The 2014 Ontario Child Health Study—Methodology

Abstract

Objective: To describe the methodology of the 2014 Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS): a province-wide, cross-sectional, epidemiologic study of child health and mental disorder among 4- to 17-year-olds living in household dwellings. Method: Implemented by Statistics Canada, the 2014 OCHS was led by academic researchers at the Offord Centre for Child Studies (McMaster University). Eligible households included families with children aged 4 to 17 years, who were listed on the 2014 Canadian Child Tax Benefit File. The survey design included area and household stratification by income and 3-stage cluster sampling of areas and households to yield a probability sample of families. Results: The 2014 OCHS included 6,537 responding households (50.8%) with 10,802 children aged 4 to 17 years. Lower income families living in low-income neighbourhoods were less likely to participate. In addition to measures of childhood mental disorder assessed by the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview for Children and Adolescents (MINI-KID) and OCHS Emotional Behavioural Scales (OCHS-EBS), the survey contains measures of neighbourhoods, schools, families and children, and includes administrative data held by the Ministries of Education and Health and Long-Term Care. Conclusions: The complex survey design and differential non-response of the 2014 OCHS required the use of sampling weights and adjustment for design effects. The study is available throughout Canada in the Statistics Canada Research Data Centres (RDCs). We urge external investigators to access the study through the RDCs or to contact us directly to collaborate on future secondary analysis studies based on the OCHS.

Trajectories of psychopathology in extremely low birth weight survivors from early adolescence to adulthood: a 20‐year longitudinal study

“…Internalizing and externalizing problems in adolescence were self-reported using the Ontario Child Health Study-Revised (OCHS-R) scales (Boyle et al, 1993). These scales were derived from the original OCHS scales (Boyle et al, 1987), and the Child Behavior Checklist, (CBCL, Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1981). Young adult and adult participants completed the Young Adult Self-Report (YASR; Achenbach, 1997).…”

Impact of extremely low‐birth‐weight status on risk and resilience for depression and anxiety in adulthood

“…A questionnaire adapted from the Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS‐R; Boyle et al., ) included a single item asking parents if they owned their home (1, rented; 0, home owner) when participants were 8 years of age.…”

Confirmatory factor analysis of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) among a community-based sample of parents and adolescents

“…Data collection was monitored to ensure that the adolescent sample closely approximated the general population with regard to sex (adolescents), household income, and ethnicity, following the Statistics Canada (2017) census profile. As with other studies using similar designs, the person most knowledgeable of the adolescent was asked to complete the survey [51]. In the majority of cases, the person most knowledgeable was the mother.…”