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Reference Sources: Statistics

Find On This Page:


General Sources United States, State & Local Statistics International Statistics
Polls & Opinion Surveys Geospatial Information Analyzing Statistics

General Sources

Online Sources:

FindIt! Multisearch Category for Statistics
Use this Multisearch category to identify several databases with statistical information. Most can only be searched one at a time, however.

LexisNexis Statistical
'The world's most comprehensive access to statistical information' from the Congressional Information Service, Inc.

Economagic.com: Economic Time Series
'This page is meant to be a comprehensive site of free, easily available economic time series data useful for economic research, in particular economic forecasting. This site (set of web pages) was started in 1996 to help students in an Applied Forecasting class. ... At this time, there are more than 200,000 time series for which data and custom charts can be retrieved.'

Data and Information Services Center (DISC)
Provided by the librarians at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, DISC's Internet Crossroads contains over 825 annotated links to data-related resources on the Internet.

Both Online and In Print at the Library

Statistical Abstract of the United States
'As the National Data Book it contains a collection of statistics on social and economic conditions in the United States. Selected international data are also included. The Abstract is also your Guide to Sources of other data from the Census Bureau, other Federal agencies, and private organizations.' A print copy is also available in the library's reference collection.

World Almanac and Book of Facts
A print copy is also available in the library's reference collection.

Information Please Almanac
A print copy is also available in the library's reference collection.

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United States, State & Local Statistics

FindIt! Multisearch Category for Statistics
Use this Multisearch category to identify several databases with statistical information. Most can only be searched one at a time, however.

Statistical Abstract of the United States
'As the National Data Book it contains a collection of statistics on social and economic conditions in the United States. Selected international data are also included. The Abstract is also your Guide to Sources of other data from the Census Bureau, other Federal agencies, and private organizations.' A print copy is also available in the library's reference collection.

FedStats
'More than 100 agencies in the United States Federal Government produce statistics of interest to the public. The Federal Interagency Council on Statistical Policy maintains this site to provide easy access to the full range of statistics and information produced by these agencies for public use.'

U.S. Census Bureau

The Census Bureau is one of the largest and oldest statistics-gathering agencies in the federal government. The best-known product is the Census of Population and Housing, which is conducted every 10 years, but the Census Bureau also conducts many other surveys and publishes brief analytical reports based on the data. You might be especially interested in the "People & Households" section in the middle of their homepage.

If you are particularly interested in using the Census of Population and Housing, you might want to look at this brief PowerPoint demo, or this Web Page. The easiest site to obtain Census information from is Missouri State Census Data Center. Although it may look like it only covers Missouri at first glance, there is actually data for the entire United States. Hint: You probably will want to look at the SF3 Profiles or Trend Reports. The Library also has print editions of the Census 2000 Missouri report and the Census 2000 Illinoisreport. Reports for other states, cities and metropolitan areas are also available from the Library.

Other sites sponsored by the Census Bureau:

Bureau of Labor Statistics

'Produces statistics on employment and unemployment, prices and living conditions, wages and benefits.' Their best-known publication is the Monthly Labor Review.

National Center of Education Statistics

'Collects, analyzes and publishes statistics on education.' Two of their most well-known products are the Digest of Education Statistics and Youth Indicators. Another site you might want to examine is NAEP Data Explorer, to discover what students across the country know and can do.

National Center for Health Statistics

'Responsible for the collection, analysis and dissemination on the nature of health, illness and disability of the U.S. population.' One of their best-known publications is Health United States.

Bureau of Justice Statistics

'Collects, analyzes, publishes and disseminates statistical information on crime, criminal offenders, [and] victims of crime.' Two publications you may want to consider are Crime in the United States and Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics.

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

The St. Louis Fed has three websites of interest:

  • Liber8
    This site is particularly intended for use by students and librarians, and as such is laid out in an easy-to-read format with an emphasis on analysis rather than data.
  • Fraser
    "The Federal Reserve Archival System for Economic Research (FRASER) [is provided] by the Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis to expand on its mission to provide economic information and data to researchers interested in the U.S. economy. On this web site you will find links to scanned images of historical economic statistical publications, releases, and documents."
  • Fred
    "FRED® (Federal Reserve Economic Data) is a database of over 3000 U.S. economic time series. With FRED® you can download data in Microsoft Excel and text formats and view charts of data series."

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International Statistics

FindIt! Multisearch Category for Statistics
Use this Multisearch category to identify several databases with statistical information. Most can only be searched one at a time, however.

EconStats
"[V]isitors can quickly access a wide range of economic data from the United States, such as information about inflation, unemployment levels, productivity, new factory orders, and the price of crude oil. The homepage also contains links to economic data from Canada, Britain, Germany, the European Union, France, Italy, Russia, and China. On the right-hand side of the page, visitors can click through to interest rates for dozens of countries, check in on various stock markets, and look up commodity and futures prices. Those individuals looking for quick help with pressing questions can post queries to the "Econ Chat" section of the homepage."

NationMaster
Nationmaster is intended to make comparisons across countries more easily available. Choice reviewed it as 'essential'.

Statistics - National Agencies and Compendia
A compilation of national statistical agencies, by Brian Boling at Vanderbilt University.

National Government Statistical Websites
Collected by Indiana University and maintained by Archive-It.org, it provides a searchable list of the chief statistical offices of many countries.

Many of the world's nations have statistical offices. Here are a few selected ones to get you started:

Similarly, many international organizations collect statistics: A few are:

Print Resource

Check out Statesman's Yearbook from the Library's print collection. Editions back to 1898 are available, to make comparisons over time.

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Polls & Opinion Surveys

FindIt! Multisearch Category for Statistics
Use this Multisearch category to identify several databases with statistical information. Most can only be searched one at a time, however.

Pew Global Attitudes Project
"The Pew Global Attitudes Project is a series of worldwide public opinion surveys that encompasses a broad array of subjects ranging from people's assessments of their own lives to their views about the current state of the world and important issues of the day. More than 90,000 interviews in 50 countries have been conducted as part of the project's work."

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Geospatial Information

Geospatial and Statistical Data Center at the University of Virginia
"One of the Library's Electronic Centers, the Geostat Center contains most of the spatial and social science data available through the University Library system."

Geospatial One Stop
"geodata.gov is a geographic information system (GIS) portal, also known as the Geospatial One-Stop (GOS), that serves as a public gateway for improving access to geospatial information and data under the Geospatial One-Stop E-Government initiative. Geospatial One-Stop is one of 24 E-Government initiatives sponsored by the Federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to enhance government efficiency and to improve citizen services."

NHGIS: The National Historical Geographic Information System
"The National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) provides, free of charge, aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States between 1790 and 2000."

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Analyzing Statistics

How to Lie with Statistics is a classic!

How to Lie with Maps

Ethical Guidelines for Statistical Practice, which was produced by the Committee on Professional Ethics of the American Statistical Association in 1999, is intended to "encourage ethical and effective statistical work in morally conducive working environments. It is also intended to assist students in learning to perform statistical work responsibly."

Some other articles to consider:

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Please inquire at Olin Library's Reference Desk for further assistance in finding and using statistical sources.

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last update: Wednesday, August 20, 2008
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