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URL: http://www.ifs.org.uk/ELSA

Proper Citation: English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (RRID:SCR_006727)

Description: An interdisciplinary data resource on health, economic position and quality of life as people age. Longitudinal multidisciplinary data from a representative sample of the English population aged 50 and older have been collected. Both objective and subjective data are collected relating to health and disability, biological markers of disease, economic circumstance, social participation, networks and well-being. Participants are surveyed every two years to see how people''s health, economic and social circumstances may change over time. One of the study''s aims is to determine the relationships between functioning and health, social networks, resources and economic position as people plan for, move into and progress beyond retirement. It is patterned after the Health and Retirement Study, a similar study based in the United States. ELSA''s method of data collection includes face-to-face interview with respondents aged 50+; self-completion; and clinical, physical, and performance measurements (e.g., timed walk). Wave 2 added questions about quality of health care, literacy, and household consumption, and a visit by a nurse to obtain anthropometric, blood pressure, and lung function measurements, as well as saliva and blood samples, and to record results from tests of balance and muscle strength. Another new aspect of Wave 2 is the ''Exit Interview'' carried out with proxy informants to collect data about respondents who have died since Wave 1. This interview includes questions about the respondents'' physical and psychological health, the care and support they received, their memory and mood in the last year of their life, and details of what has happened to their finances after their death. Wave 3 data added questions related to mortgages and pensions. The intention is to conduct interviews every 2 years, and to have a nurse visit every 4 years. It also is envisioned that the ELSA data will ultimately be linked to available administrative data, such as death registry data, a cancer register, NHS hospital episodes data, National Insurance contributions, benefits, and tax credit records. The survey data are designed to be used for the investigation of a broad set of topics relevant to understanding the aging process. These include: * health trajectories, disability and healthy life expectancy; * the determinants of economic position in older age; * the links between economic position, physical health, cognition and mental health; * the nature and timing of retirement and post-retirement labour market activity; * household and family structure, social networks and social supports; * patterns, determinants and consequences of social, civic and cultural participation; * predictors of well-being. Current funding for ELSA will extend the panel to 12 years of study, giving significant potential for longitudinal analyses to examine causal processes. * Dates of Study: 2002-2007 * Study Features: Longitudinal, International, Anthropometric Measures * Sample Size: ** 2000-2003 (Wave 1): 12,100 ** 2004-2005 (Wave 2): 9,433 ** 2006-2007 (Wave 3): 9,771 ** 2008-2009 (Wave 4): underway Links * Economic and Social Data Service (ESDS): http://www.esds.ac.uk/longitudinal/about/overview.asp * ICPSR: http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/icpsrweb/ICPSR/studies/00139#scope-of-study

Abbreviations: ELSA

Synonyms: English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), ELSA - English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, English Longitudinal Study of Aging

Resource Type: data set, data or information resource

Keywords: middle adult human, late adult human, adult human, biological marker, direct assessment, physical impairment, interview, clinical, physical, performance, health care, literacy, household consumption, anthropometric, blood pressure, lung function, measurement, saliva, blood, balance, muscle strength, psychological health, care, support, memory, mood, longitudinal, international, health, disability, economic circumstance, social participation, well-being, behavior, family life, health care, health status, household income, income, marriage, retirement, social network