Many thanks to Jill A. Moriearty from the J. Willard Marriott Library University of Utah for her permission to use her Social Science Data Resources guide as a template and basis for this guide.
Many of the data resources listed in this guide can be analyzed online through the host Web site without your having to download files to software such as SPSS or SAS. The resources listed below are good examples.
This research guide identifies electronic datasets to support statistical research in the social sciences.
Data files are typically provided in ASCII, SAS, SPSS or STATA format. Using the associated metadata, users import data to a spreadsheet or statistical software program for statistical analysis. Certain data manipulation and data analysis skills are required to download and use these datasets.
Social science data are primarily data gathered from social surveys, polls, interviews, experiments, census or administrative records. Essential for researchers in conducting quantitative and qualitative social research, social science data are commonly used for secondary analyses, testing theories and hypotheses, methodology evaluations, longitudinal and cross-sectional studies.
Lehigh's Library and Technology Services (LTS) offers several ways for students, faculty, and staff to learn more about data literacy, gain micro-credientals, and further skills.