ABSTRACT

The longitudinal Belfast Youth Development Study (BYDS) followed a group of young people from age 11 to 21 years (from 2001 to 2011), charting their experiences of substance use, offending, education, and peer and family relationships. This allowed the investigation of risk and protective factors associated with different types of behavioural patterns and outcomes in adolescence and emerging adulthood. A feasibility study was carried out from 2018 to 2019 to test the success rate of electronically tracing 4,195 participants after almost a decade, in anticipation of carrying out an additional wave of data collection. The projected trace rate obtained using standard and forensic electronic tracing methods was considerably higher (86%) than traditional tracing methods (10%) for getting up-to-date contact details on participants. The electronic tracing methods were also cheaper (£9.72 per person traced) than traditional tracing methods (£20.62 per person traced). These findings will help maximise the potential of longitudinal social research.

摘要

纵向贝尔法斯特青年发展研究 (BYDS) 跟踪了一组 11 至 21 岁（从 2001 年至 2011 年）的年轻人，记录了他们在药物使用、犯罪、教育以及同伴和家庭关系方面的经历。这允许调查与青春期和成年期不同类型的行为模式和结果相关的风险和保护因素。2018 年至 2019 年进行了一项可行性研究，以测试近十年后以电子方式追踪 4,195 名参与者的成功率，以期进行另一波数据收集。在获取参与者的最新联系方式方面，使用标准和法医电子追踪方法获得的预计追踪率（86%）远高于传统追踪方法（10%）。电子追踪方法也比传统追踪方法（每人追踪 20.62 英镑）便宜（每人追踪 9.72 英镑）。这些发现将有助于最大限度地发挥纵向社会研究的潜力。