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VCF0875 R Opinion: Mention 1- Most Important National Problem

QUESTION:
---------
1960:  
What would you personally feel are the most important problems the 
government should try to take care of when the new President and 
Congress take office in January?
1964:  
As you well know, there are many serious problems in this country and in 
other parts of the world.  The question is, what should be done about 
them and who should do it.  We want to ask you about problems you think 
the government in Washington should do something about and any problems 
it should stay out of.  First, what would you personally feel are the 
most important problems the government should try to take care of when 
the new President and Congress take office in January?
1966:  
What do you personally feel are the most important problems which the 
government in Washington should try to take care of?
1968,1980,1982:  
As you well know, the government faces many serious problems in this 
country and in other parts of the world.  What do you personally feel 
are the most important problems which the government in Washington 
should try to take care of?
1970:  
As you well know, there are many serious problems in this country and in 
other parts of the world.  We'd like to start out by talking with you 
about some of them.  What do you personally feel are the most important 
problems which the government in Washington should try to take care of?
1972-1978,1984 AND LATER:  
What do you think are the most important problems facing this country?  
(IF MORE THAN ONE PROBLEM:) Of all you've told me (1996-LATER: Of those 
you've mentioned), what would you say is the single most important 
problem the country faces?

VALID_CODES:
------------
01.  AGRICULTURAL
02.  ECONOMICS; BUSINESS; CONSUMER ISSUES
     (includes foreign investment, tariffs/protection of
     U.S. industries, international trade deficit/balance
     of payments, immigration, interstate
     commerce/transportation;  does not
     include unemployment [09], defense spending [03],
     foreign [03] or government spending on domestic
     social welfare [09])
03.  FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND NATIONAL DEFENSE
     (includes: foreign aid, defense spending, the space
     program; does not include: international trade
     deficit [02])
04.  GOVERNMENT FUNCTIONING
     (not "the economy" [02])
05.  LABOR ISSUES
     (not unemployment [09])
06.  NATURAL RESOURCES
07.  PUBLIC ORDER
     (includes:  crime, drugs, civil liberties and non
     racial civil rights, women's rights, abortion
     rights, gun control, family/social/religious/moral
     'decay,' church and state, etc.)
08.  RACIAL PROBLEMS 
     (note: this primarily includes civil rights issues
     and racial equality; monetary assistance to
     minorities is primarily found in code 9, however
     there is a slight overlap: see Note 7 for specific
     codes; note especially 1988 code 300 and 1966-1972
     codes 61-63)
09.  SOCIAL WELFARE
     (includes: population, child care, aid to education,
     the elderly, health care, housing, poverty,
     unemployment, 'welfare' etc.)
97.  Other problems (incl. specific campaign issues)

MISSING_CODES:
--------------
98.  DK (exc. 1960,1964,1966)
99.  NA; no Post IW; abbrev. telephone IW (1984);
     Form I, III or IV (1972); no Pre IW; short form IW
     (1992); question not administered in assigned half
     sample [see VCF0012a] (1996, 2000)
00.  None; "there were no issues;" "there was no campaign
     in my district" (non-presidential years); DK
     (1960,1964,1966 only)
Inap. question not used

NOTES:
------
See Appendix note "MOST IMPORTANT PROBLEM".
GENERAL NOTE:
Because of changes in the full sets of codes which have been used over
time, this variable is limited to preserving the major groupings which
have been utilized with essential consistency through all years.  The
appendix note gives exact study-by-study versions of the texts of 
individual codes which have been collapsed to form the VCF0875 group 
categories.
In the 1960, 1966, and 1970 study datasets, one multiple- response 
variable was coded which included up to 3 mentions (1970: 4).  In 1960 
and 1970, variables were coded in order of importance in cases where R 
mentioned more than one problem. Within the study documentation for 
these two years, it was also stated that, in cases of more than one 
mentioned problem, if order of importance was 'not  clear,' responses 
were then coded in order of mention.  From the 1966 documentation, it 
is not apparent if multiple responses were coded in order of importance 
or if they were coded in order of mention.  The first CODED response 
(variable) in studies 1960, 1966, and 1970 has been used here. 
In the 1964 and 1968 study datasets, one single-response variable 
was coded.  This variable was described as including, in cases of more 
than one given response, the mention considered most important by R.  
Documentation in both years added that if order of importance was 'not 
clear,' responses were coded in order of mention:  in such event, the 
single variable appearing in the study dataset represented the first 
mention.
Note that, for cases where R mentioned two or three problems but
missing data (DK or NA) appeared in the 'choice' variable (i.e., R did 
not choose a single most important problem), the first mention has not 
been included here, but MD has been coded. EXCEPTION: in 1986, in 142 
cases the interviewer mistakenly did not ask R to rank problems by 
importance when R gave more than one mention.  In these 142 cases, the 
first mention of R has been incorporated.
In 1960, 1964 and 1966, the DK category was combined with "no issues"
and is included in code 00.
1996 NOTE:
A half-sample of respondents were selected to be administered this 
question.
2000 NOTE:
same as 1996.

WEIGHT:
-------
VCF0009/VCF0009a

TYPE:
-----
Numeric  Dec 0

SOURCE_VARS:
------------
1960:  600050  
1964:  640036  
1966:  660019  
1968:  680048  
1970:  700039(type 0) 
1972:  720546,720548
1974:  742079  
1976:  763689  
1978:  780311,780315  
1980:  800979 
1982:  820299  
1984:  840993
1986:  860306  
1988:  880817 
1990:  900326  
1992:  925726
1994:  940706  
1996:  961141
1998:  980346  
2000:  000436


Walter Mebane 2005-11-03