| Research Design: |
Project on Human Development in Chicago
Neighborhoods
The city of Chicago was selected as the research site for the PHDCN
because of its extensive racial, ethnic, and social-class diversity.
The project collapsed 847 census tracts in the city of Chicago into
343 neighborhood clusters (NCs) based upon seven groupings of
racial/ethnic composition and three levels of socioeconomic status.
The NCs were designed to be ecologically meaningful. They were
composed of geographically contiguous census tracts and geographic
boundaries, and knowledge of Chicago's neighborhoods were considered
in the definition of the NCs. Each NC was comprised of approximately
8,000 people.
Longitudinal Cohort Study
For the Longitudinal Cohort Study, a stratified probability sample
of 80 neighborhoods was selected. The 80 NCs were sampled from the 21
strata (seven racial/ethnic groups by three socioeconomic levels) with
the goal of representing the 21 cells as equally as possible to
eliminate the confounding between racial/ethnic mix and socioeconomic
status. Once the 80 NCs were chosen, then block groups were selected
at random within each of the sample neighborhoods. A complete listing
of dwelling units was collected for all sampled block groups.
Pregnant women, children, and young adults in seven age cohorts
(birth, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 years) were identified through
in-person screening of approximately 40,000 dwelling units within the
80 NCs. The screening response rate was 80 percent. Children within
six months of the birthday that qualified them for the sample were
selected for inclusion in the Longitudinal Cohort Study. A total of
8,347 participants were identified through the screening. Of the
eligible study participants, 6,228 were interviewed.
For all cohorts except 0 and 18, primary caregivers as well as the
child were interviewed. The primary caregiver was the person found to
spend the most time taking care of the child. Separate research
assistants administered the primary caregiver interviews and the child
interviews. The primary method of data collection was face-to-face
interviewing, although participants who refused to complete the
personal interview were administered a phone interview. Interviews
were conducted in Spanish, English, and Polish. In Wave 1 the complete
protocol was translated into Spanish and Polish. An interpreter was
hired for participants who spoke a language other than English,
Spanish, or Polish. Depending on the age and wave of data collection,
participants were paid between $5 and $20 per interview. Other
incentives, such as free passes to museums, the aquarium, and monthly
drawing prizes were also included.
Interview protocols included a wide range of questions. For
example, some questions assessed impulse control and sensation-seeking
traits, cognitive and language development, leisure activities,
delinquency and substance abuse, friends' activities, and
self-perception, attitudes, and values. Caregivers were also
interviewed about family structure, parent characteristics,
parent-child relationships, parent discipline styles, family mental
health, and family history of criminal behavior and drug use.
Infant Assessment Unit
The Infant Assessment Unit was a compilation of various measures
used to evaluate the prenatal and postnatal conditions that affect the
health and cognitive development of infants during the first year of
life. Because the IAU was specifically interested in observing
infants, only subjects belonging to Cohort 0, and their primary
caregivers, participated in the IAU. The IAU utilized several measures
to assess the temperament of the infant. The first was the Kagan
Mobile Task/Latency to Grasp, which summarized various behaviors, such
as smiling and crying, as responses to novel visual stimuli. Measures
of these behaviors, including latency to grasp, were used to describe
the infant's overall temperamental disposition. A second measure
employed by the IAU to evaluate the temperament of the subjects was
the Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ). The IBQ offered the PC an
opportunity to assess the behavior of the infant with respect to six
components of infant temperament, including fear, distress to limits,
duration of orienting, soothability, activity, and laughter and
smiling. The IBQ asked the PC to make these valuations based on the
infant's behavior over the course of the two weeks leading up to the
administration of the IBQ. PC's were given three responses from which
to choose one that best described the infant's behavior. The Infant
Behavior Ratings (IBR) measure was also used to evaluate infant
temperament. The IBR rated the infant on a number of observed
behaviors and also rated the validity of the other IAU measures.
Other measures incorporated by the IAU were the Growth Assessment
Form (GAF), the Visual Recognition Memory (VRM) Paradigm, and the
Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Data. The GAF was used to
record the evolution of the subject's physical growth and development
by recording, among other things, height, weight, and body mass as
physical growth as a good proxy for overall health and nutrition. The
VRM Paradigm was included in the IAU to evaluate the subject's visual
information processing, an aspect of infant cognition correlated with
later childhood IQ and development of perceptual speed, language, and
memory. The VRM Paradigm was administered at the respondent's home and
consisted of the interviewer presenting the infant with visual
stimulus cards and observing the subject's eye movements. Various
trials were conducted, and the results were coded and recorded on a
laptop computer in addition to being videotaped. The IAU data contain
an additional VRM file that provides summary data for the various
trials conducted for the VRM Paradigm. The IDPH Data contain
information related to the PC's pregnancy. Information such as age of
mother, number of visits to the doctor, whether or not there were
complications, length of pregnancy, and baby's birth weight are all
recorded in the IDPH file.
The Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME),
Infant Day Care Screen (DCS), Maternal Social Support Index
(MSSI)/Father Involvement, Young Adult Self-Report (YASR), and
Maternal and Infant Health Survey (MIH) were administered solely to
the primary caregiver. The HOME survey was designed to evaluate the
various aspects of the subject's developmental environment that could
affect future positive or negative social behaviors. In addition, the
PHDCN version of the HOME inventory carefully assessed the various
aspects of the physical environment in which the subject lived,
including the living conditions present inside the home and the state
of the surrounding neighborhood. The DCS questionnaire recorded data
relating the details of the childcare arrangements for the subject.
The PC was asked to describe the nature (family member, babysitter,
day care) and frequency (number of days and hours) of the care
received by the subject. The PC was also asked how long the child had
been receiving the previously described care and if there were any
additional childcare programs utilized by the subject. The MSSI, an
instrument designed to evaluate the aspects of the primary caregiver's
social support, sought to obtain information regarding the division of
household tasks and responsibilities for child rearing. The MSSI also
questioned the PC with respect to his or her ability to access
transportation, interaction with other adults, and involvement in the
community. The MSSI further asked the PC to describe his or her
relationship with the subject's father, while additional questions
regarding the involvement of the subject's father or father figure
were added to the measure by the IAU research team. The YASR, a
self-administered survey, was included to obtain information on
specific aspects of the respondent's life, such as interpersonal
relationships and conflicts, tendencies toward various anti-social
behaviors, and habits regarding nonmedical drug and alcohol
consumption. The YASR also sought to identify personality traits and
behaviors that might be classified as unusual. The goal of the YASR
was to obtain an overall score for each respondent, based on the
answers provided, that could be used to make observations and
determinations regarding his or her psychological, emotional, and
behavioral health and overall quality of life. The MIH, which is an
adaptation of the National Maternal and Infant Health Survey, was
administered to each subject's biological mother. The MIH was
primarily concerned with the prenatal conditions surrounding the
subject's birth, but also collected information on the infant's
delivery and health for the first six months of life.
The IAU data also include an Assessment Debriefing File (ADF)
containing summary information for all of the instruments that formed
the IAU protocol. The ADF data records what language the IAU
instruments were administered in, whether or not a translator was
required, the amount of privacy during the administration of the
instruments, and who, if anyone, was present at the time the
instruments were administered. |
