Who is the course for?
This workshop is aimed at new users of Understanding Society children & youth data, covering information from pregnancy up to age 15. It will explain the different files and data collected, and help users manage the data for statistical analysis in their own research projects. Participants should be familiar with Understanding Society’s design and data collection procedures and have basic knowledge of the Stata software package.
What will I learn?
This workshop will explain the aims and purpose behind Understanding Society children & youth data. Participants will discover the array of research possibilities it presents as well as:
- An overview of the information collected
- How the information is structured within Understanding Society
- Guidance on preparing the data for various types of analysis using Stata
- Strategies for effectively navigating and interacting within various children & youth files and other datasets in Understanding Society
The workshop is a combination of lectures and hands-on sessions. The workshop starts with an introduction to the Understanding Society children & youth data, followed by a session on data management skills. Next, examples of how the data have been used to answer different research questions are presented to illustrate its diverse applications in research studies. The second half of the workshop starts with a hands-on-session, where participants work through five specific examples, practicing essential data handling techniques and some light-touch data analysis. The final session will focus on research question development in which users can work with the data to develop or refine their research questions and learn and interact with other participants about their research projects.
Participants will work on their own computers during the hands-on sessions and tutors will be present to answer questions during the entire duration of the workshop. The research question development session will be conducted in groups, although individuals can develop their own research questions.
List of examples to be worked on in the hands-on session
- Matching data from youth respondents to parental data
- Matching data from youth respondents to aggregate sibling data
- Matching data from newborns to total number of siblings in the household
- Matching peach data to youth data
- Matching data form PEACH file with parental/responsible adult data
The worked-out examples will be based on Stata and participants will be expected to have experience working in Stata prior to the workshop.
Course materials
Participants will be provided with worksheets and syntax files to accompany the worked-out exercises.
Software and technical requirements
Participants have to bring their own laptop with Stata Version 13 or higher installed.
Prerequisite
- Know about the Understanding Society design and data collection procedures. This material is covered in the course Introduction to Understanding Society
- Have basic knowledge of the Stata software package
Location, catering, travel & accommodation
The course takes place, in-person, at the University of Essex, Colchester. The course is free of charge and lunch and refreshments will be provided. You only have to arrange (and pay for) your travel, your accommodation and your evening meals (if applicable).
Accommodation is available on campus or in nearby Colchester or Wivenhoe. After registration, you will receive more information about the location, travel and how to book your accommodation.
