Description

For sample adults age 18 and older, HOMELESSEV reports if the respondent has ever spent more than 24 hours living in a shelter, or in a jail or prison.

HOMELESSEV is included in the sample adult section within a series of questions about infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. The order of survey questions affects the universe for HOMELESSEV. Researchers should read the comparability and universe tabs before making comparisons across years.

Comparability

In 2000 and 2001, HOMELESSEV was asked within a set of questions related to tuberculosis; only respondents who reported that they had heard of tuberculosis and answered a question about how much she/he knows about tuberculosis were asked the question that corresponds to HOMELESSEV. Beginning in 2002, the survey question was asked of all sample adults ages 18 and older.

In 2002, there are an elevated number of "not ascertained" responses because of an error in the first quarter where respondents whose answers to a previous question were unknown (refused, not ascertained, or replied that they did not know) were mistakenly not asked the question that corresponds to HOMELESSEV and instead recoded to not ascertained.

Researchers should use caution when comparing frequencies prior to 2003 with those from 2003 forward.

Universe

Availability

• 2000-2010

Weights

• 2000-2010 : SAMPWEIGHT