National Survey of SSI Children and Families
Intro and Overview
The National Survey of SSI Children and Families (NSCF) is an individual-level, cross sectional data set with over 8,000 children and young adults who are current or former Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients receiving SSI as of December 2000, those who received SSI in December 1996, and a subsample of persons who had applied for benefits in 1992 or later including both those who eventually received benefits and those who did not (i.e. denied applicants). The data are representative the SSI population aged 0-17 and 18-23 in the lower 48 states not residing in Medicaid institutions.
Topics include health, functional limitations, disability status, healthcare use, expenses, education, employment, earnings, family income and assets, and health insurance.
Tips for Getting Started
Detailed information is available on SSA's webpage here. Links to an external site.
A user manual is available here. Links to an external site.
Public use data can be downloaded here. Links to an external site.
Key Advantages
- Covers SSI children and young adults - key populations for SSA research that are often missing from other data sources.
- Includes data on denied applicants to support study designs that require a comparison group.
- Spans the Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (welfare reform) in 1996
Key Disadvantages
- Recency. Data are were last collected in 2000.
- Excludes the institutionalized population.
- Geographic information is only available in the restricted use data.
Papers Using these Data
Bollmer, Julie, Tom Krenzke, Amy Bitterman, Elaine Carlson, and Pam Broene. "National Survey of SSI Children and Families." (2012).
Davies, Paul S., and Paul S. Davies. "An overview of the National Survey of SSI Children and Families and related products." Soc. Sec. Bull. 66 (2005): 7.
Loprest, Pamela J. "Choices, challenges, and options: Child SSI recipients preparing for the transition to adult life." (2005).
http://webarchive.urban.org/url.cfm?ID=411168&renderforprint=1 Links to an external site.
Hemmeter, Jeffrey, Jacqueline Kauff, and David Wittenburg. "Changing circumstances: Experiences of child SSI recipients before and after their age-18 redetermination for adult benefits." Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation 30, no. 3 (2009): 201-221.
Loprest, Pamela J., and David C. Wittenburg. "Posttransition experiences of former child SSI recipients." Social Service Review 81, no. 4 (2007): 583-608.
https://www-journals-uchicago-edu.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/523877
Wittenburg, David C., and Pamela J. Loprest. "Early transition experiences of transition-age child SSI recipients: New evidence from the National Survey of Children and Families." Journal of Disability Policy Studies 18, no. 3 (2007): 176-187.
https://journals-sagepub-com.ezproxy.library.wisc.edu/doi/abs/10.1177/10442073070180030601
Rupp, Kalman, Kalman Rupp, and Kalman Rupp. "Profile of children with disabilities receiving SSI: Highlights from the National Survey of SSI Children and Families." Soc. Sec. Bull. 66 (2005): 21.
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