Instrument Development, Study Design Implementation, and Survey Conduct for the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project

The National Opinion Research Center, led by a team of investigators at the University of Chicago, conducted more than 3,000 in-person interviews with a nationally representative sample of adults aged 57-85 years. Data collection included in-person questionnaire items, an extensive array of biomeasures, and a postinterview self-administered questionnaire. The National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP) interview included the collection of 13 biomeasures: weight, waist circumference, height, blood pressure, smell, saliva collection, taste, a self-administered vaginal swab for female respondents, Get Up and Go, distance vision, touch, oral mucosal transudate (Orasure (R)) human immunodeficiency virus test, and blood spots. This article discusses the development of NSHAP's instruments and implementation of the study design. Measures, such as response and cooperation rates, are also provided to evaluate the effectiveness of the design and implementation.