Monitoring the Future: A Continuing Study of American Youth, 2024 [Restricted-Use]

This
data collection is part of the Monitoring the Future series that explores
changes in important values, behaviors, and lifestyle orientations of
contemporary American youth in eighth, tenth, and twelfth grades. The
restricted data sets in this collection include variables that were altered or
omitted from the public use data sets to maintain respondent confidentiality. Examples
of variables included in their original form are: unaltered sampling weight
variable, variables for strata and cluster to account for the complex sample
design of the MTF, and previously-omitted data on some variables for the
Western region of the US. For each year
from 1976 through 2017, two data sets containing data for all three grades are
available: one dataset including school-level state, county, and Zip Code variables,
and one dataset without these geographic school-level variables. For 2018-2022, data sets were
created separately for 8th/10th and 12th grades, resulting in four data sets.
This split on grade was done to mirror the data availability of the public use
files and facilitate the merging of the public and restricted use data. For 2023
forward, only two data sets are provided: one for the 8th and 10th grades, and
one for the 12th grade. <strong>Please
note: Use of the geographic identifiers such as state, county, or zip code is
limited and researchers interested in these variables are encouraged to read FAQs:
About MTF Restricted-Use Geographic Variables.</strong>
Also
included as part of each annual collection is a zip archive of the Monitoring
the Future public-use data and documentation for each respective year. The
basic research design used by the Monitoring the Future study involves annual
data collections from eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders throughout the contiguous
United States during the spring of each year. The 8th/10th grade surveys consist
of four different questionnaire forms (two forms from 1991-1996), and the 12th
grade surveys consist of six questionnaire forms (five forms from 1976-1988).
Identical forms are used for both eighth and tenth grades, and for the most
part, questionnaire content is drawn from the twelfth-grade questionnaires.
Thus, key demographic variables and measures of substance use and related
attitudes and beliefs are generally identical for all three grades. However,
many fewer questions about lifestyles and values are included in the 8th/10th
grade surveys. Substance use covered by these surveys includes tobacco,
smokeless tobacco, alcohol, marijuana/cannabis, prescription medications,
over-the-counter medications, inhalants, steroids, LSD and other hallucinogens,
amphetamines (stimulants), sedatives/barbiturates, tranquilizers, cocaine,
crack cocaine, ecstasy, methamphetamine, heroin, narcotics other than heroin, and
vaping of nicotine, marijuana/cannabis, and flavors. Other topics include:
attitudes toward religion, changing roles for women, educational aspirations,
self-esteem, exposure to drug education, and violence and crime (both in and
out of school).