Errata
- Errata for 2016 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2014 Child/Young Adult Release
- Data Addition: New Work and School Status Variables Created
- Errata for 2012 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2010 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2008 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2006 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2004 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2002 Child/Young Adult Release
- Errata for 2000 Child/Young Adult Release
- Research/Technical Reports
- Codebook Supplement
- Get Data
- NLS Mature and Young Women
- NLS Older and Young Men