ABSTRACT
Chapter 9 introduces readers to microdata from the American Community Survey. The previous chapters in this book focus on aggregate-level analysis of US Census Bureau data. However, such analyses are limited to the pre-tabulated estimates provided by the Census Bureau. While these estimates are voluminous, they may not include the level of detail required by researchers, and they are limited to analyses appropriate for aggregate-level data. In turn, many researchers turn to Census microdata, which are anonymized individual-level Census records, to help answer demographic questions. In 2020, tidycensus added support for American Community Survey microdata along with a series of tools to assist with analysis of these datasets. This chapter provides an overview on how to understand ACS microdata and acquire these datasets with tidycensus.
