DOI: 10.3886/icpsr38529
title: Midlife in the United States (MIDUS 3): Daily Diary Project, 2017-2019
title: Archival Version

description: The National Study of Daily Experiences (NSDE) is one of the in-depth studies that are part of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) longitudinal study of health and well-being. Known within the MIDUS study as the Daily Diary Project (2), the purpose of the NSDE is to examine the day-to-day lives, particularly the daily stressful experiences, of a subsample of MIDUS respondents. The primary aims of the MIDUS 3 Daily Diary project were to: (1) describe how the links between multiple aspects of daily stressors (e.g., frequency, content, severity) and daily physical and emotional well-being change over ten years during adulthood; (2) examine how sociodemographic factors and personality characteristics influence change in both exposure to as well as changes in physical and emotional reactivity to daily stressors; (3) investigate how exposure and reactivity to daily stressors correlate with physiological indicators of physical health and predict changes in global health reports; and (4) explore the relative genetic and environmental influences mediating change in exposure and physical and emotional reactivity to daily stressors throughout adulthood. During 2017-2019, the Daily Diary project collected data on a subsample of the MIDUS 3 survey sample, including cases from the MIDUS Milwaukee sample. A total of 1,236 respondents completed Daily Diary interviews. A subset of these respondents provided 4-days worth of saliva samples that provided data on cortisol and alpha amylase.
description: Known within the MIDUS study as the Daily Diary Project (2), the purpose of the NSDE is to examine the day-to-day lives, particularly the daily stressful experiences, of a subsample of MIDUS respondents. The primary aims of the MIDUS 3 Daily Diary project were to: (1) describe how the links between multiple aspects of daily stressors (e.g., frequency, content, severity) and daily physical and emotional well-being change over ten years during adulthood; (2) examine how sociodemographic factors and personality characteristics influence change in both exposure to as well as changes in physical and emotional reactivity to daily stressors; (3) investigate how exposure and reactivity to daily stressors correlate with physiological indicators of physical health and predict changes in global health reports; and (4) explore the relative genetic and environmental influences mediating change in exposure and physical and emotional reactivity to daily stressors throughout adulthood.
description: The NSDE 3 (2016-2020) consisted of an 8-day telephone diary study of self-reported daily stressors and well-being combined with multiple assessments of daily salivary cortisol (4 occasions x 4 days). On the final interview day, participants answered several questions about their previous week. Data Collection is spread throughout the year, allowing for the examination of seasonal variation in daily experiences. Data collection consisted of separate "flights" of interviews with each flight representing the eight day sequence of interviews from approximately 20 respondents.
description: This dataset contains the following groups of variables: Section A: Time Use, Giving, and Volunteering Section B: Physical Health Symptoms and Cigarette and Alcohol Usage Section C: Non-Specific Psychological Distress and Positive Affect Section D: Work Productivity and Cutbacks Section F: Daily Inventory of Stressful Experiences (DISE) Positive Events Aging Awareness Section X: Memory Lapses Section Y: Unconstructive Repetitive Thoughts Sections HT, L, S, and W: Final Day Questions Section L: Money Management Section S: Discrimination Questions Section: Medications and Cortisol Section: Constructed Variables/Scales
description: Response Rates: 75.5% of the respondents completed all eight interview days, 88.8% completed at least seven interview days, and 93.3% completed at least six interview days. In total, the data set is comprised of 9,301 days out of a possible 9,888 (N=1,236 * 8 days) yielding a completion rate of 94.0%.
description: Presence of Common Scales: Please see the "38529-Documentation-Scales.pdf" document for complete information regarding the scales for the MIDUS 3 Daily Diary Project.
description: The sample consisted of individuals who had participated in the Daily Diary Project at MIDUS 2 and who also completed the MIDUS 3 Survey Project (including Milwaukee subsample).
description: Datasets: DS1: Midlife in the United States (MIDUS 3): Daily Diary Project, 2017-2019
description: Non-institutionalized English-speaking adults in the United States that participated in the MIDUS 3 Survey Project (including Milwaukee subsample).
description: computer-assisted telephone interview (CATI)