Longitudinal studies observe one or more sample groups over a long period to track changes and trends in behavior, societal development, and other variables. They are valuable to social sciences, particularly psychology and sociology. Longitudinal studies allow scientists to observe changes in people as they live in the real world, but may be less accurate than direct clinical trials and experiments in some cases.
A longitudinal study is a research project that involves observing one or more sample groups over a long period, from a few months to 30 years or more. Such studies are invaluable to the social sciences; they allow researchers to track changes and trends in individual behavior, societal development, relationships, and many other variables. A longitudinal study might be conducted by psychologists, sociologists, medical researchers, environmental scientists, anthropologists, or other experts who wish to obtain reliable information about a population over time.
Longitudinal studies are particularly important to the research of psychologists and sociologists who wish to learn about the interrelationships and trends in human behavior. A psychology research team might, for example, want to find out whether children of alcoholics are more likely than other children to develop behavior problems and alcoholism later in life. The team would select a large population of very similar children, such as four-year-old boys with alcoholic fathers in a given city. The researchers could interview the children, their parents and their teachers each year over a 20-year period, recording responses the same way each year. After the longitudinal study period, the researchers would organize the data on each child and look for correlations in the results to determine whether predictions can be made about other children of alcoholics.
Researchers have discovered many advantages of conducting longitudinal studies over laboratory experiments and short-term clinical trials. A longitudinal study allows scientists to observe changes in people as they live in the real world, interact with others, experience struggles and enjoy successes. Using a longitudinal study research team can get a better idea of how a certain inherited disease, such as cystic fibrosis, affects people over the course of their lives. Longitudinal studies are also effective at tracking social conditions, such as poverty rates, over several decades so that new public policies can be developed.
There are some cases, however, where longitudinal studies are less accurate than direct clinical trials and experiments. A pharmaceutical company that wants to test a new drug will likely conduct several clinical trials with many different sample groups instead of observing a single group of participants over time. The company would like to know the immediate reactions and side effects during a controlled trial to determine if the drug is safe for the commercial market. A longitudinal study simply introduces too many variables to pinpoint a drug’s efficacy. Participants may miss recommended doses, experience positive or negative lifestyle changes, or report inaccurate information to researchers.
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