Linking Federal Surveys with Administrative Data to Improve Research on Families

Abstract

Linkage of federal, state, and local administrative records to survey data holds great promise for research on families, in particular research on low-income families. Researchers can use administrative records in conjunction with survey data to better measure family relationships and to capture the experiences of individuals and family members across multiple points in time and social and economic domains. Administrative data can be used to evaluate program participation in government social welfare programs, as well as to evaluate the accuracy of reporting on receipt of such benefits. Administrative records can also be used to enhance collection and accuracy of survey and census data and to improve coverage of hard-to-reach populations. This article discusses potential uses of linked administrative and survey data, gives an overview of the linking methodology and infrastructure (including limitations), and reviews social science literature that has used this method to date.