User Guides
NHATS
The NHATS User Guide is designed to provide analysts with documentation about NHATS concepts, measures, and characteristics relevant to data analysis. The User Guide provides comprehensive descriptions of the NHATS conceptual framework, content of the baseline instruments, data file structure, created measures (including their origin), and information on special data manipulation topics. For more information, please see "National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) User Guide: Rounds 1 – 9 Final Release". For a guide to accounting for the sample design in NHATS analyses, see "Accounting for Sample Design in NHATS and NSOC Analyses: Frequently Asked Questions".
Dried Blood Spot (DBS) Biomarkers
In Round 7 of the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), dried blood spots (DBS) were collected from eligible sampled persons (SPs). Four assays were conducted to foster study of the biologic risk of disability progression. The "Dried Blood Spot (DBS) Based Biomarkers in the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) User Guide: Final Release " provides details on the collection and assays of these samples and documentation about the available data.
Data Collection Materials
Data Collection Procedures
The NHATS Round 1 data collection procedures guide describes the path that interviewers followed in administering the Sample Person (SP) interview, the Facility Questionnaire (FQ) interview, and for contacting and tracing SPs. It includes advance materials, interviewer procedures (e.g., use of proxy respondents, definitions of housing structure, the home environment checklist, the approach to income and assets), and administration of the FQ, Cognitive, and Physical Activities sections, and showcards for each round used in the instrument.
Show Cards
Showcards are used throughout the interview as visual aids for the respondent when answering the selected question.
Technical Papers
Sample Design and Weighting
The National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) was designed to follow successive nationally representative cohorts of persons ages 65 and older and enrolled in Medicare. Round 1 of the study was fielded in 2011; in Round 5 (2015) the sample was replenished. The design includes oversamples of individuals at older ages and those whose race is listed as Black on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) enrollment file. The methodology used to develop survey weights, including procedures for nonresponse adjustments, is described in technical papers for each round.
Round 8:
NHATS Development of Round 8 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #22
Round 7:
NHATS Development of Round 7 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #20
Round 6:
NHATS Development of Round 6 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #18
Round 5:
NHATS Round 5 Sample Design and Selection. NHATS Technical Paper #16
NHATS Development of Round 5 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #14
Recalculation of Weights for NHATS Rounds 5 and 6 and NSOC II.NHATS Memorandum #1
Round 4:
NHATS Development of Round 4 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #11
Round 3:
NHATS Development of Round 3 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #9
Round 2:
NHATS Development of Round 2 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #6
Round 1:
NHATS Study Development of Round 1 Survey Weights. NHATS Technical Paper #2
NHATS Round 1 Sample Design and Selection. NHATS Technical Paper #1
Other
Accounting for Sample Design in Analysis FAQs
This technical paper answers frequently asked questions about how to account for the complex sample design of NHATS and NSOC in analyses. Topics covered include conducting cross-sectional analyses with NHATS and NSOC, conducting longitudinal analyses in NHATS, and an overview of weights. Example Stata and SAS code is provided.
Dementia Classification
A dementia classification variable was created from the NHATS public use data. The technical paper describes the methodology used to create this variable and provides Round 1 descriptive data. The addenda to the technical paper provide SAS and Stata programming statements that can be used to construct an NHATS dementia classification variable for all rounds.
“Classification of Persons by Dementia Status in NHATS. Technical Paper #5”
“Addendum to Classification of Persons by Dementia Status in NHATS for Follow-up Rounds”
Duration of Accommodation Measures
This technical paper is intended as a guide for using the duration of mobility and self-care measures in NHATS. The contents of the duration of Mobility Accommodations (DM) and Duration of Self-Care Accommodations (DS) sections are reviewed and several potential applications are described for these unique national data.
“Mobility and Self-Care Accommodation Duration Measures in NHATS. NHATS Technical Paper #12”
Hours of Care
Hours of care and information about individuals that the sampled person (SP) has identified in earlier sections as Helpers with activities are obtained in the Helpers (HL) section in the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS). This technical paper provides guidance to users on how to create comparable hours of care variables across rounds of the NHATS. For more information, please see
Income ImputationProcedures
Multiple imputed values of total annual income are provided in Rounds 1, 3, 5, and 7. The values reflect either individual income or income for couples for those currently married or living with a partner. For more details on the imputation strategy, please see the following technical papers. Round 7:
"NHATSRound 7 Income Imputation. Technical Paper #21"
Round 5:
"NHATSRound 5 Income Imputation. Technical Paper #15"
Round 3:
"NHATSRound 3 Income Imputation. Technical Paper #10"
Round 1:
Making National Population Estimates with NHATSand NSOC
This technical paper provides details on how to standardize NHATS estimates to the Medicare frame and Census totals. Information is also provided on how to use the National Study of Caregiving (NSOC) to make estimates of the number of family and unpaid caregivers to older adults consistent with the Medicare frame or Censustotals.
Measuring Late-Life Physical Capacity
This technical paper describes Item Response Theory (IRT) methods to evaluate self-reported and performance-based physical capacity measures administered in NHATS.
Performance Based Summary Measures
Performance based summary measures have been created for inclusion on the NHATS public use data file. Summary measures include the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), as well as scores for grip strength and peak air flow. The technical paper describes the methodology used to create these measures and provides Round 1 descriptive statistics. The addendum to the technical paper provides SAS programming statements that were used to construct the summary measures.
Transportation Measures
The National Health and Aging Study (NHATS) incorporates a wide range of measures that can be used to characterize the extent to which optimal mobility is achieved by older adults. This paper is intended as a guide to transportation-related information in NHATS and approaches to analyzing these data.
Variable-Instrument Crosswalks
NHATS Crosswalk between Instruments and Codebook
The NHATS crosswalk between the instrument and codebook lists the variables in the order administered and by file location (SP, OP, Tracker, Restricted, Not on File) and includes the variable names and labels.
Instruments
Round 9
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 8
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 7
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 6
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 5
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 4
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 3
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Round 2
Sample Person Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
Last Month of Life Interview
Data Collection Instruments are listed by section in the order administered.
