Assessment of survey data for the analysis of marriage and divorce at the national, state, and local levels

The Administration for Children and Families and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) contracted with the Lewin Group and the Urban Institute to explore options for collecting marriage and divorce information. This report examines the feasibility and potential benefits of using existing survey data sets to provide reliable, timely information on marriage and divorce. It assesses the ability of a variety of data sets to produce marriage and divorce statistics at the national, state, and local levels. The main criterion is whether the existing survey data sets provide or can be modified to provide information on marriage and divorce rates, as was collected under the vital statistics system. (author abstract)

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