Announcements

Revised Cross-sectional Weights for the National Long Term Care Survey (NLTCS)

Some researchers have reported a problem with the cross-sectional weights on the 2004 NLTCS public use file produced by Duke University and distributed through the National Archive of Computerized Data on Aging (NACDA) at the University of Michigan.

In response, the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation/Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institute on Aging/National Institutes of Health/Department of Health and Human Services sponsored a contract with Battelle to examine the cross-sectional sample weights in the 2004 and earlier waves of the NLTCS for accuracy of weighting procedures and their implementation, and for consistency across waves. This effort resulted in the construction of what is considered to be a consistent set of cross-sectional sample weights for all waves of NLTCS except the 1982 wave. The new weights and documentation are available on the NACDA site as of February 27, 2009.

All registered users of the NACDA supported version of the NLTCS will receive updated copies of the NLTCS public use files which will include the new weights in early March of 2009. If you have an immediate need for the revised weights for publications, research, or grant applications, contact James McNally, the Director of the NACDA Program on Aging at jmcnally@umich.edu and we will expedite the delivery of the updated copy.

The NLTCS public use data is available free of charge to all interested researchers. The data use agreement to obtain the NLTCS can be obtained at the NACDA website.

Pilot Grant Proposals :: Michigan Center for Urban African American Aging Research

Requests for Pilot Grant Proposals: April 15, 2009
Michigan Center for Urban African American Aging Research (MCUAAAR)

The Michigan Center for Urban African American Aging Research is one of six research centers on minority aging funded by the National Institute on Aging. This center is jointly housed at the University of Michigan (Program for Research on Black Americans) and Wayne State University (Institute of Gerontology). One of the Center's major goals is to identify and mentor investigators who are interested in conducting research on African American elders. Collaborative pilot projects that involve faculty from more than one department, school or institute are also encouraged to apply. Proposals are sought to fund pilot projects that can serve as a foundation for larger NIH-funded projects.

1. Each proposal must contain the following information:

1. The name and contact information of each investigator.
2. Vita or NIH Biographical Sketch of each investigator.
3. Description of Proposed Research (not to exceed 6 single spaced pages, excluding references). This should include the following sections: Specific Aims, Background and Significance, Research Design.
4. Budget with budget justification.
5. Other Support.
6. Only applications in 12-point font will be accepted.

2. Proposals may involve health services or behavioral and social science research and should focus on African American elderly. Some examples of issues that may be investigated include: quality of life, stress and coping, caregiving, social support, family life, cognition, mental disorders, morbidity and mortality, health care utilization, work and retirement.

3. Faculty and research scientists/investigators are eligible to apply for this award.

4. Funds are available for the period of September 1, 2009 to August 31, 2010. Individual requests may not exceed $20,000 in total costs. Funds are not to be utilized for the support of senior faculty salaries or to purchase equipment.

5. The completed application must be received by April 15, 2009. (Applications can be submitted on Public Health Service Grant Applications Forms, but this is not a requirement.) It should be sent as a PDF attachment to an email. Proposals should be submitted to Dr. Robert Joseph Taylor (rjtaylor@umich.edu) and Minti Henderson (minti@umich.edu). Applicants will be notified by July 1, 2009.

A pdf of the RFP flyer is available.

2009-01-29

The National Social Life, Health and Aging Project (NSHAP)

NSHAP data is available for research through the NACDA Program on Aging at ICPSR. There is no Web download for the data as NSHAP is covered by a restricted-use agreement with the University of Chicago. We will be happy to send you a copy of the study, but we will require three documents:

1. A copy of your IRB approval for the use of the data in whatever project you require the data for. This will typically fall under an Exempt 4 classification for secondary data analysis.
2. A secure data storage plan which is a written description of how the NSHAP data will be stored on site and how the data will be protected from unauthorized access on your computer network.
3. A signed data use agreement, which we will supply to you when you have requirements 1 and 2 in hand.

Due to the sensitive nature of many NSHAP questions, these documents have been developed to provide essential protection for study respondents. Their completion allows NACDA to release the restricted data version of NSHAP for secondary analysis. We will be happy to answer any questions or assist when possible in the preparation of these materials.

Please contact the director of the Program on Aging at any time:
jmcnally@umich.edu
734-615-9520

Sincerely,
James McNally, Director
NACDA, Program on Aging

Recent Data Releases

Feel free to take a look at the recent updates and additions to our data archive.