State codes

Please pay attention to the state codes you are inputting. When you finish inputting a manuscript line, look over what you typed. Make sure the data in the fields makes sense. The cleaners are noticing a lot of incorrect state codes. They don't check every state code. If it seems like a reasonable place for a person in our sample to be born, then they won't check it. So, please review your work. It only takes a few seconds.

Here are some of the recent mistakes:

• New York is NY not NT (Northwest Territories)
• Illinois is IL not UK
• Virginia is VA not VI (this mistake is extra disappointing, since most of the inputters live in or previously lived in Virginia)

Here are some tips:

• DO NOT make up state codes. Look it up in your manual. If a code doesn't exist, type the location in the remarks.
• Pay attention to where your fingers are on the keyboard. NT and UK in the examples above are probably because the inputter had her fingers in the wrong place on the keyboard.
• Review your work. That means, look at what you just typed. If you had accidentally typed UK when you meant IL, that would jump out at you.

We would like our data to be as accurate as possible. The cleaners can't catch everything, and sometimes a user needs raw/uncleaned data. So, please do your best to type in the correct state code.

Feel free to review previous posts about state codes.