About CNSS

The annual Cornell National Social Survey is conducted by the Survey Research Institute (SRI). The CNSS polls adults aged 18 and over on a wide range of current public policy topics:

• social interaction and engagement with immigrant communities
• food, clothing, energy, and entertainment expenditures
• efforts to conserve environmental resources
• the role of social networks in employment
• communication in the workplace
• the role of the Bible in daily life
• involvement in civic and social organizations
• attitudes toward virtual worlds technology

Information on sample selection and survey methodology, as well as reports summarizing key findings are located on the SRI web site.

Public-use versions of the CNSS have been created by CISER from the original survey data. You can download these files and documentation from this site. In addition, you can generate a customized extract from each year’s data. Information at the variable level is available to everyone. Registration is required if you want to download the datasets in their entirety or use the custom extraction tool. Questions regarding use of these data can be sent to ciser@cornell.edu

Qualified researchers may apply to use a restricted version of the CNSS datasets housed in the Cornell Restricted Access Data Center (CRADC). The restricted dataset contains additional geographic identifiers and demographic characteristics for respondents. (Direct identifiers for respondents such as telephone number, name, and address are not available.) To apply for use of these data, contact the CRADC data custodian.

Responsible Use

These data are distributed to support academic teaching and research. Complying with standard professional practice, all reasonable precautions have been taken to protect the identity of individual respondents in this study. However, final responsibility for maintaining respondent confidentiality remains with researchers. For that reason, users agree to report results of their analyses in aggregated formats such that individual responses are not identifiable.