Second Duke longitudinal study

About this book

The purpose of the study was to understand normal development during the middle years as participants entered old age; to examine the process by wich individuals adapt to normative life transitions (e.g., empty nest, retirement, widowhood); and to identify the "normal" psychological, social, and biomedical changes that characterize middle and later life. It was initiated to complement features of the First Duke Longitudinal Study through the inclusion of a younger sample of late middle age adults (i.e., 46-71 years of age), through its emphasis on "adaptation" in late middle age, and through its utilization of a cross-sequential design. Conceived as a short-term longitudinal study, the study included 10 age-sex cohorts delineated by five-year age intervals ranging from 46 to 71 years of age at the start of data collection. Data were collected in four waves during a six-year period: 1968-1970, 1970-1972, 1972-1974, and 1974-1976. The sample consisted of 502 White American participants, 261 men and 241 women, ages 45 to 71 at the first wave of data collection. The sampling frame for the study consisted of enrollees from the membership lists of the major health insurance association in Durham County, North Carolina. Data collected during the initial six-year phase of the study focused on physical, psychological, and social domains. Psychological data were collected on intelligence, personality, and vigilance functioning. Social data included a set of self-report scales also related to the psychological measures. Participants were also examined and rated by a medical doctor, given various laboratory tests, and medical histories were obtained. The Murray Center holds the computer-accessible data from all four waves. Follow-up of the study participants is not permitted. Computer data may only be used at the Murray Center.