Poverty rate of the elderly in 2004: 9.8%
Poverty rate of the elderly if there were no Social Security benefits: 41.1%
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Cool Research Link: Spending Anthology
Want to know how the 9/11 terrorist attacks affected household spending on airline fares? You can find out in the 2005 Consumer Expenditure Survey anthology. Household spending on air travel was at a peak of $8.9 billion in the third quarter of 2001 and fell by an eye-popping 31 percent to $6.1 billion in the fourth quarter. The oldest householders (aged 65 or older) cut their spending on airline fares more than any other age group.
Thursday, February 09, 2006
Bet You Didn't Know
Among people aged 18 to 64, only 45 percent have health insurance through their own employer.
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Q & A: How Many Americans are Gay?
Believe it or not, the government asks and tells. According to recently released results from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), nine out of ten people aged 15 to 44 (the survey is limited to that age group) identify themselves as heterosexual. The proportions are almost identical for men (90.2 percent) and women (90.3 percent) and do not vary significantly by age within the 15-to-44 age group.
Does this mean the remaining 10 percent are homosexual? Maybe, but it's hard to say. The government allows respondents to identify themselves as homosexual, bisexual, or "something else." Among men aged 15 to 44, only 2.3 percent identify themselves as homosexual, 1.8 percent say they are bisexual, 3.9 percent say they are something else, and 1.8 percent did not answer the question. Among women the proportions are 1.3 percent homosexual, 2.8 percent bisexual, 3.8 percent something else, and 1.8 percent refused to answer. Just what is "something else"? According to the government report Sexual Behavior and Selected Health Measures: Men and Women 15-44 Years of Age, United States, 2002, some of those saying they are something else may not understand the terminology. So the 10 percent figure may be too large—or maybe not.
The NSFG explores sexual orientation in other ways as well. It asks respondents whether they are attracted more to people of the same sex or the opposite sex. It also asks about lifetime and past-year sexual contact with opposite-sex and same-sex partners. On the attraction question, 92 percent of men aged 15 to 44 say they are attracted only to females—more than the 90 percent of men who say they are heterosexual. Among women, 86 percent say they are attracted only to males—less than the 90 percent who say they are heterosexual. Six percent of men say they have had oral or anal sex with another man in their lifetime. A smaller 2.9 percent say they have done so in the past 12 months. Eleven percent of women say they have had a sexual experience with another woman in their lifetime, and 4.4 percent have done so in the past year (the survey asked men and women different questions regarding same-sex experiences, making it difficult to compare results by gender).
It's likely that many people do not want the government to know their sexual leanings—especially if they are gay. The NSFG interviews were conducted in a way to minimize this hesitancy. Respondents wore headphones and entered their responses into a computer, preventing the interviewer from knowing how they answered the questions. Nevertheless, there's little doubt homosexuality will be under-reported, making the 10 percent figure as good a guess as any.
Does this mean the remaining 10 percent are homosexual? Maybe, but it's hard to say. The government allows respondents to identify themselves as homosexual, bisexual, or "something else." Among men aged 15 to 44, only 2.3 percent identify themselves as homosexual, 1.8 percent say they are bisexual, 3.9 percent say they are something else, and 1.8 percent did not answer the question. Among women the proportions are 1.3 percent homosexual, 2.8 percent bisexual, 3.8 percent something else, and 1.8 percent refused to answer. Just what is "something else"? According to the government report Sexual Behavior and Selected Health Measures: Men and Women 15-44 Years of Age, United States, 2002, some of those saying they are something else may not understand the terminology. So the 10 percent figure may be too large—or maybe not.
The NSFG explores sexual orientation in other ways as well. It asks respondents whether they are attracted more to people of the same sex or the opposite sex. It also asks about lifetime and past-year sexual contact with opposite-sex and same-sex partners. On the attraction question, 92 percent of men aged 15 to 44 say they are attracted only to females—more than the 90 percent of men who say they are heterosexual. Among women, 86 percent say they are attracted only to males—less than the 90 percent who say they are heterosexual. Six percent of men say they have had oral or anal sex with another man in their lifetime. A smaller 2.9 percent say they have done so in the past 12 months. Eleven percent of women say they have had a sexual experience with another woman in their lifetime, and 4.4 percent have done so in the past year (the survey asked men and women different questions regarding same-sex experiences, making it difficult to compare results by gender).
It's likely that many people do not want the government to know their sexual leanings—especially if they are gay. The NSFG interviews were conducted in a way to minimize this hesitancy. Respondents wore headphones and entered their responses into a computer, preventing the interviewer from knowing how they answered the questions. Nevertheless, there's little doubt homosexuality will be under-reported, making the 10 percent figure as good a guess as any.
Friday, February 03, 2006
Bet You Didn't Know
The average American woman weighs 164 pounds, up from 140 pounds in 1960. The average American man weighs 191 pounds, up from 166.
Thursday, February 02, 2006
The Big Picture on Travel
Travel is one of the world's largest industries. Many people make their living from it. Many others live for it. Yet for some reason it is very difficult to get big-picture demographics on travel, such as the percentage of Americans who travel outside the United States by age.
The Department of Transportation's National Household Travel Survey asks people about their travel only every five years or so, and the data are so arcane, i.e. Annual Person Great Circle Distance Miles of Travel (I'm not making this up), as to be almost useless for all but the most devoted number crunchers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey makes you work up a sweat before you can determine just how much the average American household spends on travel (we did and the answers are here).
The frustrating dearth of travel demographics is what makes the occasional survey on travel that much more welcome. Gallup, for example, offers a glimpse of where Americans have been in its 2005 Lifestyle poll (subscription only). The results show 19 percent of Americans traveled outside the country in the past 12 months, about the same percentage as in 2001. Those most likely to travel abroad: Americans aged 18 to 29.
The AARP's 2005 Travel & Adventure Report, which can be downloaded for free, provides a more detailed look at the travel experiences of boomers (people aged 41 to 59), comparing their travel in 2005 with the travel of 21-to-39-year-olds in 1985. The AARP study finds boomers more likely to have a passport in middle-age (28 percent had one in 2005, up from 10 percent in 1985) and more likely to travel outside the U.S. In 1985, only 17 percent of 21-to-39-year-olds had traveled outside the U.S. in the past three years. In 2005, a larger 24 percent of 41-to-59-year-olds had traveled abroad in the past three years.
The 55 percent majority of boomers consider themselves adventurous, according to the AARP travel report. But they must be talking about adventures with their wallet because their top adventure travel destination is Las Vegas.
The Department of Transportation's National Household Travel Survey asks people about their travel only every five years or so, and the data are so arcane, i.e. Annual Person Great Circle Distance Miles of Travel (I'm not making this up), as to be almost useless for all but the most devoted number crunchers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey makes you work up a sweat before you can determine just how much the average American household spends on travel (we did and the answers are here).
The frustrating dearth of travel demographics is what makes the occasional survey on travel that much more welcome. Gallup, for example, offers a glimpse of where Americans have been in its 2005 Lifestyle poll (subscription only). The results show 19 percent of Americans traveled outside the country in the past 12 months, about the same percentage as in 2001. Those most likely to travel abroad: Americans aged 18 to 29.
The AARP's 2005 Travel & Adventure Report, which can be downloaded for free, provides a more detailed look at the travel experiences of boomers (people aged 41 to 59), comparing their travel in 2005 with the travel of 21-to-39-year-olds in 1985. The AARP study finds boomers more likely to have a passport in middle-age (28 percent had one in 2005, up from 10 percent in 1985) and more likely to travel outside the U.S. In 1985, only 17 percent of 21-to-39-year-olds had traveled outside the U.S. in the past three years. In 2005, a larger 24 percent of 41-to-59-year-olds had traveled abroad in the past three years.
The 55 percent majority of boomers consider themselves adventurous, according to the AARP travel report. But they must be talking about adventures with their wallet because their top adventure travel destination is Las Vegas.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Cool Research Link: Customizing MEPS
One of the frustrations of demographic research is the lack of demographic segmentation detailed enough to allow for meaningful analysis. This is especially true with health statistics, which too often combine age groups into categories so broad it is almost impossible to tease out the trends. My pet peeve with health statistics is the use of the 45-to-64 age group. Just at the ages when chronic conditions become increasingly common if not the norm, those trends are obscured by the use of the overly-broad age group. Someone must have read my mind. The federal government's Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) now allows users to customize its tables. Specifically, you can customize age breaks down to the single-year-of-age level for a much closer examination of how health care consumption and spending change as people age. Check out this welcome innovation here.
Monday, January 30, 2006
Bet You Didn't Know
Twenty-five percent of men aged 65 or older will be in the labor force by 2014, according to new projections by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, up from 20 percent in 2005.
Friday, January 27, 2006
Teens on the phone
Ithaca college recently hosted the first cellular phone film festival, receiving 178 entries from high school and college students across the country. Each submitted a 30-second film produced entirely with a cell phone camera. Dianne Lynch, dean of the Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College, told the Ithaca Journal that the film festival was about "acknowledging a sea change in the way this generation processes information."
To teens, the cell phone is a watch, a camera, a television, and a computer. But its most important function remains connecting them to people (not places). The changing and expanding function of the telephone is profound and largely ignored by anyone over the age of 30. Interestingly, teenagers themselves are oblivious to it, having grown up with a cell phone cupped in their hand. And adults without teen contacts also are clueless. But the parents of teens know it by the ring tones--at home, in the car, on the street, at Grandma's house--wherever and whenever. The continuous buzz of communication is (I admit) exhilarating. This is not the way it was when we were kids, when mom and dad controlled the family's single landline phone. Compared to today's teens, we were in solitary confinement.
Cell phones offer teenagers the kind of instant communication not experienced since our ancestors huddled together in a cave. They erase the miles and break down the walls we humans have spent tens of thousands of years putting between ourselves. The 56 percent majority of teens aged 12 to 19 own a cell phone, up from 25 percent in 2000 according to Teenage Research Unlimited, which tracks teen attitudes and behavior in a twice-yearly survey. Half of all teens own a cell phone by age 14. Here are the numbers:
Cell phone ownership by age, fall 2005
(Teenage Research Unlimited)
Age 12 36%
Age 13 39%
Age 14 50%
Age 15 58%
Age 16 66%
Age 17 61%
Age 18 69%
Age 19 71%
According to an ethnographic study of teen cell phone use by Context-based Research Group, teens without cell phones are out of the all-important social loop. They may miss out on more than that since cell phones are becoming the Grand Central Station of high-tech, with most teens are flocking to the platform. Where will it take them? It will be fun to find out.
To teens, the cell phone is a watch, a camera, a television, and a computer. But its most important function remains connecting them to people (not places). The changing and expanding function of the telephone is profound and largely ignored by anyone over the age of 30. Interestingly, teenagers themselves are oblivious to it, having grown up with a cell phone cupped in their hand. And adults without teen contacts also are clueless. But the parents of teens know it by the ring tones--at home, in the car, on the street, at Grandma's house--wherever and whenever. The continuous buzz of communication is (I admit) exhilarating. This is not the way it was when we were kids, when mom and dad controlled the family's single landline phone. Compared to today's teens, we were in solitary confinement.
Cell phones offer teenagers the kind of instant communication not experienced since our ancestors huddled together in a cave. They erase the miles and break down the walls we humans have spent tens of thousands of years putting between ourselves. The 56 percent majority of teens aged 12 to 19 own a cell phone, up from 25 percent in 2000 according to Teenage Research Unlimited, which tracks teen attitudes and behavior in a twice-yearly survey. Half of all teens own a cell phone by age 14. Here are the numbers:
Cell phone ownership by age, fall 2005
(Teenage Research Unlimited)
Age 12 36%
Age 13 39%
Age 14 50%
Age 15 58%
Age 16 66%
Age 17 61%
Age 18 69%
Age 19 71%
According to an ethnographic study of teen cell phone use by Context-based Research Group, teens without cell phones are out of the all-important social loop. They may miss out on more than that since cell phones are becoming the Grand Central Station of high-tech, with most teens are flocking to the platform. Where will it take them? It will be fun to find out.
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Talking about demographics
Everyone likes a good story. That's why there are bestseller lists, top-rated television shows, and box office hits. This blog will tell stories about the fast-changing American population, using the demographics to reveal what lies ahead.
Anyone can collect statistics, but shaping them into a compelling story, one that explains the world around us, is a harder task. It requires connecting the dots, sticking your neck out, and learning from mistakes. I’ve been telling the stories revealed by the demographics for almost three decades in various guises--as editor-in-chief of American Demographics magazine, as editor of The Boomer Report, as author of 100 Predictions for the Baby Boom and other books, and now as editorial director for New Strategist Publications.
Stories about demographic trends may not make the bestseller list, but they can be just as compelling for people who love the demographics like I do. And I'm not alone. From the mail and email I've received over the years, I know there are a lot of you who love to compare, contrast, criticize, and converse about the latest turn of a trend. This blog is for you. It is for those who miss the forum provided by American Demographics magazine, for those who look forward to the Census Bureau's release of the latest income and poverty statistics each year, and for those who want to keep up with labor force trends, spending patterns, and time use statistics.
Let's talk.
Anyone can collect statistics, but shaping them into a compelling story, one that explains the world around us, is a harder task. It requires connecting the dots, sticking your neck out, and learning from mistakes. I’ve been telling the stories revealed by the demographics for almost three decades in various guises--as editor-in-chief of American Demographics magazine, as editor of The Boomer Report, as author of 100 Predictions for the Baby Boom and other books, and now as editorial director for New Strategist Publications.
Stories about demographic trends may not make the bestseller list, but they can be just as compelling for people who love the demographics like I do. And I'm not alone. From the mail and email I've received over the years, I know there are a lot of you who love to compare, contrast, criticize, and converse about the latest turn of a trend. This blog is for you. It is for those who miss the forum provided by American Demographics magazine, for those who look forward to the Census Bureau's release of the latest income and poverty statistics each year, and for those who want to keep up with labor force trends, spending patterns, and time use statistics.
Let's talk.
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