Longitudinal Studies

Question 1

What is a longitudinal study?

Answer 1

Longitudinal studies employ continuous or repeated measures to follow particular individuals over prolonged periods of time

Question 2

How long do longitudinal studies take?

Answer 2

Weeks, months, years or decades

Question 3

What are the group of people recuited at the same time in a longitudinal study called?

Answer 3

A cohort

Question 4

What type of people would a cohort in a longitudinal study consist of?

Answer 4

People of a same age or people who start treatment together

Question 5

What is the data at the start of a longitudinal study called?

Answer 5

Baseline data

Question 6

What are the several “check points” called over the period of the longitudinal study called?

Answer 6

Test points

Question 7

What is the data collected at the end of a longitudinal study called?

Answer 7

Final test point

Question 8

What are the 2 types of longitudianl designs?

Answer 8

• Retrospective (or historic) studies
• Prospective studies

Question 9

What is retrospective studies?

Answer 9

They take a cohort who all ended up in the same way (eg developing sz) then “work back” through their lives to identify factors in the past that might have caused this

Question 10

What are prospective studies?

Answer 10

They take a cohort who dont have anything special in common and follow them to see if they start differing from each other “into the future”

Question 11

What is an example of a longitudinal study that is happening at the moment?

Answer 11

Children of the 90s project

Question 12

What is the world’s longest running longitudinal study?

Answer 12

Gentics Studies of Genius
Supposed to prove that IQ would predict great succes in life
Hard to say if it was IQ that shaped their life or scoial changes as ppts lived through the great depression and ww2

Question 13

What is sample attrition?

Answer 13

Is when the sampl gets smaller because poeple are “dropping out” of a study

Question 14

What are some reason for sample attrition?

Answer 14

Participants move away (and leave no forwarding address)
Participants get bored of taking part
Children grow up and stop consenting to take part
Participants emigrate
Personal problems (emotional, financial, psychiatric) get in the way of participating
Participants go to prison or into hospital or become homeless
Participants die

Question 15

Why is sample attrition a problem?

Answer 15

The ppts who drop out are usually seen as the interesting ones. Respectable, law-abiding and mentally stable people with good health and their own homes tend to stay in studies; people with chaotic home life, mental health issues, criminal backgrounds or dangerous lifestyles tend to drop out.

Question 16

What are some strengths of longitudinal studies?

Answer 16

• the same group of ppts is followed throughout the entire study, so ppt variables do not affect the data collected
  -these studies are the best way of spotting developmental trends as they repeat tests as refular intercals and compar the findings

Question 17

What are weaknesses of longitudinal studies?

Answer 17

• Certain ppts from the group may move away or wish to no longer participate, which disrupts the study
  -Withdrawal of ppts also means if remaining ppts share a characteristic, findings are biased
• there are a number of practical difficulties with longitudinal studies: they can be expensive, they’re very time consuming and the data collection and analysis can vary in its strength if the researchers change over time