The ACCESS Life Course Database

Population ageing presents new conditions and contexts for adult lives and relationships. The proposed project will develop a durable research infrastructure (The ACCESS Life-Course Database) aimed at improving the ability of social researchers to underst and the challenges and opportunities that recent demographic changes represent. The infrastructure will build on two large Norwegian datasets. The complex structure of the existing datasets is a major barrier to users. The aim of the proposed infrastructu re is to reduce the complexity by developing an easy-to-use and secure database with access to tailored files and full documentation. Workshops and individual support are integrated elements. The two already existing datasets are: (1) the Norwegian Life C ourse, Ageing and Generation Study (NorLAG) and (2) the Life Course, Generations and Gender Study (LOGG). Currently, two waves of NorLAG are available, with plans to add another three waves. Included in LOGG is the Norwegian version of the multi-nation Ge nerations and Gender Survey, initiated by the United Nations. Together the two studies include a representative sample of 15,156 men and women aged 18-84. The ACCESS Life Course Database will provide multi-purpose, multi-level, multi-disciplinary and long itudinal data on life-course trajectories and transitions such as family formation, retirement, and care. The proposed infrastructure will provide a meeting-ground for national and international researchers interested in life course research, and will sti mulate the creation of new knowledge and improved analytical tools for studying lives over time in different and changing social contexts.