Metadata for Long standing Large Scale Social Science Surveys | Apply Online

FAQs: NSF Funding Opportunity 11-583 (Metadata Infrastructure for ANES, GSS, and PSID)

What is this NSF funding opportunity about?

This National Science Foundation (NSF) grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number 11-583) supports projects that improve the metadata infrastructure for three major U.S. social science surveys: the American National Election Studies (ANES), the General Social Survey (GSS), and the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). The focus is on modernizing and standardizing the "data about the data" so people can find, understand, compare, and analyze these long-running surveys more easily over time.

Which surveys are specifically included?

The solicitation targets metadata infrastructure improvements for:

• American National Election Studies (ANES)
• General Social Survey (GSS)
• Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID)

Why is NSF emphasizing metadata rather than new data collection?

The solicitation is motivated by the idea that the value of these surveys is not only in collecting responses, but also in how effectively the data can be discovered, interpreted, and used. High-quality dissemination depends on high-quality metadata, including documentation that clearly describes variables, survey instruments, processing decisions, and how each wave of data was produced.

What problem is NSF trying to solve with this program?

Across decades of data collection, ANES, GSS, and PSID have accumulated large amounts of metadata (such as codebooks, technical documentation, survey instruments, and fielding notes) stored in inconsistent and often outdated formats, ranging from paper records to scanned PDFs and older digital files. Because the metadata are scattered and not structured for modern use, it can be difficult to use early (legacy) waves, time-consuming to learn variable meaning and structure, and harder to do cross-survey or interdisciplinary work.

What kinds of metadata does the solicitation reference?

The opportunity describes metadata such as technical documentation, codebooks, survey instruments, fielding notes, and other materials that explain how each wave of survey data was produced and how variables should be understood.

How old are these surveys, and why does that matter for metadata?

The solicitation notes that these studies began in different eras: ANES in 1948, PSID in 1968, and GSS in 1972. Because documentation practices and storage technologies changed over time, older metadata may exist as paper records or scans and may not align with modern expectations for structured, interoperable documentation.

What is meant by "modernizing" or "standardizing" metadata in this program?

Based on the description provided, modernizing and standardizing means creating tools and workflows that convert inconsistent, fragmented documentation into structured, reusable forms that support modern search, analysis, and interoperability. The objective is to make metadata more consistent across waves and more compatible with current and future dissemination practices.

What is meant by "machine-actionable" or "well-structured" metadata in this context?

The solicitation highlights the need for metadata that is structured in ways that support modern search, analysis, and interoperability. In practical terms, this points to documentation that can be systematically queried, compared across time, and integrated into workflows, rather than being locked in scattered narrative documents or static scans.

What are the main types of work NSF is looking for under this solicitation?

The solicitation emphasizes two complementary tracks:

1. Improve metadata capture for future waves: Build processes so that as new survey waves are produced, documentation is created in structured, reusable forms from the start.
2. Retrofit legacy metadata: Migrate older documentation into formats and schemas aligned with current and future practices so that decades of accumulated metadata become compatible and easier to use.

What does "retrofitting" legacy metadata mean here?

Retrofitting means migrating or converting older metadata (including documentation created in earlier technological eras) into formats and structures that align with modern dissemination and interoperability needs. The goal is to reduce the friction involved in using older waves and to make documentation compatible across time.

What outcomes is NSF trying to enable for users of ANES, GSS, and PSID?

The solicitation frames the goal as making it easier to discover, interpret, and reuse the full time series of these surveys. That includes helping users understand variable definitions, track changes over time, and perform within-survey and cross-survey analyses with fewer errors and less time spent deciphering documentation.

Who benefits from improvements to this metadata infrastructure?

The solicitation describes these surveys as core research infrastructure used widely across academia and beyond. Beneficiaries include researchers, interdisciplinary teams seeking to combine or compare studies, educators, and members of the public who use the data to understand trends in elections, social attitudes, and family and economic well-being.

Why does the solicitation say legacy waves can be hard to use?

It explains that older documentation is often inconsistent and not structured for modern use. This can make early waves harder to discover and interpret, requiring researchers to spend substantial time learning variable meaning and history before they can analyze the data correctly.

How does this opportunity relate to interdisciplinary or cross-survey research?

The solicitation notes that fragmented and inconsistent metadata creates barriers to interdisciplinary research, particularly work that would combine or compare information across two or more of these landmark studies. Standardized metadata is intended to reduce those barriers.

What is the funding type and category for this opportunity?

This is described as a discretionary NSF grant in the Science and Technology/Research and Development category.

How much total funding is expected under this solicitation?

The estimated total funding level is $1,000,000.

How many awards does NSF expect to make?

The solicitation indicates an expectation of making about two awards.

Are there specific CFDA numbers associated with this opportunity?

Yes. The opportunity lists CFDA numbers 47.075 (Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences) and 47.080 (Office of Cyberinfrastructure), indicating the work sits at the intersection of social science research infrastructure and data/cyberinfrastructure.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity states there is no cost sharing or matching requirement.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is listed as unrestricted (open to any type of entity), subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full announcement.

When was this opportunity posted, and what was the deadline?

The posting date was September 1, 2011, and the full proposal deadline was January 31, 2012.

What is the broader purpose or rationale of the solicitation?

The solicitation is described as an investment in a crucial but less visible layer of research infrastructure: standardized, well-preserved metadata that makes decades of foundational survey data easier to discover, understand, and use for contemporary research and public understanding.