NCS-2: Longitudinal Mental Health and Substance Use Survey

5,001 individuals were re-interviewed a decade after the baseline National Comorbidity Survey to track changes in mental and substance use disorders. The dataset contains four major sections: a main survey on health, disorders, and life events; demographic data; diagnostic data; and geographic FIPS codes. Interview questions were customized based on prior responses, and the data includes personality assessments and details on service use.

Use Cases

• Analyzing predictors of mental disorder onset or remission based on demographic and life event data.
• Studying patterns of polysubstance use and nonmedical prescription drug use over a ten-year period.
• Modeling geographic disparities in mental health service utilization using state, county, and tract FIPS codes.
• Investigating the relationship between personality traits, assessed via true/false statements, and subsequent mental health outcomes.

Strengths

• Longitudinal design with a precisely defined cohort of 5,001 individuals re-interviewed after a decade.
• Detailed diagnostic coverage includes over a dozen specific mental disorders and substance use conditions.
• Survey customization based on prior responses likely improves data relevance and reduces respondent burden.

Limitations

• Key metadata such as column names, row counts, and exact update dates are missing from all source descriptions.
• The dataset is listed as 'Restricted-Use', indicating potential access barriers not detailed in the provided metadata.
• One source description lists three major sections while others list four, creating a minor conflict regarding the inclusion of geographic FIPS data.

Provenance

Source

Harvard University, led by Ronald C. Kessler.

Collection Method

Re-interview survey conducted a decade after the baseline National Comorbidity Survey (NCS-1).

Time Range

2001-2002

Geography

United States (implied by state, county, and tract FIPS codes).