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P6. What is [respondent]'s age as of his/her last birthday?
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P6 Age as of last birthday

Age, sex and marital status are essential for inclusion in a census for the purposes of analyzing factors of population changes and preparing population estimates and forecasts. Information on these topics is also needed for actuarial analysis of probability of survival and other related life-table functions.

For purposes of the census, age as of last birthday refers to the interval of time between the date of birth and before May 1, 2000, expressed in completed year. Thus, ages are recorded as whole numbers, counting the whole years completed on or prior to May 1, 2000.

Determine the age of each household member by asking the respondent "What is ______'s age as of his/her last birthday?" Always ask the age of the person even if the date of birth is already given. Do not compute for the person's age from the reported date of birth. Enter the age on the space provided.

Here are some basic guidelines for your reference:

1. If during your visit, a member of the household has just celebrated his last birthday on or after May 1, 2000, then you have to report his/her age in his previous birthday. For example, a person has just celebrated his 24th birthday on May 2, 2000, the age to be reported for this person should be 23 and not 24.

2. Enter the age of every person one-year-old and over in completed years.
However, for persons less than 1 year old, enter 00. Entries on age should consist of two digits. For ages 1 to 9, prefix zero (0). For example, 02, 07, etc.

3. For persons born before 1900 (aged 100 and over), code the age as follows:

[Table is omitted]

4. Note that the examples are expressed in whole years. Do not record ages such as 7 1/2, 5 years and 2 mos., etc. Record the age according to the last birthday prior to May 1, 2000.

5. Check for inconsistencies in the ages of husband, wife and children. The respondent may have given incorrect information for one reason or another. Probe and verify further, as needed. An example is when the mother is only 15 years older than the eldest child.

6. If the exact age is not known, ask for an estimate. It may also help to ask an aged person to recall some well-known local, national or world event in the past by which his age may be associated, or if he is older or younger than some prominent persons. If all possible means have been exhausted and the respondent is unable to give the correct information, enter his best estimate.

7. There must be a report of age in P6 for every household member.
Age as of Last Birthday Conversion Table (see code book) will help you check the reported age of a person against his date of birth. Refer to this table when checking your entries on age for consistency.