The Cumulative Data file consists of 723 variables derived from the series of biennial SRC/CPS National Election Studies, 1952-1992. To produce this dataset, cases from these 21 election studies have been pooled; the total cross-section N is 37,456 unweighted. A variable in the dataset almost always represents a question which has been asked in three or more election studies. The raw data file record length is 909.
The dataset includes a series of demographic variables, and measures for social structure, partisanship, candidate evaluation, public opinion, ideological support for the political system, voting behavior, participation and involvement. Since the datafile was originally conceived as part of the production of the American National Election Studies Data Sourcebook, 1952- 1978, (Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 1980)+, many indices especially created for that volume are included in the Cumulative File.