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Interpolating U.S. Decennial Census Tract Data from as Early as 1970 to 2010: A Longtitudinal Tract Database
John R Logan1, Zengwang Xu2, Brian Stults3
1Department of Sociology and Director of the Initiative on Spatial Structures in the Social Sciences at Brown University, Providence, RI 02912. john_logan@brown.edu . His research focuses on urban development in the U.S. and China, incorporation of immigrants and minorities, and spatial inequalities.
The Professional Geographer : the Journal of the Association of American Geographers
|August 21, 2014
Summary
Comparing areal weighting and population-weighted interpolation for U.S. census tract data shows significant differences for population counts but convergence for rates. The Longitudinal Tract Data Base (LTDB) offers tools for historical data analysis.
Area of Science:
- Demography
- Geospatial Analysis
- Data Science
Background:
- Analyzing areal data is challenging due to inconsistent reporting units and temporal boundary changes.
- U.S. census tract boundaries are frequently altered between decennial censuses due to population shifts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare areal weighting and population-weighted interpolation methods for bridging temporal data gaps in U.S. census tracts.
- To assess the impact of different weighting methods on data estimates over time.
Main Methods:
- Areal weighting interpolation.
- Population-weighted interpolation.
- Comparison of estimation methods using historical U.S. census tract data.
Main Results:
- Areal weighting and population-weighted interpolation yield substantially different estimates for population counts.
- Both methods show high convergence for variables defined as rates or averages.
- The Longitudinal Tract Data Base (LTDB) provides tools for implementing these methods.
Conclusions:
- The choice of interpolation method significantly impacts estimates for population-based variables.
- For rates and averages, the convergence of methods simplifies historical data analysis.
- The LTDB facilitates consistent longitudinal analysis of tract-level data from 1970 onwards.
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