Overview

In 2004, the parents of over 10,000 children around Australia agreed to take part in Growing Up in Australia: the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC). The study is designed to identify policy opportunities for improving support for children and their families and to inform intervention and prevention strategies. This longitudinal study involves two representative cohorts of children--approximately 5,000 infants aged approximately 0 to 1 years (B or infant cohort), and 5,000 children aged 4 to 5 years (K or child cohort), when the families agreed to take part in 2004.

The study addresses a range of key questions about children's development and wellbeing. Information is collected on the children's physical health and social, cognitive and emotional development, as well as their experiences in key environments such as the family, community, child care, preschool and school settings. Information is collected via a number of methods, including:

• face-to-face interviews with parents (and children from age 6 to 7 years)
• direct assessments of the children
• telephone interviews for parents living apart from the study child
• self-complete instruments for mothers and fathers, carers and teachers
• time use diaries completed by parents about their child's activities over two 24 hour periods (during the week and on a weekend).

During 2008-09, a number of important milestones for LSAC were achieved. The third data collection wave was completed and most of the processing undertaken so that the data could be released early in the 2009-10 year. As well, a third between-wave mail survey was undertaken, with surveys sent to families in June 2009. Preparations for the fourth main wave data collection in 2010 neared completion. In 2008-09 a large number of publications and presentations using LSAC data were produced, informing a range of social policy developments. Further highlights include the screening of the Life at 3 documentary and the establishment of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the lead agencies managing LSAC over the next four waves.

Memorandum of Understanding

Throughout the first half of 2009, the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA), the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS), and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) worked on the details of an MOU outlining the roles each organisation will play for the next four waves of LSAC. The MOU builds on the strengths each organisation brings to the development, collection and analysis of LSAC data. The agencies will continue to work together with expert child development researchers and policy makers to ensure that the study delivers high quality data on children and the contexts they are growing up in.

Key responsibilities under the LSAC MOU

FaHCSIA: overall management of LSAC on behalf of the Australian Government .

AIFS: design and content of the study and preparation of research and statistical reports.

ABS: data collection and delivery, instrument development and management of the LSAC sample.

Wave 3 data

The main activity in 2008-09 was completion of Wave 3 data collection, which commenced in late March 2008 and continued until early 2009. Interviewers successfully interviewed 8,718 families: 4,386 from the B cohort (aged 4 to 5 years in Wave 3) and 4,332 from the K cohort (aged 8 to 9 years in Wave 3). This represents a response rate of 89 per cent of available participants--an excellent result when compared to similar international studies.

An important development in Wave 3 was the use of telephone interviews for parents from separated families who were not living with the study child. Further details of the Wave 3 data collection and preliminary findings are covered in pages 9-23.

With the release of Wave 3 data, researchers can for the first time compare B cohort children with K cohort children when they were the same age in Wave 1. These cross-sequential comparisons enable researchers to gain a better understanding of how the context in which children are growing up may be changing over time.

Wave 3.5 data collection

The third between-wave mail-out survey (Wave 3.5) was developed during 2008-09 and sent to parents in June 2009. This short survey focuses on key areas of children's development that change rapidly and covers use of media and technology, health, transition to school for the younger cohort, and parental involvement in learning for the older cohort.

Wave 4 development

Development of the Wave 4 data items and methodology was a major activity for 2008-09. Measures and materials were finalised and pre-testing of new content and methodologies undertaken.

Several significant methodology changes are proposed for Wave 4. While the primary data collection method of a face-to-face interview with the child's main parent will continue, other data collection methodology changes will improve data quality, response rates, and privacy. These changes will ensure time spent with families is used efficiently and effectively. Optimal use of time with families is very important as both cohorts are now at school, many families have two working parents, and children are often involved in a variety of after school activities.

• Methodology changes include:
• collection of some basic household data during an initial phone call
• introduction of a computer-assisted self-interview with the child's main parent to replace a self-complete questionnaire
• introduction of an audio computer-assisted self-interview for the K cohort children.

Research publications and dissemination

Use of LSAC data and research continued to grow during 2008-09. Over 30 conference presentations and publications were produced (see pages 41-44). In addition, website visits to the Growing Up in Australia site have increased and there continues to be strong interest in a range of study products.

Extracts from selected publications are presented on pages 24-37. The first extract summarises research undertaken by Jennifer Baxter from AIFS using Wave 1 data to explore breastfeeding and children's time use. Next, research published in FaHCSIA's Social Policy Research Paper series, and conducted by the LSAC research consortium, explores how child outcomes vary depending on family circumstances and the developmental environment. Finally, an extract from research by Annemarie Nicol from FaHCSIA uses Wave 1 data to explore the relationship between stressful events and mothers' psychological distress.

Life documentary series

The LIFE documentary series follows 11 Australian families and interviews them every two years, as in LSAC. The documentary narrates the stories of these families and presents the latest research using LSAC data. During late September and early October 2008, the second instalment for the series, Life at 3, was screened on ABC TV following a re-screening of Life at 1. Over two episodes, Life at 3 continued the stories of the original families and explored the latest findings on two of the most significant issues in child development today--obesity and bad behaviour. FaHCSIA, AIFS and members of the LSAC Consortium Advisory Group continue to provide advice on the documentary, with a new agreement established for the Life at 5 series which commenced production in mid-2009.

Data Expert Reference Group

In late 2008, the Data Expert Reference Group was established to provide data management advice for LSAC. Professor Stephen Zubrick chairs the group which is made up of representatives from FaHCSIA, AIFS, ABS, external statistical experts and an experienced LSAC data user. The group will review data management processes and provide advice on issues such as data manipulation, variable derivation, weighting and treatment of missing data. The group is scheduled to meet three times per year with the first two meetings held in February and June 2009.

Continuation of LSAC and New Key Research Questions

The continuation of the study is important for understanding the long-term outcomes of childhood experiences in the Australian context. The first eight waves will enable researchers to better understand child development trajectories from infancy to early adulthood.

To ensure the study remains relevant as study children grow older and reflects the latest child development literature and policy changes, the study's Key Research Questions (KRQs) were reviewed and substantially revised. The new questions will help guide the LSAC research agenda as study children enter and move through adolescence. The new KRQs are available on the AIFS website <http://www.aifs.gov.au/growingup/>(link is external)(Opens in a new tab/window).

A range of new content areas are being considered for investigation in the teenage years. Topics include problem behaviours, such as antisocial behaviour, substance use, depression, and eating disorders. Also on the agenda are important areas of psychosocial development, such as identity formation, life satisfaction, relationships with parents and peers, civic engagement, and transitions into, through and from secondary school.