Office of Population Research, Princeton University

The Monitoring Mt. Laurel Study

The Monitoring Mt. Laurel Study (MMLS) aims to provide information on the experiences of residents of the Ethel Lawrence Homes (ELH), a mixed income affordable housing development in Mt. Laurel, NJ, vis-à-vis a comparison sample of non-residents. It also surveys residents of the town about their opinions on affordable housing and how the construction of the Ethel Lawrence Homes has impacted the community.

Data Release

The MMLS produced four datasets:

Adult head of household sample: Residents of ELH were surveyed (n=116), as were individuals who had applied to live in the development but had not yet moved in (n=108). The dataset provides information on participants' demographic and background characteristics, exposure to neighborhood disorder, stressful life experiences, economic resources, physical and mental health, social networks, and access to transportation and local resources (e.g., doctor's office, grocery store, etc.).
Child sample: Children ages 12-17 who were currently living with the head of household were also surveyed [N(residents) = 37; N(nonresidents) = 34]. Child participants were asked questions about their academic mindsets, grades, social emotional well-being, and peer networks.
Neighbor sample: Mount Laurel residents living in communities adjacent to the Ethel Lawrence Homes were also surveyed (n=127). Residents were asked questions about their demographic and economic backgrounds, opinions on affordable housing, knowledge of the Ethel Lawrence Homes, and opinions on the well-being of the community, schools, and town.
Application records: Ethel Lawrence Homes (ELH) Application dataset consists of the application records filled out in the year 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, or 2010. This dataset has several variables on the status of the application (moved in or not, and when if moved in; rejected or not, and the reason if rejected); some socio-demographic attributes such as gender, age, marital status, and income of the applicant; as well as up to three reasons given (by the applicant) for wanting to move in to ELH. The unique ID enables merging the records with the survey data in case one wish to account for the applicant characteristics at the time they applied to ELH.

These datasets are available on a restricted basis for researchers who agree to the terms specified in the data agreement. An application to use the data can be found here.

Please contact Prof. Massey, if you have questions or comments.

References

Massey, Douglas S., Len Albright, Rebecca Casciano, Elizabeth Derickson and David Kinsey. 2013. Climbing Mount Laurel: Affordable Housing and Social Mobility in an American Suburb. Princeton University Press.
Casciano, Rebecca and Douglas S. Massey. 2012. "Neighborhood Disorder and Individual Economic Self-Sufficiency: New Evidence from a Quasi-Experimental Study." Social Science Research, 41: 802-819.
Casciano, Rebecca and Douglas S. Massey. 2012. "School Context and Educational Outcomes: Results from a Quasi-Experimental Study." Urban Affairs Review, 48(2): 180-204.
Casciano, Rebecca and Douglas S. Massey. 2012. "Neighborhood Disorder and Anxiety Symptoms: New Evidence from a Quasi- Experimental Study." Health & Place, 18: 180-190.

Citation and Acknowledgement

All manuscripts using the Mt. Laurel data should acknowledge the project's funders and cite the dataset. Users can adapt the following statement:

The data used in this publication were made available by the Office of Population Research Data Archive, Wallace Hall, 2nd Floor, Princeton University. The study entitled "Monitoring Mount Laurel: The Effects of Low Income Housing on People and Places" was conducted by Douglas S. Massey at the Office of Population Research at Princeton University with funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation under Grant 2494.

Recommended citation for data set:

Massey, Douglas S. 2010. The Monitoring Mt. Laurel Study, Adult [Child/Neighbor] Data Set. Princeton, NJ: Office of Population Research Data Archive (Producer and Distributor).