So you have your student health survey data…

Now what ???

Jeanette Voas

Partnership for Youth

Franklin Regional Council of Governments

When to use your data…

When (cont’d). Your data can help…• Assessment:

• Identify problems

• Suggest underlying causes

• Identify assets

• Capacity Building:• Build consensus

• Publicize your cause

• Add substance to grant applications

• Provide partners data they need

• Planning:• Select strategies relevant to local

situation• Target strategies to appropriate

audiences

• Implementation:• Support social marketing/ social

norms marketing• Provide material for classroom

use • Educate parents, teachers,

community members

• Evaluation:• Determine what changed• Gauge whether you have made a

difference

Who can use it?

• Your organization• Schools• Community-based agencies• Municipalities• Hospitals doing community needs assessments• Local news outlets

What…?

• What data might you have to work with?• Communities That Care• Youth Risk Behavior Survey• Youth Health Survey• Attitudes and Behaviors Survey

• What can the data tell you?

MA Youth Risk Behavior Survey (DESE)

• 30-day and lifetime use of tobacco, alcohol, marijuana + lifetime use of 5 other drugs

• Violence, bullying, sexual abuse• Unintentional injury• Nutrition & physical activity• BMI, body image, weight control• Sexual behaviors• Depression, self-injury & suicidality

Grades 9-12

MA Youth Health Survey (MDPH)

• 30-day and lifetime use of alcohol, marijuana + 7 other drugs

• Extensive section on tobacco use• Violence, bullying, sexual abuse• Unintentional injury, including concussion• Nutrition & physical activity• Screen time, gambling• BMI, body image, weight control• Sexual behaviors• Depression, self-injury & suicidality• Diabetes, asthma, dental care

Grades 6-12

Communities That Care(e.g., Bach Harrison PNA, Pride CTC)

• 30-day and lifetime use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana and 10 other substances

• Perception of others’ use• Violence, delinquency, gambling• Depression• 22 risk factors & 11 protective factors in community,

school, family, and peer/individual domains• DFC core measures

Grades 6-12

Attitudes and Behaviors Survey(Search Institute)

• 40 Developmental Assets • 8 thriving indicators • Recent use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, inhalants,

heroin/narcotics• Violence, delinquency• Depression & suicidality• Sexual intercourse• DFC core measures

Grades 6-12

Comparing to the nation & the state• Monitoring the Future http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/

• Conducted by U Michigan Inst for Social Research• Funded by NIDA• National random sample• 8th, 10th and 12th grades + young adult

• Youth Risk Behavior Survey • National survey conducted by CDC

http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/yrbs/index.htm • MA survey sponsored by DESE, in coordination with MDPH YHS

http://www.doe.mass.edu/cnp/hprograms/yrbs/ • Grades 9-12

Who’s at risk? You can cut the data by…

CTC YRBS A&B

Grade and/or age x x x

Sex/gender x x x

Race/ethnicity x x x

Sexual orientation x x

Length of time in US x

Home living situation x x

Transgender x x

Disabilities x

female23%

male30%

white 26%

nonwhite31%

hetero-sexual25%

LGBTQ38%

higher SES23%

lower SES32%

Who is at risk of being overweight?

Data from 2013 FC/NQ YRBS, n=1767

A word about small numbers• Scenario 1: Smoking among all students

surveyed in Franklin County in 2014• 186 students said they’d smoked in the past 30

days• 1728 students answered the question about

smoking• So 186/1728, or about 11% are current smokers.

• Scenario 2: Smoking among self-identified LGBTQ youth surveyed• 39/182, or 21% are current smokers.

• Scenario 3: Smoking among 8th grade boys surveyed who self-identify as LGBTQ. • 1/19, or about 5% are current smokers.

all LGBTQ 8th M LGBTQ

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

% current cigarette smokers

But think about what you’re obscuring when you aggregate

8th grade; 26%

10th grade; 35%

12th grade; 63%

Reported alcohol useamong local youthin the 30 days preceding the survey:

40%

Who’s at risk? How else might you cut the data?

• If students have a parent they can talk to about important things, are they less likely to engage in risky behaviors?

• If students eat breakfast, are they more likely to get good grades?

• If students drink alcohol, are they more likely to use prescription drugs?

Comparing youth who have an adult at home to talk with about important things to those who do not

recent binge physical fight depressive feelings

self-injury considered suicide

15%

22% 21%

15%11%

23%

40%

49%45%

41%

have adult to talk with at home

do not have adult to talk with at home

Data from 2013 FC/NQ YRBS, n=1767

Breakfast and grades in school

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 70%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

64%

85%

# days/week eat breakfast

% w

ho

get

mo

stly

As

and

Bs

Data from 2013 FC/NQ YRBS, n=1767

Are students who use prescription drugs more likely to use alcohol or marijuana?

used prescription drugs did not use prescription drugs

81%

32%

52%

12%

67%

21%

% who report alcohol/marijuana use

drank alcoholbingedused marijuana

Data from 2014 FC/NQ Teen Health Survey, n=1788

Are students who use alcohol & marijuana more likely to use prescription drugs?

used alcohol/marijuana did not use alcohol/marijuana

15%

2%

23%

4%

18%

3%

% who report prescription drug use

alcohol binge

marijuana

Data from 2014 FC/NQ Teen Health Survey, n=1788

Some limitations to ponder• Survey data like ours (“cross-sectional data”) allow us to

show associations among respondent characteristics, behaviors & attitudes. We cannot prove a cause-effect relationship.

• Different methods of data gathering will give different results. No single survey result is The Truth. The best use of these data may be to stick with a method and measure trends over time.

• You will not be able to survey everyone. Do you know who you’re missing? If so, can you adjust your analysis appropriately?

Why bother? Can we trust the data?• We use well-established surveys that have been validated

by extensive research and implemented across the nation.

• We check each respondent’s survey for internal consistency and include measures of honesty.

• The survey is anonymous, minimizing incentives to under- or over-report for social desirability.

• Survey data are fairly consistent over time, and local data are in line with national surveys.