Identifying and Misidentifying Single Mothers in the Panel Study of Income Dynamics

Many studies of single motherhood and related problems of welfare use and poverty have used data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). Unfortunately, the PSID's Family Unit (FU) Head definition omits subfamily single mothers not observed to leave their household of origin. Resulting biases in terms of the age, race, welfare use, and poverty status are estimated in the present study by using the 1968-85 PSID Relationship File. Substantial undercounts of single mothers in the younger ages and some overcounts at older ages are found, especially for black mothers.