Young Men in High School and Beyond: A Summary of Findings from the Youth in Transition Project, 1966-1974

This data collection consists of a five-wave longitudinal study of 1,628 high school youths in the United States in the period 1966-1974, beginning in the fall of 1966 when they entered 10th grade. The study is part of the longitudinal Youth in Transition Project conducted by the University of Michigan's Survey Research Center. The major objective of the project was to examine the causes and effects of dropping out of high school among youths in their late teens. The project examined a number of characteristics, including personality and behavioral traits, in order to identify the potential dropout. The initial data collection included tests of ability and academic skills, measures of family background characteristics, and a large number of "criterion" dimensions: affective states, self-concepts, values and attitudes, and plans and behaviors. Most of the criterion dimensions were repeated in the four subsequent waves. Included also is information on the respondents' attitudes toward government and government officials, racial integration, and United States' involvement in the Vietnam war. Demographic variables include work experience, income, military service, and education. The Longitudinal File (File 6) is comprised of 516 selected variables, primarily indices based on longitudinal data.