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National Longitudinal Survey of Older and Young Men (NLSM)

Older and Young Men Cohorts: An Introduction

Older Men cohort

Official title

National Longitudinal Survey of Older Men, part of the Original Cohorts from the National Longitudinal Surveys (NLS) program.

Status of survey

Not active. The most recent interviews of the Older Men respondents took place in 1990.

Age of cohort

Born between 1906 and 1921. At the time of first interview (1966), respondents' ages ranged from 45 to 59. The respondents were 69 to 83 at the time of their last interviews in 1990.

Number of respondents in the survey

5,020 individuals were initially interviewed in round 1. For the last fielding period in 1990, a total of 2,092 men were interviewed, 41.7% of the original sample. (The 1990 survey also collected information about deceased respondents from 1,341 widows and 865 other family members, so information is available for 85.6% of the original sample members.)

Gender

All men (although the widows of the Older Men were interviewed in the final fielding period). The NLS Original Cohorts project also interviewed two women's cohorts, the Young Women and the Mature Women.

Race/ethnicity (in initial survey)

  • White: 3,518 (70%)
  • Black: 1,420 (28.3%)
  • Other: 82 (1.6%)

Number of survey rounds available to the public

13 rounds. Older Men respondents were surveyed annually between 1966-1969. After that, they were interviewed three years out of every five until 1983. In 1990, a final interview was conducted with both living Older Men respondents and widows or other family members of deceased respondents. Public data are available for no charge at www.nlsinfo.org/investigator.

Types of information gathered in the survey

Funding sources for the Older Men

The Older Men interviews were originally sponsored by the Office of Manpower, Automation, and Training (now the Employment and Training Administration), part of the U.S. Department of Labor. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) currently oversees the NLS program. The National Institute on Aging sponsored the 1990 interview.

Young Men cohort

Official title

National Longitudinal Survey of Young Men, part of the Original Cohorts from the National Longitudinal Surveys (NLS) program.

Status of survey

Not active. The most recent interviews of the Young Men respondents took place in 1981.

Age of cohort

Born between 1941 and 1952. At the time of first interview (1966), respondents' ages ranged from 14 to 24. The respondents were 29 to 39 at the time of their last interviews in 1981.

Number of respondents in the survey

5,225 individuals were initially interviewed in round 1. For the last fielding period in 1981, a total of 3,398 were interviewed, 65% of the original sample.

Gender

All men. The NLS Original Cohorts project also interviewed the Young Women cohort that was the same 14-24 age range, as well as the older Mature Women cohort.

Race/ethnicity (in initial survey)

  • White: 3,734 (71.5%)
  • Black: 1,438 (27.5%)
  • Other: 53 (1.0%)

Number of survey rounds available to the public

12 rounds. Young Men respondents were surveyed annually between 1966-1971. After that, they were interviewed three years out of every five through the final 1981 survey year. Public data are available for no charge at www.nlsinfo.org/investigator.

Types of information gathered in the survey

Funding sources for the Young Men

The Young Men interviews were originally sponsored by the Office of Manpower, Automation, and Training (now the Employment and Training Administration), part of the U.S. Department of Labor. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) currently oversees the NLS program.