Photo of a children and a baby

Growing Up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children
www.aifs.gov.au/growingup

What's new

October 2008: Newsletter no. 21, September 2008
This edition covers the Wave 3 data collection, Wave 4 and 3.5 development, Life at 3 (second series), Australian Institute of Family Studies biennial conference, data user training, LSAC publications, Wave 2.5 data release and information of the Data Experts Group. See the September 2008 Newsletter.

October 2008: Life at 3 - premieres October 2, 8:30PM on ABC1
The Life series follows a group of children and their families using information based on Growing up in Australia: The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC).

September 2008: Research paper
How well are Australian infants and children aged 4 to 5 years doing? (FaHCSIA's Social Policy Research Paper 36), by Melissa Wake, Ann Sanson, Donna Berthelsen, Pollyanna Hardy, Sebastian Misson, Katherine Smith, Judy Ungerer and the LSAC Research Consortium.

The researchers used Wave 1 of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) dataset. The findings are broadly applicable to all Australian families with young children and directly relevant to social policy development and practice.

The key emergent themes of the analysis are:

July/August 2008: Newsletter no. 20, June 2008
This edition of the Newsletter contains a brief summary of the LSAC 2006-2007 Annual report, availablility of Wave 2.5 data, information on Wave 3 interviewer workshops and Wave 4 development, data user training and the Special LSAC edition of Family Matters. See the June 2008 Newsletter.

June 2008: 2006-07 Annual Report
The 2006-07 Annual Report on Growing Up in Australia: the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children is now available. It focuses on the Wave 2 data collection and early trends emerging from this second wave, as well as recent research findings and dissemination activities completed in the past year. It is available online through the Publications page; hard copies of the report can be obtained by contacting us by email at lsacweb@aifs.gov.au or by phone on freecall 1800 352 275.

June 2008: Wave 2.5 data
Access to Wave 2.5 data is now available. See the Data access page for details.
The Data dictionary has been updated.

March/April 2008: Newsletter no. 19, March 2008
This edition of the Newsletter contains a brief summary of the LSAC Research Conference, availablility of Wave 2 data, information on Waves 2.5, 3 and 4, and data user training. See the March 2008 Newsletter.

March 2008: Data workshop - Growing Up in Australia, the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC)

A Data Workshop will be held on Tuesday 8 July, the day prior to the AIFS conference. The focus of the training is to assist users of the data, those considering becoming users, or those who are interested in learning more about LSAC data, to gain confidence in understanding and navigating the LSAC datasets.

March 2008: Ordering LSAC Data - Release 2
Release 2 of the LSAC data is available to order, with new licensing arrangements now in place. Find out how to order Release 2 data on the Data access page.

February 2008: LSAC Research Conference Presentations available for download
The conference presentations from the Growing Up in Australia: LSAC Research Conference held on 3-4 December 2007 are now available for download from the LSAC Research Conference page.

February 2008 : Depending on the amount of interest, a one-day LSAC Data User Workshop will be held in Canberra on Thursday 21 February 2008.
Details about the workshop content and to register.

January 2008 : Technical Paper No. 5 - Wave 2 weighting and non-response
This paper by Sebastian Misson and Mark Sipthorp details the methodology used to calculate the weights for the Wave 2 sample of Growing Up in Australia.
LSAC Technical Paper No. 5

November/December 2007: Newsletter no. 18, Spring 2007
Information about the LSAC Research Conference and Data Training, how Wave 3 is progressing, Wave 2.5 between waves contact, and the 'Life at' series is in the Spring Newsletter, as well as recent publications and conference presentations using Growing Up in Australia data. See the Spring Newsletter.

October 2007: LSAC Research Conference
A number of leading researchers will be speaking at the LSAC Conference, covering a wide range of themes. Visit the LSAC Research Conference page for details.

August 2007: Newsletter no. 17, Winter 2007
Information about the forthcoming LSAC Research Conference, Wave 2 data, Wave 2.5 and Wave 3 is in this edition of the Growing Up in Australia newsletter, as well as Life at 3 production and the Life at 2 website, and details of publications using Growing Up in Australia data. See the Winter Newsletter.

August 2007: LSAC Research Conference
The inaugural Growing Up in Australia: Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) Research Conference will be held on 3-4 December 2007, in Melbourne. Submissions of papers are now being sought: closing date is 28 September 2007. Visit 2007 Longitudinal Study of Australian Children Research Conference for further information about submitting abstracts and registration.

August 2007: Technical Paper No. 4 - Children's time use in the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children: Data quality and analytical issues in the 4-year cohort
This paper by Jennifer Baxter analyses the Wave 1 children's time use diaries for the 4-5 year cohort of Growing Up in Australia. The paper demonstrates some of the ways these time use data can be used, while primarily exploring the missing data in the diaries.
LSAC Technical Paper No. 4

July 2007: Research paper
Mothers and fathers with young children: paid employment, caring and wellbeing (FaCSIA's Social Policy Research Paper 30), by Jennifer Baxter, Matthew Gray, Michael Alexander, Lyndall Strazdins and Michael Bittman is based on Wave 1 of the Longitudinal Survey of Australian Children confidentialised unit record file. The paper examines how the use of child care, the time parents spend with children, and parental wellbeing relate to parental employment.

July 2007: Wave 2 data
Applications to receive Wave 2 data are now being accepted, with Wave 2 data set to be released in August 2007. See the Data access page for details.

July 2007: Life at 2 website
The Life at 2 website provides an update on the children and their families from the Life at 1 documentary. Visit abc.net.au/life for videos, articles, activities and forums.

June 2007: Discussion Paper No. 5 - Wave 2 Data Management Issues
This paper, prepared by Sebastian Misson, presents a discussion of the data management policy and procedures for Wave 2 of Growing Up in Australia.
LSAC Discussion Paper No. 5

May 2007: A snapshot of how Australian Families spend their time
In celebration of National Families Week 2007, the Australian Institute of Family Studies has produced this Facts Sheet about how families spend their time - A snapshot of how Australian Families spend their time.

April 2007: Newsletter no. 16, Autumn 2007
The completion of Wave 2 data collection, details of Wave 3 development, and information on between waves contact, Life at 3, and presentations at upcoming conferences are available in the Autumn newsletter.

February 2007: Newsletter no. 15, December 2006 / January 2007
Information about Wave 2 data collection, Wave 1.5 data release and Wave 3 development is included, as well as news on recent papers, presentations and publications in the December/January Newsletter.

December 2006: 2005-06 Annual Report
The 2005-06 Annual Report on Growing Up in Australia: the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children is now available. It contains highlights from Wave 1.5 data and extracts from a number of papers based on Wave 1 data. It is available online through the Publications page; hard copies of the report can be obtained by contacting us by email at lsacweb@aifs.gov.au or by phone on freecall 1800 005 508.

October 2006: Newsletter no. 14, September 2006
Information about the Wave 1.5 data release, Wave 2 data collection, Wave 3 development including new topics being considered for inclusion, an ABC TV documentary by Film Australia, drawing on the experience of the Growing Up in Australia study, and access to papers about the study from a recent conference are reported on in the September Newsletter.

October 2006: Life at 1 Documentary
A documentary by Film Australia, inspired by the Growing Up in Australia study, will be screened on the ABC at 8.30pm on Thursday, 12 and 19 October. Life at 1 is the first instalment in a series following 11 babies and their families over time, looking at the impact on their lives of factors such as the relationship between parents, the family's financial position, the impact of work on family life and parent's health and education. Life at 1 draws on many aspects of the Growing Up in Australia study, however the families have been recruited separately from the main study and there are some differences. See the Participant's page for more information.

June 2006: Newsletter no. 13, June 2006
Information about the current progress of Wave 2 data collection, Wave 3 development and the upcoming release of Wave 1.5 data are in the June newsletter.

June 2006: Approval from education authorities
Growing Up in Australia has been granted written approval from education authorities across Australia to approach schools and teachers to participate in the study. Teachers or principals may view the letter of approval applicable to their school.

May 2006: Copyright acknowledgments
A list of copyright acknowledgments for the scales and instruments used in Wave 1 of the study is now available for reference.
Download the copyright acknowledgments: PDF (100K) or Word (46K)

March 2006: The second wave of the study continues
Over 400 families were interviewed for the second wave of the study late last year, however most families will be interviewed from April to November this year. Interviewers from the Australian Bureau of Statistics are collecting the information for the study now. For more information, please see the Participant's page, which includes the brochure being sent to families.

March 2006: Newsletter no. 12, March 2006
Details on Wave 2 data collection, Wave 1.5 data release, Wave 3 development and recent publications about the study are available in the March newsletter.

December 2005: Newsletter no.11, December 2005
Wave 1 data available for use by approved researchers, news on developments with Wave 2 data collection, and dissemination of findings from the study, are reported on in the December newsletter.

September 2005: The second wave of the study commences
The second wave of interviews starts in late September 2005 and will continue throughout 2006. This time, the information is being collected by interviewers from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Further information is on the Participants page including brochures being sent to families.

August 2005: What can we learn from the Growing Up in Australia study? - AIFS seminar 18 August
An abstract and Power Point presentation of this seminar by Carol Soloff and Sebastian Misson are available from the AIFS website. The seminar covered the conceptual basis for the study, key research questions, methodology, the range of data collected including some early findings, how you can access the data, and what's next for the study.

2 August 2005: Newsletter no.10, July 2005
Among the items reported in this Newsletter are: the Launch of Wave 1 data and highlights from the data, Wave 2 developments, between waves contact with respondents, and some forthcoming publications.

31 May 2005: Keeping Participants up-to-date
The Participants page has been updated and now reports on the release of Wave 1 data with some facts about what the research tells us about the children in the study. Participants are also invited to complete a short questionnaire on a number of important aspects of the lives of their child and family. The questionnaire can be completed online. And progress on the development of interviews and questionnaires for Wave 2 data collection is reported.

30 May 2005: Release of Data Dictionary
As part of the meta-data management of LSAC and to assist users accessing Wave 1 data for research purposes, a Data dictionary has been developed.

16 May 2005: Launch of Wave 1 data and LSAC Annual report 2004
The Minister for Family and Community Services, the Hon. Kay Patterson launched the first data from Growing Up in Australia: the longitudinal study of Australian children at the Melbourne Museum. The Study's first annual report was also released at the launch.

29 April 2005: Access to Wave 1 data
The release of Growing Up in Australia Wave 1 data sets will occur in May 2005. Applications are invited from interested researchers in Australia and overseas. More details about the application process can be found on the Data access page.

12 April 2005: Newsletter no.9, March 2005
Among the items reported in this Newsletter are: the Launch of Wave 1 data, more details on Wave 1 response rates, Wave 2 developments including a list of new items being tested, papers delivered at the AIFS 2005 Conference, and more on opportunities to use LSAC data in the future.

8 February 2004: Launch
Today Growing Up in Australia: the longitudinal study of Australian children was officially launched by The Hon. Kay Patterson, Minister for Family and Community Services at the Melbourne Museum. Photos taken at the launch illustrate the colourful event and the Minister's speech, delivered at the launch, provides some background and the government perspective on this important study.