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The Americans' Changing Lives (ACL) survey series is an ongoing, nationally representative, longitudinal study focusing especially on differences between Black and White Americans in middle and late life. These data constitute the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth waves in a panel survey covering a wide range of sociological, psychological, mental, and physical health items. Wave I of the study began in 1986 with a nation face-to-face survey of 3,617 adults ages 25 and up, with Black Americans and people aged 60 and over over-sampled at twice the rate of the others. Wave II constitutes face-to-face re-interviews in 1989 of those still alive. Survivors have been re-interviewed by telephone, and when necessary face-to-face, in 1994 (Wave III), 2001/02 (Wave IV), 2011 (Wave V), and 2019/21 (Wave VI).

Please note that for Wave VI, the majority of data collection occurred in 2019, with only a small subset (n=39) of participants surveyed in 2021.

ACL was designed and sought to investigate the following: (1) The ways in which a wide range of activities and social relationships that people engage in are broadly "productive," (2) how individuals adapt to acute life events and chronic stresses that threaten the maintenance of health, effective functioning, and productive activity, and (3) sociocultural variations in the nature, meaning, determinants, and consequences of productive activity and relationships. Among the topics covered are interpersonal relationships (spouse/partner, children, parents, friends), sources and levels of satisfaction, social interactions and leisure activities, traumatic life events (physical assault, serious illness, divorce, death of a loved one, financial or legal problems), perceptions of retirement, health behaviors (smoking, alcohol consumption, overweight, rest), and utilization of health care services (doctor visits, hospitalization, nursing home institutionalization, bed days). Also included are measures of physical health, psychological well-being, and indices referring to cognitive functioning.

Demographic information provided for individuals includes household composition, number of children and grandchildren, employment status, occupation and work history, income, family financial situation, religious beliefs and practices, ethnicity, race, education, sex, and region of residence.

This data collection contains the first four waves of the Iowa Youth and Families Project (IYFP), conducted in 1989, 1990, 1991, and 1992. The Iowa Youth and Families Project was developed from an initial sample of 451 7th graders from two-parent families in rural Iowa. The study was merged with the Iowa Single Parent Project (ISPP) to form the Iowa Family Transitions Project in 1994, when the target youth were seniors in high school. Survey data were collected from the target child (7th grader), a sibling within four years of age of the target child, and both parents. Field interviewers visited families at their homes on several occasions to administer questionnaires and videotape interaction tasks including family discussion tasks, family problem-solving tasks, sibling interaction tasks, and marital interaction tasks.

The Household Data files contain information about the family's financial situation, involvement in farming, and demographic information about household members.

The Parent and the Child Survey Data files contain responses to survey questions about the quality and stability of family relationships, emotional, physical, and behavioral problems of individual family members, parent-child conflict, family problem-solving skills, social and financial support from outside the home, traumatic life experiences, alcohol, drug, and tobacco use, and opinions on topics such as abortion, parenting, and gender roles. In addition, the Child Survey Data files include responses collected from the target child and his or her sibling in the study about experiences with puberty, dating, sexual activity, and risk-taking behavior.

The Problem-Solving Data files contain survey data collected from respondents about the family interactions tasks.

The Observational Data files contain the interviewers' observations collected during these tasks.

Demographic variables include sex, age, employment status, occupation, income, home ownership, religious preference, frequency of religious attendance, as well as the ages and sex of all household members and their relationship to the head of household. Demographic information collected on the parents also includes their birth order within their family, the ages and political philosophy of their parents, the sex, age, education level, and occupation of their siblings, and the country of origin of their ancestors.

In 2000, the Kentucky General Assembly passed historic early childhood legislation (Kentucky's KIDS [Kentucky Invests in Developing Success] NOW Initiative) of which a component included the development of a seamless professional development system. The professional development system includes core content, articulation, credentials, scholarships and a training framework. This comprehensive professional development system, along with other initiative components in assuring maternal and child health, supporting families, enhancing early care and education, and establishing a support structure, have moved the field of early childhood care and education forward in the state and improved child and family outcomes.

This study was designed to build on the KIDS NOW Initiative by conducting research investigating the degree to which a statewide unified professional development system impacted the educational level of early care and education providers and subsequent classroom quality. It focused on three major predictors of professional development outcomes:

1. Individual teacher characteristics, including learning readiness, education (level and type), training experience, attitudes towards training, personality (conscientiousness, self-efficacy), job satisfaction (perceptions of support)
2. Characteristics of the program administrator, including administrator education and administrator support of professional development
3. Characteristics of the teacher's work setting, including program administration, and policies and procedures, and classroom setting (Child Care, Head Start, or Public Preschool)

The impact of these three predictors was measured on two major outcomes: (a) professional development outcomes, as measured by job status, learning and transfer of learning, and (b) organizational outcomes, as measured by program quality, child outcomes and staff retention.

The research questions guiding this research were focused on determining the degree to which (1) a unified professional development framework initiated at the state level results in positive child outcomes, and (2) the educational level of early care and education providers enhances the quality of classroom environments. Specifically:

• What components of a professional development framework are more effective in encouraging and supporting individuals to remain in early care and education settings?
• What components of a professional development framework are more effective in supporting early care and education professionals in enhancing classroom quality and child outcomes?
• Are there specific factors that impact early care and education professionals' ability to participate in professional development activities at various levels?
• Does the level and intensity of professional development experiences impact classroom quality and child outcomes?
• What personnel factors have the highest impact on quality classroom environments and child outcomes?
• What is the interaction between the personnel, professional development, and program variables on classroom quality and child outcomes?

The Long Beach Longitudinal Study (LBLS) was created in 1978 to obtain normative data for the Schaie-Thurston Adult Mental Abilities Test (STAMAT). From 1994 to 2003 it was extended under the guiding principle that cognitive aging is a largely contextual phenomenon. Individual differences in abilities and change in those abilities over adulthood are associated not only with cognitive mechanisms, but with sociodemographic phenomena such as birth cohort, or gender, and within-individual characteristics, including health, affect, self-efficacy, personality, and other variables that impact health. This principle is reflected in the testing measures added to the original panel. Besides the original ability measures used by Schaie, the Life Complexity Inventory, has been included in all testing. Because these measures were included in the later generations of testing, independent and direct comparisons can be made with Seattle Longitudinal Study (ICPSR 00158) to replicate findings and to generalize longitudinal samples.

Panel 1

The initial panel was sampled in 1978 and consisted of 65 adults aged 28-33 and 518 adults aged 55-84. This sample was tested using the STAMAT, as well as a 20-item list of common English nouns for testing free recall, and a brief essay to test text recall. In 1981, 264 participants from this sample were retested, 106 were again retested from 1994-1995, and 42 in 1997. Finally, 15 participants of the original sample were tested from 2000-2002 using additional tests adopted for the creation of a second panel, described below, as well as a test for measuring executive function.

Panel 2

In 1994, a second panel of 630 participants aged 30-97, a third of which were over 80, was added to the study. The testing for this sample included multiple indices of list recall, text recall, working memory, perceptual speed, and vocabulary for structural equation modeling. Assessment of language, autobiographical memory, personality, depression, health, health behaviors and other measures were also incorporated into the study. In 1997, 352 members of this second panel were retested. From 2000-2002, 179 participants of this second panel completed the 1994-1995 measures, as well as several tests extending the battery to indices of executive function. In 2003, 133 participants were retested.

Panel 3

A third sample was recruited during the 2000-2002 time frame consisting of 911 participants aged 30-98, again approximately a third of which were over the age of 80. In 2003, 513 members of this third panel were retested.

Datasets

The data are provided in 6 datasets.

1. Panel 1 and 2 1978 - 2003 Longitudinal File

   Dataset 1 is a longitudinal file of data from Panel 1 for tests performed in 1978, 1981, 1994, 1997, and 2000-2002, and data from Panel 2 for tests performed in 1994, 1997, 2000-2002 and 2003.

2. Panels 1 and 2 1994 STAMAT File

   Dataset 2 contains the STAMAT test variables for Panels 1 and 2.

3. Panel 1 and 2 1994-2000 Master Data Longitudinal File

   Dataset 3 is a second longitudinal file containing the complete catalog of variables from Panels 1 and 2 for test performed in 1994, 1997 and 2000.

4. Panel 2 Wave 1 1994 Cross File

   Dataset 4 contains variables for the first wave of Panel 2 which took place in 1994.

5. Panel 2 Wave 2 1997 Cross File

   Dataset 5 contains variables for the second wave of Panel 2 which took place in 1997.

6. Panel 3 Wave 1 2000 Master File

   Dataset 6 contains variables from the first wave of Panel 3 which took place in 2000.

The Relationship Dynamics and Social Life (RDSL) Study aims to investigate the types of romantic relationships that produce early and/or unintended pregnancies. The study is based on a representative sample of 1,003 women aged 18 to 22 residing in Genesee County, Michigan. The research team focused on women ages 18 to 22 because these ages are characterized by the highest rates of unintended pregnancy, as well as significant instability and change in the dynamic determinants of unintended pregnancy.

Data collection for the baseline survey was conducted March 2008 through July 2009, and consisted of a 60-minute face-to-face interview to gather information on respondent attitudes and behaviors, intimate and familial relationships, contraceptive use, reproductive history, self-reported height and weight, and socio-demographic characteristics.

The baseline survey was followed by a series of three supplemental surveys administered over a two-and-a-half year period between May 2009 and August 2011. These surveys covered a wide range of topics, including family living arrangements, socioeconomic status, employment, media consumption, mental health, violence, personality traits, assumptions and knowledge regarding various forms of contraception, and attitudes and opinions about social life. The second major component of the RDSL features journal data collected concurrently with the supplemental surveys. The focus of the journal data collection was to gather dynamic, prospective measurements of pregnancy desires and contraceptive use, as well as relationship attributes such as commitment, sexual intimacy, and decision-making regarding contraception. Please consult the crosswalk to determine which level of restriction is required for research.

Demographic information collected includes respondent age, race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, marital status, education, employment status, income, and household size and composition.

The Relationship Dynamics and Social Life (RDSL) Study aims to investigate the types of romantic relationships that produce early and/or unintended pregnancies. The study is based on a representative sample of 1,003 women aged 18 to 22 residing in Genesee County, Michigan. The research team focused on women ages 18 to 22 because these ages are characterized by the highest rates of unintended pregnancy, as well as significant instability and change in the dynamic determinants of unintended pregnancy.

Data collection for the baseline survey was conducted March 2008 through July 2009, and consisted of a 60-minute face-to-face interview to gather information on respondent attitudes and behaviors, intimate and familial relationships, contraceptive use, reproductive history, and socio-demographic characteristics.

The baseline survey was followed by a series of three supplemental surveys administered over a two-and-a-half year period between May 2009 and August 2011. These surveys covered a wide range of topics, including family living arrangements, socioeconomic status, employment, media consumption, mental health, violence, personality traits, assumptions and knowledge regarding various forms of contraception, and attitudes and opinions about social life. The second major component of the RDSL features journal data collected concurrently with the supplemental surveys (please see ICPSR 34626 to access the journal component description and datasets). Please consult the crosswalk to determine which level of restriction is required for research.

Demographic information collected for the baseline and supplemental surveys includes respondent age, race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, marital status, education, employment status, income, and household size and composition.

In 2008, with funding from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), baseline survey data for the Survey of Midlife in Japan (MIDJA), April-September 2008 were collected from a probability sample of Japanese adults (N=1,027) aged 30 to 79 from the Tokyo metropolitan area (ICPSR 30822). In 2009-2010 biomarker data was obtained from a subset of these cases (ICPSR 34969).

The survey and biomarker measures obtained parallel those in a national longitudinal sample of Americans known as Midlife in the United States or MIDUS (ICPSR 2760: MIDUS 1 and ICPSR 4652: MIDUS 2). The central objective was to compare the Japanese sample (MIDJA) with the United States sample (MIDUS) to test hypotheses about the role of psychosocial factors in the health (broadly defined) of mid- and later-life adults in Japan and the United States.

In 2012, with additional support from NIA, a longitudinal follow-up of the MIDJA sample was completed. The data collection for this second wave (N=657) largely repeated the baseline assessments. The goal of the follow-up wave was to conduct comparisons of longitudinal data available from the Japanese sample (MIDJA) and the United States sample (MIDUS) to test the hypothesis about the role of psychosocial factors in predicting health changes (including biomarkers) in both cultural contexts. Cultural influences on age differences in health and well-being were also of interest.

Demographic and background information included gender, age, education, marital status, household composition, and income.