NATIONAL LONGITUDINAL SURVEY OF YOUTH 1979 (YLSY79)

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute Of Child Health & Human Development

Investigators

Abstract

STATEMENT OF WORK The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) Is a nationally representative sample of men and women who were born in the years 1957 to 1964 and living in the United States when the survey began in 1979. The sample members were ages 14 to 22 during the first round of data collection. A primary focus of the NLSY79 is labor force behavior, but the content of the survey Is considerably broader. The NLSY79 includes questions on educational attainment, training, income and assets, participation in government programs, health, workplace injuries, insurance coverage, alcohol and drug use, sexual activity, marital and fertility histories, and other topics. The NLSY79 was conducted annually from 1979 through 1994 and has been conducted biennially since 1994. The original sample included supplemental samples of blacks, Hispanics, economically disadvantaged nonblack/ non-Hispanics, and youths in the military. The military supplemental sample was discontinued after the 1984 survey, and the economically disadvantaged nonblack/non-Hispanic supplemental sample was discontinued after the 1990 survey. Since 1986, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) also has conducted a study of all children born to female NLSY79 respondents. The survey is called the NLSY79 Child and Young Adult survey (NLSY79 CYA) and has been sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD). In concert with the NLSY79 CYA, NICHO also sponsors several questions within the main NLSY79 survey dealing with children and fertility issues. Round 28 (R2B) of the NLSY79 CYA will interview children and young adults ages 12 to 24 and Include many questions modeled on the NLSY79 questionnaire focusing on employment, schooling, family, and social life. Beginning in 1999, participants in the NLSY79 CYA who reached the age of 21 by December of the survey year were transferred to a separate survey, the NLSY79 Young Adult survey of members over age 20 (NLSY79 YA). This round, the NLSY79 YA survey will interview young adults over age 24; the NLSY79 CYA will interview all those 24 years old and under. The Center for Human Resource Research (CHRR) at the Ohio State University (OSU) will conduct the NLSY79 YA under NICHD peer-reviewed grant HD037078. The NLSY79 YA survey, though funded by a grant remains a BLS survey and will be conducted under a formal letter of agreement with OSU. The NLSY79 YA will be fielded in conjunction with the main NLSY79 survey and the NLSY79 CYA, and is reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget (0MB) as part of the same clearance package as the main NLSY79 and the NLSY79 CYA. This agreement provides for the transfer of funds in FY 2018 from NICHD to BLS to: (1) plan for NLSY79 CYA R28 fielding effort; (2) prepare for the NLSY79 CYA R28 fielding effort; (3) collect data on schooling, employment, family, and social life in the NLSY79 CYA; (4) collect data on fertility, child care, and related activity in the NLSY79. The estimated cost of this agreement reflects FY 2018 costs associated with tasks 1-5 listed below. TASKS: Specifically, BLS shall: 1. Conduct planning for NLSY79 CYA R28, which includes: a. Questionnaire design b. Survey Sample Management Plan c. Fielding Plan 2. Prepare survey for NLSY79 CYA R28, which includes: a. Loading the questionnaire into a CAPI/CATI system b. Preparing all relevant survey material c. Contacting sample members during the period between surveys d. Developing materials and plans for interviewer training. 3. Collect data from the child respondent on the following topics during NLSY79 CYA R28: a. Questions for children ages 12 through 24 that measure parent Interactions, depression, peer pressure, summer time use, neighborhood quality, and other aspects of social development. b. Questions for children ages 13 through 24 on sexual activity and childbirth c. Questions for children ages 15 through 24 on education, employment, training, family behavior, income, and other outcomes and interrelationships associated with human development. (Note: Age 24 is the upper age limit for NLSY79 CYA respondents covered by this agreement.) 4. Collect data from the NLSY79 respondents during R2B of the NLSY79: a. Questions asked of NLSY79 sample members on: birth history for men and women; other fertility-related behavior, including contraceptive practices; fertility expectations; education; child care during the child's first three years of life; work? related behavior; income data regarding child support; and child contact and visitation with absent parents. b. Questions of female NLSY79 respondents who have not previously reported information on pregnancies that resulted in a live birth regarding: prenatal care and health behaviors during pregnancy; alcohol, tobacco, and drug use during pregnancy; infant health measures; and breast-feeding mastery. c. Questions for female NLSY79 respondents regarding the health of their children, interactions with the other parent, and menopause. 5. Provide user services to the public for the NLSY79 CYA and NLSY79 YA on an ongoing basis.