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The 500 Family Study was designed to obtain in-depth information on middle class, dual-career families living in the United States. To understand the complex dynamics of today's families and the strategies they use to balance the demands of work and family, over 500 families from 8 cities across the United States were studied. To address different issues facing parents with older and younger children, families with adolescents and families with kindergartners were included in the sample. Working mothers and fathers are now splitting their time between their responsibilities to their family, and to their respective occupations. This study of 500 families explores how work affects the lives and well-being of parents and their children.

The study's data allows researchers to explore a broad range of questions:

• How do dual-career families manage and organize their resources and time between family and work?
• How do work conditions, including characteristics of the job and workplace environment, affect the quality of relationships among household members?
• How do dual career parents manage the moral and social development and learning experiences of their children?
• How do the work-related responsibilities of working parents affect their child's moral, social, and educational development?
• What effect is consumerism and technology having on how working families direct the moral and social development of their children?
• What do parents believe is their role regarding the child-care of their children and how they should fulfill that role both in terms of time and in the allocation of economic and social resources? What are some of the resources in the community that parents use to supervise their children?
• How do families regard the "free time" of adolescents and how they allocate adolescent "free time" in maintenance of the household?
• What is the quality of relationships among family members?

To obtain a detailed picture of work and family life, mothers, fathers, and their children were asked to complete a series of instruments including surveys, in-depth interviews, and time diaries. These instruments were designed to provide information about work, marriage, child care and parental supervision, management of household tasks, time allocations, coping strategies, and psychological well-being.

The four datasets associated with this data collection are summarized below:

1. The Cortisol Data contains information for a subsample of families that elected to participate in a study of psychological stress. Parents and teenagers who agreed to participate completed an additional two days of ESM data collection. The health survey that was administered reported on a variety of health and lifestyle issues that might affect cortisol (stress hormone) levels such as medication use, consumption of caffeine and alcohol, use of nicotine, timing of menstrual cycle, pregnancy, presence of chronic illness, and respondent's height and weight. Additionally, parents reported on the health of the children (teenagers and kindergartners) participating in the study.
2. The Experience Sampling Method (ESM) Data contains a variety of information related to how individuals spend their time, who they spent it with, and what activities they were engaged in over the course of a typical week. Respondents wore programmed wrist watches that emitted signals (beeps) throughout the day. When possible, family members were placed on identical signaling schedules to provide information on a range of family activities. At the time of each beep, participants were asked to complete a self-report form which asked them to answer a number of open-ended questions about their location, activities, who they were with, and psychological states. Several Likert and semantic-differential scales were used to assess participants' psychological states.
3. The Parent Data contains basic demographic information from respondents as well as detailed information about parents' occupation job duties, income, work schedule, benefits (e.g., medical care, flexible work schedules, and family leave), and the consequences of their jobs (e.g. long hours, job stress, having to work weekends). Additionally, the data contain information about the extent to which parents experienced work-family conflict and what changes might help with better balance of the demands of work and family (e.g., more flexible work hours, more help from spouses with household and child care responsibilities, improved child care, and after-school care arrangements). Parental attitudes toward traditional arrangements, how household tasks were actually divided among family members, and how often the family paid for services (e.g., cleaning, yard work, meal preparation) were also captured. The data also contain information about how children are socialized in families with two working parents. Topics about the frequency with which parents engaged in various activities with their children (e.g., talking, eating meals together, attending religious services), how frequently parents monitored their teenager's activities, and how often they talked with their teenager about school activities, plans for college, career plans, friendships, and peer pressure.
4. The Adolescent Data contains data for sixth through twelfth graders, which focuses on family relationships and experiences, school experiences, paid work, psychological well-being and behavioral problems, and plans for the future (e.g., college, career, and marriage -- including expectations regarding spouses' sharing of responsibility for child care, cooking, chores, and paid work). To allow for comparison of parents' and adolescents' responses to similar questions, several items appear in both the adolescent and parent data. These items include the frequency with which parents and adolescents discuss school events, college and career plans, participation in religious and other activities, gender role attitudes and the division of household tasks within the family, and items measuring depression, stress, and anxiety.

Qualitative Data -- Interviews The main purpose of the interviews was to explore topics addressed in the parent and adolescent surveys in greater detail. Parent interviews were designed to examine how working parents cope with the demands of work and family life. Adolescent interviews touched on similar themes but altered questions to gauge the adolescent's perceptions of their parents work and family lives. Kindergartner interviews were brief and focused on children's after-school and child care arrangements and time spent with parents.

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.

The Malawi Longitudinal Study of Families and Health (MLSFH) is one of very few long-standing longitudinal cohort studies in a poor Sub-Saharan African (SSA) context. It provides a record of more than 25 years of demographic, socioeconomic, and health conditions in one of the world's poorest countries. Initial data collection began in 1998 under the Malawi Diffusion and Ideational Change Project (MDICP) to examine social networks and fertility decisions among married women and their husbands. While this initial study population is still followed, the scope of the project and population expanded to a broader focus on social and contextual determinants of health across the lifecourse in Malawi.

This collection includes Rounds 1 through 9 of the MLSFH, as well as supplemental data collections from Sexual Diaries, Migration Follow-Ups (MHM), a Biomarker Survey, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE), and a Benefits of Knowledge Intervention Survey. The MLSFH Data web page contains additional information and cohort profiles for all MLSFH data collections, including those not made available through ICPSR-DSDR.

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.

The Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS) is a long-term study of a random sample of 10,317 men and women who graduated from Wisconsin high schools in 1957. The WLS provides an opportunity to study the life course, intergenerational transfers and relationships, family functioning, physical and mental health and well-being, and morbidity and mortality from late adolescence through 2025. WLS data also cover social background, youthful aspirations, schooling, military service, labor market experiences, family characteristics and events, social participation, psychological characteristics and retirement.

Survey data were collected from the original respondents (the graduates) in 1957, 1964, 1975, 1992, 2004, 2011, 2020 and 2022; from their parents in 1957 and 1964; from a selected sibling in 1977, 1994, 2005, 2011, 2020 and 2022; from the spouse of the original respondent in 2004; and from the spouse of the selected sibling in 2006.

The collection of cognitive function data among graduates and siblings under the ILIAD study (MPIS: Sanjay Asthana, Michal Engelman, and Pamela Herd) began in 2020 to measure risk and resilience of Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD) as the cohort reaches their 80s. Data from 2020 and 2022 have been released, and 2025 and 2027 wave releases are forthcoming.

The WLS also has extensive administrative linkages, including with the 1940 and 1950 census, Social Security records, voting participation, and Medicare claims data.

The Youth Development Study (YDS) was initiated as a school-based study of adolescent children and their parents to examine the consequences of formative experiences in adolescence for mental health, value formation, educational achievement, and multiple facets of behavioral adjustment. Particular attention was directed to the impacts of early work experience. Data were also obtained about parent-child and peer relationships and experiences in school. As the study continued, the focus shifted to adult development and attainment and, most recently, mid-life adjustment and health. This comprehensive longitudinal study now encompasses three generations: the initial cohort studied from adolescence to mid-life (G2), their parents (G1), and their adolescent children (G3). Data from three generations in the same families enable study of intergenerational relationships and differences in the experience of adolescence and transition to adulthood across parent and child cohorts. The YDS covers a wide range of topics of interest to sociologists, social psychologists, developmental psychologists, and life course scholars, including the development and impacts of agentic resources, socioeconomic attainment, processes of inter- and intra-generational mobility, objective and subjective work conditions, family relationships, intergenerational relationships, mental and physical health, and well-being.

In-school administration of paper surveys during the first four years of the study was supplemented by mailed surveys. Subsequent data collection took place entirely by mail, with 19 surveys conducted between 1988 and 2011. A final survey was conducted on-line in 2019. Survey data was obtained from the parents (G1) of this cohort during the first and fourth waves of the study (1988 and 1991). Surveys of the children (G3) began in 2009, continued in 2010 and 2011 (by mail) and in 2019-2020 (online).

The Youth Development Study measures a wide range of formative experiences and both psychological and behavioral variables, using survey methodology.

The G1 surveys obtained information about socioeconomic background as well as attitudes toward teenage employment, the parents' own employment as teenagers, their current work experiences, and educational expectations for their children.

The G2 surveys during the high school years included detailed questions about students' work and volunteer experiences, as well as experiences in their family, school, and peer groups, with an emphasis on the ways that working affected other life domains, mental health, and well-being. Shorter surveys containing many of the same topics were administered to students in 1992, 1993, and 1994, and included questions about current family and living arrangements. In 1995, a full survey was administered covering the wide range of topics included in previous surveys as well as information about career plans and life events that had occurred in the past five years. G2 Waves 9 through 19 (1997-2011) included many of the same questions contained in earlier surveys and additional sections that focused on the respondents' educational experiences, family relationships, sources of living expenses, and health and well-being. The most recent G2 survey (2019), administered on-line, included questions about support of aging parents. The YDS is unique in its coverage of both objective and subjective work experiences from adolescence to mid-life.

The topics covered by the G3 surveys are very similar to the G2 variables described above. Variables in each G2 and G3 wave are included in cross-wave codebooks, available at the Data Archive Codebook website.

For an overview of the Youth Development Study, see Mortimer, Jeylan T. (2012) "The Evolution, Contributions, and Prospects of the Youth Development Study: An Investigation in Life Course Social Psychology." Social Psychology Quarterly 75(1, March):5-27.