An Exploratory Analysis of the Association between Demographic Variables and More than One Race Reporting in Census 2000

Elizabeth M. Grieco, U.S. Census Bureau
Claudette Bennett, U.S. Census Bureau

The question on race from Census 2000 was different from previous censuses because it allowed respondents to select one or more races to indicate their racial identities. Little is known about the association between various demographic characteristics and the probability of reporting more than one race. This paper represents an initial analysis of the association between sex, age, Hispanic origin, and relationship to householder and more than one race reporting. It uses Census 2000 data and logistic regression to analyze the probability of reporting either one or more than one race among respondents who self-identify as White, Black or African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and Some other race. It also examines the probability of two or more race reporting among several detailed groups, such as Chinese, Samoan, and Cherokee. This paper demonstrates that the influence of the selected demographic variables on two or more race reporting varies by race.