"...focuses attention on issues that affect the integrity of longitudinal data and research, and it does so in a manner that will be clear to the reader, regardless of that reader's level of sophistication. As such, this volume is an important and welcome addition to the literature." American Scientist

• Preface; List of contributors; 1. General issues about data quality in longitudinal research L. Bergman and D. Magnusson; 2. Improving the quality of psychiatric data: classification, cause and course M. Rutter and A. Pickles; 3. Data in epidemiological longitudinal research G. Eklund; 4. Data in pediatric longitudinal research R. Zetterstrom; 5. Alcohol data in longitudinal research A. Uchtenhagen; 6. Retrospective data, undesirable behaviour, and the longitudinal perspective C.-G. Janson; 7. Minimising attrition in longitudinal research: methods in tracing and securing cooperation in a 24-year follow-up study D. P. Farrington, B. Gallagher, L. Morley, R. J. St Ledger and D. J. West; 8. Minimising attrition in longitudinal studies: means or end? M. Murphy; 9. N's, times and number of variables in longitudinal research G. Rudinger and P. K. Wood; 10. Stability of patterns and patterns of stability in personality development J. B. Asendorpf and F. E. Weinert; 11. Beyond correlations: from group data analyses to single case studies F. Schulsinger; 12. Age, period, and cohort in the study of the life course: a comparison of classical A-P-C-analysis with event history analysis or farewell to lexis? K. U. Mayer and J. Huinink; 13. New possibilities for longitudinal studies of intergenerational factors in child health and development J. Fox and K. Fogelman; 14. Archiving longitudinal data A. Colby and E. Phelps.