National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health
The original purpose of the Add Health study was to help understand the causes of adolescent health and health behavior with special emphasis on the effects of multiple contexts of adolescent life.
The cohort was then followed through their transition to adulthood and research turned to understanding the determinants and consequences of developmental and health trajectories from adolescence into adulthood.
Overview
- Acronym
- Add Health
- Website
- Add Health
- Investigators
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- Contacts
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General Design
- Study design
- Cohort
- Start - End Year
- 1994 -
- General Information on Follow Up (profile, frequency)
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After the in-school survey in 1994-1995, the participants were sampled and followed-up with an in-home interview in 1995, 1996, 2001-2002 and 2007-2008.
- Recruitment Target
-
- Individuals
- Number of Participants
- 20,745
- Number of Participants with Biological Samples
- 20,745
- Supplementary Information
-
Number of participants refers to wave I.
Access
Availability of data and biosamples
| Possible Access to Data | |
| Possible Access to Biosamples | |
| Other |
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Marker Paper
Resnick MD, Bearman PS, Blum RW, et al. Protecting adolescents from harm. Findings from the National Longitudinal Study on Adolescent Health. JAMA, 1997; 278(10): 823-32.
PUBMED 9293990Supplementary Information
Detailed information about the study design here: http://www.cpc.unc.edu/projects/addhealth/design
Timeline
Populations
The participants were administrators from participating schools.
Selection Criteria
- Countries
-
- United States of America
Sources of Recruitment
- Specific Population
-
-
Other specific population :
Administrators of selected high schools.
-
Other specific population :
- Supplementary Information
-
Systematic sampling methods and implicit stratification ensured that the 80 high schools selected are representative of US schools with respect to region of country, urbanicity, size, type and ethnicity.
Sample Size
- Number of Participants
- 144
- Supplementary Information about selection criteria
-
Wave 1: 144 participants
Wave 2: 128 participants
Data Collection Events
| # | Name | Data sources | Data sources - Biosamples | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Add Health - School Administrators - Wave I |
|
1994 (September) | 1995 (April) | |
| 1 | Add Health - School Administrators - Wave II |
|
1996 (April) | 1996 (June) |
The participants were all adolescents in grades 7-12 in the United States in 1994-1995.
Selection Criteria
- Countries
-
- United States of America
- Other Criteria
-
Participants had to be in 7th to 12th grade.
Sources of Recruitment
- Specific Population
-
-
Other specific population :
Adolescents attending the selected high schools.
-
Other specific population :
- Supplementary Information
-
Systematic sampling methods and implicit stratification ensured that the 80 high schools selected are representative of US schools with respect to region of country, urbanicity, size, type and ethnicity.
Sample Size
- Number of Participants
- 20,745
- Number of Participants with Biological Samples
- 20,745
- Supplementary Information about selection criteria
-
Wave 1: 20 745 participants (in-school questionnaire: 90 118 participants)
Wave 2: 14 738 participants
Wave 3: 15 197 participants
Wave 4: 15 701 participants
Data Collection Events
| # | Name | Data sources | Data sources - Biosamples | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Add Health - Adolescents - Wave I |
|
1994 (September) | 1995 (December) | |
| 1 | Add Health - Adolescents - Wave II |
|
1996 (April) | 1996 (August) | |
| 2 | Add Health - Adolescents - Wave III |
|
|
2001 (July) | 2002 (April) |
| 3 | Add Health - Adolescents - Wave IV |
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|
2008 (January) | 2009 (January) |
| 4 | Add Health - Adolescents - Wave V |
|
|
2015 (November) | 2018 (December) |
The participants were parents of the adolescents enrolled in the study.
Selection Criteria
- Countries
-
- United States of America
Sources of Recruitment
- Specific Population
-
-
Other specific population :
Parents of the selected participants.
-
Other specific population :
Sample Size
- Number of Participants
- 17,670
Data Collection Events
| # | Name | Data sources | Data sources - Biosamples | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Add Health - Parents - Wave I |
|
1995 (April) | 1995 (December) | |
| 1 | Add Health - Parents - Phase I |
|
2015 (July) | 2018 (June) |
The participants were partners of the adolescents sample recruited for the study.
Selection Criteria
- Minimum age
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18
- Countries
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- United States of America
- Other Criteria
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Criteria required that a partner be current, of the opposite sex, at least 18 years old, and in a relationship with the original Add Health participant for at least three months.
Sources of Recruitment
- Specific Population
-
-
Other specific population :
Original Add Health participants' partners.
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Other specific population :
- Supplementary Information
-
Recruitment was determined by a computer algorithm that evaluated the relationship history provided by a respondent.
Sample Size
- Number of Participants
- 1,507
Data Collection Events
| # | Name | Data sources | Data sources - Biosamples | Start | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Add Health - Partners - Wave III |
|
2001 (August) | 2002 (April) |
Participating Studies
| Acronym | Name | Study design | Countries |
|---|
Harmonization Initiatives Included
| Acronym | Name |
|---|
Datasets
| Name | Data Collection Events | Variables |
|---|
Areas of Information Collected
- Socio-demographic and economic characteristics
- Death
- Lifestyle and behaviours
- Physical measures and assessments
- Birth, pregnancy and reproductive health history
- Laboratory measures
- Perception of health, quality of life, development and functional limitations
- Cognition, personality and psychological measures and assessments
- Diseases
- Life events, life plans, beliefs and values
- Symptoms and signs
- Preschool, school and work life
- Medication and supplements
- Social environment and relationships
- Non-pharmacological interventions
- Physical environment
- Health and community care services utilization
- Administrative information
Variables Content Summary
Areas of Information Collected
Areas of Information Collected per per Population and Data Collection Event
Networks
| Acronym | Name | Harmonization Initiatives | Individual Studies |
|---|