• Component Description
• Eligible Sample
• Interview Setting and Mode of Administration
• Quality Assurance & Quality Control
• Data Processing and Editing
• Analytic Notes
• Codebook
  • SEQN - Respondent sequence number
  • OCD150 - Type of work done last week
  • OCQ180 - Hours worked last week at all jobs
  • OCQ200 - Check Item
  • OCQ210 - Usually work 35 or more hours per week
  • OCD231 - Industry group code: current job
  • OCD241 - Occupation group code: current job
  • OCQ260 - Description of job/work situation
  • OCQ265 - Which best describes hours worked?
  • OCD270 - Number of months working in the main job
  • OCQ290G - Smell tobacco smoke at work
  • OCQ290Q - # Hrs/day smell tobacco smoke at work
  • OCQ370 - Check Item
  • OCQ380 - Main reason did not work last week
  • OCD390G - Kind of work you have done the longest
  • OCD392 - Occupation group code: longest job
  • OCD395 - Duration of longest job (months)
• Appendix A
• Appendix B

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

2005-2006 Data Documentation, Codebook, and Frequencies

Occupation (OCQ_D)

Data File: OCQ_D.xpt

First Published: December 2011

Last Revised: April 2013

Component Description

The Occupation Questionnaire Section (prefix OCQ; questions OCD150 to OCD395) contains personal interview data on employment and variables relating to the work environment.

OCQ Section Topics: 

• Data for Sample Person’s Current Job (OCD231-OCD270): weekly hours worked, public vs. private sector, industry and occupation group codes, duration of employment, and workshift data (usual work schedule). 
• Exposure to Workplace Tobacco Smoke at the Current Job (OCQ290G/OCQ290Q)
• Data for the Sample Person’s Longest Job (OCD390G-OCD 395): occupation group codes, duration of employment.

Eligible Sample

In the 2005-2006 survey, the OCQ Questionnaire was administered to survey participants 16+ years of age.

Interview Setting and Mode of Administration

These questions were asked, in the home, by trained interviewers using the Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) system. Persons 16 years of age and older and emancipated minors were interviewed directly.

Quality Assurance & Quality Control

The CAPI system is programmed with built-in consistency checks to reduce data entry errors. CAPI also uses online help screens to assist interviewers in defining key terms used in the questionnaire. During the 2005-2006 data collection cycle, periodic QC checks were performed on the Occupation questionnaire data being collected and interviewer specific feedback and retraining was performed as appropriate.

Data Processing and Editing

A subject’s questionnaire interview responses were entered into a pentop computer and then uploaded into a computerized database in the same manner as other sections of the Sample Person Questionnaire. The data was then edited for completeness, consistency, and illogical values.

Analytic Notes

In general, analysts are advised to carefully review the question wording in the OCQ codebook also to make sure they understand question skip patterns and the definitions employed for Occupation-related variables. Many OCQ questions need to be considered as an integral part of data collection for other Questionnaire sections, Exam or Laboratory Components.

Current Job Information:

The primary focus of the OCQ Questionnaire is data collection for the participant’s work within the previous week, i.e. the participant’s Current Job. The participant’s Current Job is defined as the main paid job worked within the last week, including work on a family farm. When an individual currently worked multiple jobs, the participant was asked to designate one main job for the interview. Data collected included: 

• The Number of Hours Worked Last Week- All Jobs 
• Whether the Participant Usually Works 35 or More Hours/Week 
• Sector Of Employment (Private, Public) 
• Number Of Months Worked on the Current, Main Job 
• The Main Reason The Participant Did Not Work Last Week (If not working) 
• A History of Workplace Tobacco Smoke Exposure
• The Participant's Usual Work Schedule/Workshift
• Industry & Occupation Group code data (OCD231, OCD241).

Data on Workplace Tobacco Smoke Exposure:

In NHANES, data for exposure to workplace tobacco smoke is collected only for the participant’s Current Job. Exposure to tobacco smoke is defined as whether the participant can smell tobacco smoke at work. Also collected is the number of hours/day of workplace tobacco exposure (OCQ290Q). A value of “0” in OCQ290Q signifies that workplace exposure to tobacco smoke occurred, but was less than one hour per day. These OCQ questions are logically related to SMQ Questionnaire data and laboratory data for serum cotinine.

Longest Job Information:

By design, the survey collected data on both industry and occupation for a subject’s current job, but only data on occupation and duration of employment was collected for the subject’s longest job. Therefore industry information is not available for the participant’s designated longest job. Some industry information is available in instances where the longest job is the same as the current job, or was the armed forces (OCD390G=2 or 3). Also, in some instances industry for the longest job can be inferred from nature of the Sample Person’s longest occupation. The occupational group code data for a sample person’s longest held job is the variable OCD392.

Industry & Occupation Coding:

The U.S. Census Bureau’s year 2000 version of its Occupation and Industry coding system were used to code the NHANES 2005-06 occupation and industry data (U.S. Census, 2012a). Group code variables are provided that classify a NHANES sample person to one of 22 industry groups and to one of 23 occupation groups. The previously public released NHANES 1999-2004 occupation and industry group code data was based on the earlier 1990 version of the U.S. Census Bureau occupational data coding system which is not comparable to the 2000 coding system in all respects. Data analysts who wish to combine the NHANES 1999-2004 occupation group code data with the NHANES 2005-06 occupation group code data should consult the U.S. Census Bureau’s literature on the comparability of the these 2 versions of the Census Bureau’s occupation coding system before performing their analyses (U.S. Census, 2012b).

Appendix A provides SAS™ program format statements useful for formatting the NHANES 2005-06 occupation and industry group code data. Appendix B provides tables showing the detailed U.S. Census occupation and industry source codes used in creating the NHANES 2005-06 occupation and industry group codes.

NHANES1999+ is a survey of the U.S. civilian, non-institutionalized population, therefore by definition persons whose current job is in the active military service are not chosen as sample persons, however sample persons may be in the military reserves or National Guard. Also, military occupation codes are pertinent to the sample person’s longest held occupation data. If a specific civilian occupational title is given in the interview coded for the military service as the longest held job, then it is coded as such. For example “aircraft mechanic” or “electronic technician.” However all other specific military occupations are coded according to rank: i.e. military enlisted personnel, first-line enlisted military supervisors, or military officers.

The OCQ data were collected as part of the household questionnaire and therefore the full sample NHANES interview weights should be used for statistical analysis. However, if the OCQ data are merged with the MEC examination or laboratory data, then exam sample weights should be used for analyses.

Please refer to the NHANES Analytic Guidelines and the on-line NHANES Tutorial for further details on the use of sample weights and other analytic issues.

Additional bibliographic resource material is available for other NHANES and National Center for Health Statistics Occupation datasets (Wagener 1993).

Related Datasets:

There are occupation-related items in the NHANES Physical Functioning questionnaire (PFQ.049; PFQ.051) and a question on veteran's/military service in the Demographics data file (DEMO_D: DMQMILIT ).

Codebook and Frequencies