Acquiring Data from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent
Well-Being (NSCAW)
General Information:
Two different versions of the NSCAW data are available to
members of the research community who meet eligibility criteria and
agree to the requirements of the data license. The following materials
have been developed by NDACAN staff in consultation with the Research
Triangle Institute and the NSCAW Research Group, to permit
dissemination of NSCAW Data to responsible researchers while
satisfying concerns about respondent anonymity.
The least restrictive
version is known as the General Use Data. Identifying
information and geographic detail have been removed from this version
and variables posing a risk of respondent disclosure have been recoded
to make identification of individuals unlikely. NDACAN recommends that
researchers initially obtain the General Use Data when they are
learning to use the NSCAW data.
The Restricted Release version has
more data and greater research utility. Geographic detail is present and fewer
variables have been recoded, but these versions present a higher
risk to respondent confidentiality. They are, therefore, only made
available to researchers who can justify a need for high level
access and who are willing to follow additional application
requirements.
While both versions of the NSCAW data require approval by an
Institutional Review Board at the researcher's institution and close
oversight by NDACAN in the form of a legally-binding licensing
agreement, the Restricted Release also requires preparation of an application and data protection
plan as well as willingness to cooperate with unannounced on-site
inspections of the research facility.
Eligibility to Obtain NSCAW Data:
For both versions of NSCAW, access is limited to researchers who
agree to the terms and conditions contained in the Data Licensing
Agreement. Only faculty and non-student research personnel at
institutions which have an Institutional Review Board/Human Subjects
Review Committee (IRB) are eligible to obtain the Data. The
Institution's IRB must be registered with the U.S. Office for Human
Research Protections (OHRP). The OHRP certifies institutions whose
IRBs have met certain procedural criteria. Although nearly all
research universities and other research organizations in the United
States have IRBs registered with the OHRP, we are aware that some
institutions and legitimate researchers will be excluded from access
under this condition. Application for NSCAW Restricted Release Data
from researchers and organizations outside the United States will be
handled on a case-by-case basis. The OHRP registration requirement
also applies for non-U.S. organizations. The cost of the data
license may be greater for non-U.S. organizations due to increased
travel costs associated with the compliance inspections.
Student Access: A faculty advisor must
order the data, serve as the Investigator for license purposes, and
request student access by submitting a
Supplemental Agreement with Research Staff (PDF). The faculty advisor and the institution bear full
responsibility for ensuring that all conditions of the agreement are
met by the student. A student cannot order NSCAW data directly.
Please note: employees at child
welfare agencies are not presently eligible to obtain any version of
the NSCAW data.
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Version |
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General Release Data |
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Restricted Release Data |
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