Data collection is opportunistic. A new record is generated each time a household
visits Crossroads Community Services to receive food. Multiple records for each household
can be linked to create a longitudinal/panel data structure. On May 31st each year,
an annual set of data files is archived in the CCL Database. All data is collected
based on responses given by the household member who comes to pick up food. We refer
to this household member as the "household reporter". Each downloaded set of data
contains 5 distinct files which are linkable at the household level:
- Contact File--this file includes socio-demographic and employment information about
the household reporter and household-level information. There is one observation per
household and this information is updated every 6-12 months. When possible, information
contained in this file is validated using external documents.
- Household File--this file contains socio-demographic and employment information about
every household member, not including the household reporter. There is one observation
per household and this information is updated every 6-12 months. To the extent possible,
information contained in this file is validated using external documents (i.e. school
records for child age, etc.).
- Longitudinal File--this file contains responses to many self-report survey questions
and some measured outcomes. The longitudinal file includes all constructs measured
more frequently than every 6-12 months. This file contains the full set of responses
to each construct, thus there is more than one observation per household. Many constructs
are measured at every visit (maximum frequency is "monthly"), and others are collected
on a rotating basis. Figure 2 below describes the number of records per household
in the Longitudinal File.
- Food File--this file details the food selections of each household at each visit as
well as the foods that were available for selection. This data is collected at every
visit (maximum frequency is "monthly").
- Geoidentifiers--this file contains the residential address of households and is highly
confidential. Access to this file is restricted unless researchers can prove the ability
to maintain confidentiality and obtain approval from their Institutional Review Board.
There is one observation per household, and this information is updated every 6-12
months. Addresses are validated using rental agreements or utility bills.
Figure 2. Number of Visits per Household (May 2013-April 2017)
The CCL Database includes data about low-income households in Dallas County who receive
food from Crossroads Community Services Walk-in Pantry or one of many Community Distribution
Partners (CDP). CDPs consist of a variety of organizations that obtain food packages
from Crossroads to re-distribute to households in the communities they serve. Prior
to December 2016, data collection at CDPs was done on paper and only included those
constructs collected annually. Beginning in 2016, select CDPs began collecting the
full set of constructs using a tablet-based ClientCare data collection tool.
Table 2. Implementation of Data Collection at Community Distribution Partner Sites
Figure 3. Frequency of Households Represented in the CCL Database by Zip Code (April
2013-May 2017)
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