Centre for Time Use Research - information gateway

Country:	AUSTRALIA 2004-2010
Study Title:	Growing Up In Australia: a Longitudinal Study of Australian Children
Collector:	The Australian Institute of Family Studies co-ordinates the study with funding from the Commonwealth Department of Family and Community Services (FaCS). NCS Pearson collects and processes the data
When Conducted:	Fieldwork for Wave 1 (baseline) March 2004 until Autumn 2004
Sampling Method and Study Design:	The Health Insurance Commission drew a stratified national cluster sample of households with infants and households with children aged 4 in January 2004, and sent initial letters to sampled households requesting participation. The HIC passed contact details for participating households to the Australian Institute of Family Studies, which will follow the two cohorts for 7 years. The study collects a number of questionnaire items as well as biometric data from parents, children, and teachers. After the main interview, the interviewers leave behind two time diaries for completion by one of the parents on behalf of the child, one for a week day and one for a weekend day. The diaries follow the light diary format with 15 minute time slots and precoded categories of activities, as well as location, who else is present (parents, other children, other adults, and pets), whether the child used a computer during the activity, and whether the parents paid for the child to do the activity. Parents complete the diary by drawing lines across ovals. In this case, secondary activities are not distinguished from main activities, in part as in some cases the parent may not be certain which activity actually holds the main focus of the child's attention and as children's focus of attention may shift many times during 15 minutes. Instead, parents are asked to mark at least one activity per time slot, and to mark no more than 4 activities per time slot. Activities are coded as singular or compound activities. The diaries are crafted to capture both physical activity. The diaries were developed and tested in a pilot study in March and April of 2003 and a dress rehearsal from August to October 2003
Sample Size:	The first wave is in the field, but the study aims to collect information on 5000 infants and 5000 4-year-olds. The dress rehearsal collected 435 diaries for 184 infants and 360 diaries for 159 4-year-olds
Response Rate:	First phase of data collection not yet complete; 68% of placed diaries were returned in the dress rehearsal
Weighting Procedures:	The data will be weighted to account for non-response
Source of Information:	Australian Institute of Family Studies
Available Documentation:	Dress rehearsal infant diary Dress rehearsal 4-year-old diary

Return to Time Diary Studies Table