Understanding Attrition and Bolstering Retention in a Longitudinal Panel of Older Adults: ORANJ BOWL

Abstract

Background and Objectives Attrition from longitudinal studies can affect generalizability of findings especially when studying developmental constructs such as successful aging. Research Design and Methods Using data from a 12-year (6-wave) panel of 5,688 older people (aged 50 to 74 at baseline), we compared people retained in the panel with people lost to follow-up on demographic characteristics and measures of successful aging. After instituting expanded retention strategies at Wave 6 (i.e., a team-based approach, social media, paid web search engines), we compared different groups of people lost to follow-up (i.e., deceased, withdrawn due to lack of interest) and different types of completers (i.e., full completers vs. lost and re-engaged completers). Results At baseline, Wave 6 completers were significantly younger, less likely to be African American, more likely to be married, reported higher levels of income and education, were more likely to be working full-time, had less pain and fewer chronic illnesses, and reported higher levels of subjective successful aging and functional ability than those lost to follow-up. Analyses demonstrated differences across groups based on reason for loss (i.e., deceased, impaired, not interested). Participants who missed an interview but returned to the panel were significantly different from those who participated in all waves of data collection. Expanded retention efforts improved generalizability, as people returning to the panel reported lower levels of education, lower levels of income, and were more likely to be African American. Discussion and Implications Biased attrition within longitudinal research impacts interpretation of study findings, especially when studying developmental outcomes. However, expanded retention strategies can reduce bias and loss and should be used to enhance retention efforts in longitudinal work.

Change in Loneliness Experienced by Older Men and Women Living Alone and With Others at the Onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Completers were significantly older than non-completers and younger than people who withdrew or died. Completers were more likely to be female than those in the panel who died and less likely to be African American than those who died, withdrew, or did not complete ( Heid et al, 2021 ).…”

Marital Status, Marital Transitions, and Sleep Quality in Mid to Late Life

“…Participants were excluded from the current analyses if marital status could not be classified due to missing data at wave 1 ( n = 2), attrition at wave 6 ( n = 2,650), or individuals experienced more than one marital transition or had inconsistent transitions between waves ( n = 164). (See Heid et al, 2021 for details about attrition, retention, and re-engagement for this panel.) Compared to individuals who were excluded from analyses at baseline, those who were included were significantly younger, more educated, had higher incomes, less chronic health conditions, lower BMIs, more likely to be White, and less likely to have an emotional health issue (all ps ≤ .007).…”

Long-Term Impact of Hurricane Sandy Exposure on Positive and Negative Affect: The Role of Perceived Social Support

“…Compared to those who were not included in the analysis (N = 3,246), participants who were included were younger, had a higher education level, and greater income. Details regarding attrition from ORANJ BOWL are found in Pruchno et al (2010) and Heid et al (2021).…”