GSS (2024) — Federal spending priorities battery
https://gss.norc.org/get-the-data/ →benchmark:gss-natspend-2024
Shape mix:
15
bimodal-asymmetric
7
multimodal-symmetric
1
left-skewed
Δ 2.53
4.38
()
→ 1.85
()
within-fixture gradient
Acceptance rubric
An SSR re-run acceptably reproduces this benchmark when it clears every check below on the same 23 paired questions the source publishes. The chip badges name the checks the round-38 → round-46 shape-mismatch finding argued are necessary but not sufficient in isolation.
CI overlap
23/23
Shape match
23/23
SSR mean inside CI · shape badge reproduces the source label.
What this benchmark discloses
Recruitment screener (verbatim)
GSS uses an address-based national probability sample of U.S. adults 18+. The 2024 cross-section ran mixed-mode (in-person + web push). No content screener — every selected adult is invited regardless of policy preferences. Sampling frame and selection probability are documented in the GSS 2024 Codebook R3 (NORC).
Sample weighting & demographics
Weighted to wtssps (NORC's recommended GSS 2024 post-stratification weight, person-level). The 2024 wave fields most NATSPEND items on a split ballot: an A-version (e.g. natfare 'welfare') and a Y-version (e.g. natfarey 'assistance to the poor') reach different roughly-half subsamples, so n per item is ≈ 1,580 — except natroad / natsoc / natchld / natsci / natenrgy which run on the full sample at n ≈ 3,150–3,250.
Fieldwork dates, country, language
United States, 2024 cross-section. Fieldwork March–November 2024 per the GSS 2024 Codebook R3 (page 1). Modes: in-person and web push (push-to-web for the subsample without prior in-person contact).
Original question text & translations
Stem (codebook verbatim): "We are faced with many problems in this country, none of which can be solved easily or inexpensively. I'm going to name some of these problems, and for each one I'd like you to tell me whether you think we're spending too much money on it, too little money, or about the right amount." Each item is then read with its own short label.
Likert / scale labelling
3-point scale (codebook value labels, verbatim). 1 = "too little". 2 = "about right". 3 = "too much". Linearly remapped to the SSR 1-5 scale via f(x) = 7 − 2x so that a higher number always reads as 'we should spend more'. No 'don't know' / 'no answer' is included — those respondents drop from the variable's n.
FGI moderator guide & coding rules
Closed-ended Likert, no FGI. No moderator guide. Each respondent rates each item independently in the same wave. natmass (mass transportation) and natpark (parks) are absent from the 2024 wave and are not paired. The A/Y split ballot is left intact rather than averaged: both wordings are paired so a reader can see the wording effect directly.
Data source & license
Public domain (NSF-funded). Required citation: Davern, Michael; Bautista, Rene; Freese, Jeremy; Herd, Pamela; and Morgan, Stephen L. General Social Survey 1972-2024. NORC ed., Chicago, 2025.
Anything not disclosed here was not available in the source dataset and is recorded as such.
SSR run — reproducibility keys
- template_version
- 3.0.0
- llm_seed
- 4211
- bootstrap_seed
- 8422
- llm_model
- deepseek-v4-flash
- embedding_model
- nvidia/nv-embed-v1
SSR score vs ground truth, by question
Each row holds one question. The teal mark and range are SSR. The sky mark and range are the source FGI/survey.
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on space exploration?
SSR
—
Source
2.82 (2.75–2.89)
Source distribution
SD 1.39
skew 0.12
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on improving and protecting the environment?
SSR
—
Source
4.09 (4.03–4.16)
Source distribution
SD 1.37
skew -1.20
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on improving the nation's health?
SSR
—
Source
4.32 (4.26–4.38)
Source distribution
SD 1.22
skew -1.62
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on solving problems of big cities?
SSR
—
Source
3.76 (3.69–3.84)
Source distribution
SD 1.55
skew -0.78
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on halting the rising crime rate?
SSR
—
Source
4.26 (4.20–4.32)
Source distribution
SD 1.20
skew -1.39
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on dealing with drug addiction?
SSR
—
Source
4.20 (4.14–4.26)
Source distribution
SD 1.27
skew -1.34
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on improving the education system?
SSR
—
Source
4.38 (4.33–4.44)
Source distribution
SD 1.17
skew -1.74
3 cells
left-skewed
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on improving the conditions of Blacks?
SSR
—
Source
3.63 (3.56–3.71)
Source distribution
SD 1.43
skew -0.55
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on the military, armaments, and defense?
SSR
—
Source
3.03 (2.96–3.11)
Source distribution
SD 1.54
skew -0.03
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on foreign aid?
SSR
—
Source
1.95 (1.89–2.02)
Source distribution
SD 1.34
skew 1.08
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on welfare?
SSR
—
Source
3.04 (2.96–3.12)
Source distribution
SD 1.61
skew -0.03
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on highways and bridges?
SSR
—
Source
3.82 (3.77–3.86)
Source distribution
SD 1.35
skew -0.71
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on Social Security?
SSR
—
Source
4.09 (4.05–4.14)
Source distribution
SD 1.23
skew -1.02
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on assistance for childcare?
SSR
—
Source
4.10 (4.05–4.14)
Source distribution
SD 1.28
skew -1.10
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on supporting scientific research?
SSR
—
Source
3.57 (3.52–3.61)
Source distribution
SD 1.32
skew -0.38
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on space exploration? (Y-ballot variant)
SSR
—
Source
2.91 (2.84–2.98)
Source distribution
SD 1.38
skew 0.06
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on developing alternative energy sources?
SSR
—
Source
3.66 (3.61–3.71)
Source distribution
SD 1.46
skew -0.60
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on drug rehabilitation? (Y-ballot wording of natdrug)
SSR
—
Source
3.99 (3.92–4.05)
Source distribution
SD 1.35
skew -0.98
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on education? (Y-ballot wording of nateduc)
SSR
—
Source
4.25 (4.19–4.31)
Source distribution
SD 1.29
skew -1.49
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on assistance to Blacks? (Y-ballot wording of natrace)
SSR
—
Source
3.39 (3.31–3.47)
Source distribution
SD 1.49
skew -0.33
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on assistance to the poor? (Y-ballot wording of natfare 'welfare')
SSR
—
Source
4.23 (4.17–4.29)
Source distribution
SD 1.30
skew -1.44
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on national defense? (Y-ballot wording of natarms)
SSR
—
Source
3.15 (3.08–3.23)
Source distribution
SD 1.54
skew -0.13
3 cells
multimodal-symmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0
§
Are we spending too much, too little, or about the right amount on assistance to other countries? (Y-ballot wording of nataid)
SSR
—
Source
1.85 (1.79–1.92)
Source distribution
SD 1.31
skew 1.26
3 cells
bimodal-asymmetric
1.02.03.04.05.0