Longitudinal Studies
LONGITUDINAL STUDY
A longitudinal study is an observational study which involves repeated observations over long periods of time, sometimes even decades. Longitudinal studies are often used in Sociology to observe changes in life times or through generations. Longitudinal studies can also be used to study change in the lives of organisations and institutions as well as individual people. Longitudinal studies include:
• cohort study - made up of subjects with something in common, such as where they live or when they were born
• multi-cohort study - when various subgroups within a cohort are investigated
• panel study - involves a cross-section of subjects with differing backgrounds
A longitudinal study is a correlation research study that involves observations of the same subjects over long periods of time. In sociology it’s often used to study developmental trends across the life span. The reason for this is that longitudinal studies track the same people, and therefore the differences observed in those people are less likely to be the result of cultural differences across generations. A large number of variables is often examined because the researchers are unsure what data may prove to be important or required later in the research; although the researcher still has to decide what variables to study, examination of so many limits the extent to which they impose their own theories on the research.
A cohort study is a subset of the longitudinal study because it observes the effect on a specific group of people over time. Quite often, a longitudinal study is an extended case study, observing individuals over long periods, and is a purely qualitative undertaking.
The lack of quantitative data means that any observations are speculative, as with many case studies, but they allow a unique and valuable perspective on some aspects of human culture and sociology
The ‘Up’ series consists of seven documentary films that have followed the lives of
A longitudinal study is an observational study which involves repeated observations over long periods of time, sometimes even decades. Longitudinal studies are often used in Sociology to observe changes in life times or through generations. Longitudinal studies can also be used to study change in the lives of organisations and institutions as well as individual people. Longitudinal studies include:
• cohort study - made up of subjects with something in common, such as where they live or when they were born
• multi-cohort study - when various subgroups within a cohort are investigated
• panel study - involves a cross-section of subjects with differing backgrounds
A longitudinal study is a correlation research study that involves observations of the same subjects over long periods of time. In sociology it’s often used to study developmental trends across the life span. The reason for this is that longitudinal studies track the same people, and therefore the differences observed in those people are less likely to be the result of cultural differences across generations. A large number of variables is often examined because the researchers are unsure what data may prove to be important or required later in the research; although the researcher still has to decide what variables to study, examination of so many limits the extent to which they impose their own theories on the research.
A cohort study is a subset of the longitudinal study because it observes the effect on a specific group of people over time. Quite often, a longitudinal study is an extended case study, observing individuals over long periods, and is a purely qualitative undertaking.
The lack of quantitative data means that any observations are speculative, as with many case studies, but they allow a unique and valuable perspective on some aspects of human culture and sociology
The ‘Up’ series consists of seven documentary films that have followed the lives of