Williamson, L. & Boag, C. (2011) British Society for Population Studies Conference, University of York, UK, 7 - 9 September 2011 [SLS]

Other information: Poster presentation.

Abstract: The Longitudinal Studies Centre – Scotland (LSCS) was established in 2001 and hosts the Scottish Longitudinal Study (SLS). This study links together routinely collected administrative data for a 5.3% representative sample of the Scottish population (about 270,000 people). It currently includes a wealth of information from the 1991 and 2001 censuses, vital events registrations (births, deaths and marriages), and can be linked to cancer registry and hospital admission data.

The size and scope of the SLS make it an unparalleled resource for analysing a range of socio-economic, demographic and health questions. Additionally, the longitudinal nature of the SLS is particularly valuable, allowing an exploration of causality in a way that cross-sectional data collected at a single point in time does not. In this way, the SLS can provide insights into the health and social status of the Scottish population and, crucially, how it changes over time.

The poster will introduce the SLS and the datasets, the application process for researchers interested in using the SLS and outline research examples and SLS future developments.

Available online: Link