The Data Game: Controversies in Social Science Statistics

Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
List of Figures, Tables, and Boxes
Preface to the Fourth Edition
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction
	The Purpose of This Book
	How to Use This Book
2. Demography
	Data Sources
		U.S. Census
		American Community Survey
		Vital Statistics
	Controversies
		Population Counts
		Privacy in the Census: Double-Edged Sword?
		Will There Be a Population Boom?
		Undocumented Immigrants
		Race and Ethnicity
		How Big Is the Gay Population?
		Households and Families
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
3. Housing
	Data Sources
		U.S. Census
		American Housing Survey
		Other Industry Data
		Price Data
	Controversies
		Housing Crisis
		Homeownership
		Racial Discrimination by Banks
		Geographic Units
		Segregation
		Is Your City the Best Place to Live?
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
4. Health
	Data Sources
		U.S. Health Surveys
		Other Government Surveys
		Private Surveys
		Worldwide Data
	Controversies
		Infant Mortality
		Abortion
		Are We Living Longer?
		How to Measure Longevity
		Cancer
		HIV/AIDS
		Are Americans Getting Fatter?
		Chicago Heat Wave: What Caused the Tragedy?
		What's Unsafe on the Road? Speed, Texting, Teens, Motorcycles, or Alcohol?
		Drug Use
		Benefit-Cost Analysis
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
5. Education
	Data Sources
		National Center for Education Statistics
		U.S. Census Bureau
		Other Surveys
		State Data
	Controversies
		Poor Data
		Educational Attainment
		Testing
		Charter Schools: Are They More Effective Than Regular Public Schools?
		Teacher Compensation
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
6. Crime
	Data Sources
		Uniform Crime Reports
		National Crime Victimization Survey
		National Incident-Based Reporting System
	Controversies
		UCR, NCVS, or NIBRS?
		Crime Is Down—And We Don't Know Why
		Are There More Female Criminals?
		Human Trafficking: How Often Does It Occur?
		Where Is Crime the Worst?
		Rape
		Does Poverty Cause Crime?
		Why Is the Black Crime Rate So High?
		Does Prison Pay?
		Hate Crimes
		Does Capital Punishment Deter Murder?
		More Guns/More Crime or Less Crime?
		What About White-Collar Crime?
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
7. The National Economy
	Data Sources
		U.S. Commerce Department
		U.S. Labor Department
		U.S. Federal Reserve Board
		U.S. Small Business Administration
	International Statistics
	Controversies
		Which GDP?
		Adjusting GDP Growth for Inflation
		Problems with GDP
		Underground Economy
		Intercountry Comparisons
		Has China Caught Up with the United States?
		Measuring Productivity
		The Savings Rate
		Consumer Confidence
		International Statistics
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
8. Wealth, Income, and Poverty
	Data Sources
		Wealth
		Survey of Income and Program Participation
		Indirect Estimates from Tax Records
		Direct Counts
		Income
	Controversies
		Wealth
		Income
		Are We Better Off?
		Poverty
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
9. Labor Statistics
	Data Sources
		U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
		U.S. Census Bureau
	Controversies
		Unemployment
		The Minimum Wage and Jobs
		Unions
		Is the Workplace Safe?
	Squirrel Cage or Easier Times?
		International Labor Statistics
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
10. Business Statistics
	Data Sources
		Public Corporations
		Privately Held Corporations
		Small Businesses
		Aggregate Statistics
	Controversies
		Who Is the Biggest of Them All?
		Are the Big Too Big?
		Is Small Beautiful?
		Were the Bailouts a Success?
		How Much Profit?
		How Now Dow?
	Picking Stock Winners
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
11. Government
	Data Sources
		U.S. Budget
		Military Spending
		Money
		Prices
		Voting Data
	Controversies
		How Much for the Military?
		How Much for Welfare?
		How Big Is the Deficit?
		A Debt Monster?
		Taxes
		Measuring Money
		Inflation
		Currency Rates
		Fewer Voters?
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
12. Public Opinion Polling
	Data Sources
		Private Polling Organizations
		Media Polls
		Research Centers
	Controversies
		Sampling
		Survey Design
		Predicting Elections
		Polling Standards
	Summary
	Case Study Questions
13. Conclusions
	Poor/Missing Data
	Improved Data
	Conflicting Definitions
	Comparing Apples and Oranges
	Comparing Apples and Orangutans
	The Mathematics of Social Science Statistics
	The Reporting of Controversies
	Biased Analysis: Slanting the Numbers
	What's a Researcher to Do?
Index
About the Authors