Characteristics of the Mississippi Delta from the 2003, 2005 and 2007 Delta Rural Polls

DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS
OF THE MISSISSIPPI DELTA

by Alan W. Barton, Ph.D.

From the 2003, 2005 and 2007 Delta Rural Polls

Age of Respondents in

Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties
(Percent)

Age	2003	2005	2007
18 – 29	17.5	15.0	10.9
30 – 44	27.7	23.0	20.1
45 – 59	29.4	31.9	32.9
60 – 74	16.5	20.3	22.4
75+	8.9	9.7	13.7
Number of Respondents	789	980	970
Missing	12	22	24

Gender of Respondents in

Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties
(Percent)

Gender	2003	2005	2007
Female	53.7	55.2	53.8
Male	46.2	44.8	46.2
Number of Respondents	799	1000	993
Missing	2	2	1

Race of Respondents in

Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties
(Percent)

Race	2003	2005	2007
Black	62.8	62.5	62.7
White	36.6	36.4	36.6
Other	0.6	1.1	0.7
Number of Respondents	800	982	988
Missing	1	19	6

Marital Status of Respondents in

Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties
(Percent)

Marital Status	2003	2005	2007
Married/ Couple	46.1	44.2	46.0
Single/Previously Married	25.6	27.8	27.6
Single/Never Married	28.3	28.1	25.5
Number of Respondents	800	999	974
Missing	1	3	20

Educational Attainment of Respondents
in Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties
(Percent)

Educational Attainment	2003	2005	2007
High School Diploma or Less	50.5	48.2	53.1
Some College/ Associates Degree	25.3	25.6	23.3
Bachelors Degree	16.2	17.3	15.3
Graduate Degree	7.9	8.9	8.3
Number of Respondents	798	990	980
Missing	4	11	14

Employment Status of Respondents

in Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties

(Percent)

Employment Status	2003	2005	2007
Employed	62.1	61.6	55.8
Not Employed	37.9	38.4	44.2
Number of Respondents	801	1001	988
Missing	0	1	6

Total Household Income of Respondents

in Eleven Mississippi Delta Counties

(Percent)

Income	2003	2005	2007
More Than $60,000	15.6	13.5	15.1
$30,000 to $60,000	21.8	27.7	20.9
Less Than $30,000	62.5	58.8	64.0
Number of Respondents	675	766	849
Missing	126	236	145

Size of Place of Respondents’ Residence

(Percent)

Size of Place of Residence	2003	2005	2007
More Than 10,000	39.0	40.7	43.2
1,000 to 10,000	34.9	32.7	34.3
Less Than 1,000	26.1	26.6	22.5
Number of Respondents	576	742	702
Missing	225	260	292

Type of Place of Respondents’ Residence

(Percent)

Place of Residence	2003	2005	2007
Within City Limits	69.5	69.5	70.1
Outside City Limits, On a Farm	10.1	9.0	8.3
Outside City Limits, Not on a Farm	20.4	21.6	21.6
Number of Respondents	801	990	986
Missing	0	12	8

Length of Time Respondents Have Lived in the Same Community

(Percent)

Length of Time of Residence	2003	2005	2007
More Than 50 Years	15.1	14.6	19.9
Between 20 and 50 Years	43.7	42.8	40.5
Between 5 and 20 Years	28.3	27.1	26.8
Less Than 5 Years	12.9	15.5	12.7
Number of Respondents	794	987	887
Missing	7	15	107

Notes:

Data for the 2003 Delta Rural Poll were collected in October and November of 2003. A total of 809 randomly selected respondents in eleven Delta counties completed the questionnaire. Data for the 2005 Delta Rural Poll were collected in January and February of 2005, with 1,009 respondents. Data for the 2007 Delta Rural Poll were collected in January, 2007, with 1,005 respondents.

In each instance, the Delta Rural Poll surveyed residents of eleven counties in northwestern Mississippi: Bolivar, Coahoma, Humphreys, Issaquena, Leflore, Quitman, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tunica and Washington. Surveys were conducted by telephone and respondents were selected using random digit dialing techniques.

Responses were weighted using the 2000 U.S. Census as a baseline, to account for skewed gender and race characteristics.