ISER’s Director Heather Laurie writes in the Longitudinal and Life Course Studies: International Journal (Vol 2 No 1, 2011)about Understanding Society, the UK Household Longitudinal Study.
In the article, Dr Laurie talks about the background to the study, the progress that’s been made since the survey went into the field in 2009 and how researchers can now access the very first data from the survey.
- If you do not wish to sign up to the journal to read the article, you can read it in full below:
Understanding Society is the successor household panel study to the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) which ran for eighteen years from 1991 to 2008. Understanding Society, funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and a consortium of government departments, is designed to provide high quality longitudinal data to answer research and policy needs over the coming decades and represents a significant investment in the social sciences in the UK. Managed by the same team responsible for the BHPS at the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER), University of Essex, the study is being conducted to the highest standards of best practice within survey methodology and the methodology of conducting longitudinal surveys. Fieldwork is conducted by The National Centre for Social Research (NatCen).
The future of this prestigious and important study was secured with the refunding of Understanding Society in 2010 so that data collection up to and including wave 5 is now in place. In February 2011, a volume of first findings using data from the first year of the study will be published, promising just a taste of the rich and varied analysis that is possible using Understanding Society data. A Special Issue of the LLCS journal devoted to longitudinal analysis using Understanding Society and the BHPS is planned within the next twelve months marking the start of what we are sure will be a wealth of interesting and important substantive research using the data.
Understanding Society went into the field in January 2009 and began the third wave of data collection in January 2011. The key features of the design reflect its scientific rationale and are intended to generate major innovations in scientific research. The study is distinctive in having a:
- Large sample size of 40,000 households to allow more fine-grained analysis;
- Household focus with data collected on all members aged 10 and over;
- Annual interview enabling analysis of short-term and long-term dynamics of change;
- Full age range sample complementing age-focused cohort studies in the UK and providing a
unique look at behaviours and transitions in mid-life and throughout the life course; - Innovation Panel for methodological research and survey development;
- Multi-topic design to meet a wide range of disciplinary and inter-disciplinary research needs;
- Ethnic minority research agenda and inclusion of a boost sample of ethnic minority groups to
support research on ethnic diversity and commonality; - Collection of biomarkers and health indicators as a resource for research at the interface of social and biomedical sciences;
- Data linkage to administrative records and geo-coded data to provide significant new research
opportunities where the survey data can be used in combination with administrative data; - Inclusion of the BHPS sample within Understanding Society from wave 2 to enable continuing longitudinal analysis of the BHPS sample alongside the new samples.
The large sample size offers new opportunities to research sub-groups that may be too small for separate analysis on other studies, the UK-wide sample affords new avenues for comparative country, regional and geographic research, and the multi-topic design encourages inter-disciplinary approaches. The Innovation Panel is proving an invaluable resource for methodological research pushing the boundaries of knowledge within longitudinal survey methodology. An annual competition for experiments to be carried on the Innovation Panel has been established and is advertised on the Understanding Society website.
Two areas of emphasis are support for research on ethnicity and identity, and health and bio-measure collection.
Ethnic Minority Research
There has been no dedicated national survey of Britain’s main ethnic minority groups since 1994, and there has never been a panel survey in which substantial numbers of minority group members have been followed from year to year. Ethnicity has therefore been a core element of Understanding Society from the start. Ethnic diversity and disadvantage, and issues of adaptation, opportunity and inclusion, are of wide general interest and are highly salient for research and policy purposes. The ethnic minority boost sample provides a sufficiently large sample of each of five key ethnic groups to allow these groups to be analysed separately (and compared with each other). The boost is designed to achieve an additional 1,000 individual interviews from members of Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Caribbean and Black African groups. All those of mixed background are included as are other minority groups including Chinese, Turkish, other Asian and Middle Eastern.
Bio-measure collection
Understanding Society is a bio-social survey providing data that will support biomedical and social science research. The addition of bio-measures permits the examination of objective biological, anthropometric and functional measures within a large sample that spans many ages and which can be studied in a household context. The study provides information about social and economic factors that influence health status and the trajectory of health outcomes. The data will enable analysts to assess exposure to and antecedent factors of people’s current health status, give a better understanding of disease mechanisms such as gene-environment interactions, allow an assessment of household and socio-economic effects on health, as well as analyses of outcomes using direct assessments. The collection of bio-measures began during wave 2 (2010/11) and will continue throughout wave 3 (2011/12). An estimated 25,000 to 30,000 adults will have these measures.
Two types of bio-measures are being collected. The first are direct measures including height and weight, waist circumference, bio-electrical impedance, grip strength, blood pressure and pulse rate and lung function. Secondly, biological samples including whole blood, saliva, and dried blood spots. In addition to the bio-measures, wave 3 is collecting cognitive ability/functioning measures for the whole sample. Combined with the questionnaire data these data will provide a unique resource for inter-disciplinary research across the social and medical sciences.
Data availability and further information
Data from the first year of wave 1 of Understanding Society is now available. An interim set of data (14,000 of the planned 40,000 households) has been deposited with the Economic and Social Data Service. The full release of wave 1 data is scheduled for October 2011.
A twice-a-year Understanding Society e-bulletin giving updates on data release, latest research findings, training events, conferences and workshops that would be of interest to academics undertaking longitudinal research is available. Email cgarr@essex.ac.uk if you would like to receive this.
Understanding Society/BHPS Conference
A call for papers is now open for this international conference on June 30-July 1. Deadline for abstracts is March 15th 2011.