Rehabilitation Dataset Directory: Dataset Profile

SHARE is a multidisciplinary, cross-national, longitudinal study of the European  population over 50 years old. 28 European countries plus Israel participate in the SHARE study. The study covers the interplay between economic, health, and social factors in shaping older people’s living conditions. It also aims to address these issues cross-nationally. The wave 3 SHARELIFE survey collected life history calendars designed to identify prominent events in each participant's life. Health measurements include self-reports as well as four physical performance measurements: grip strength (GS), walking speed (WS), peak-flow (PF) and chair stand (CS). Six waves of data have been released with wave 7 data (collected in 2017) expected to be released in spring 2019.

Blood spot samples were collected for 24,000 individuals across 12 SHARE countries in wave 6.  Blood spot analysis will focus on markers related to diseases and conditions typical for older people and/or are influenced by lifestyle,including cardiovascular diseases (CVD), diabetes, and markers for stress and cognition. Biomarker data may be available sometime in 2018.

Aging, Longitudinal, Cross-country data, National variation, Socio-economic status, Health care utilization, Health care quality, Health care expenditures, Chronic conditions, Biomarkers, Work, Retirement

• European Commission
• U.S. National Institute of Aging 
• Funding from participating countries

Allergies, Arthritis, Body mass index (BMI)/obesity, Cancer, Cardiovascular conditions, Depression (EURO-D depression scale), Diabetes, Heart attack, Migraine or frequent headaches, Osteoporosis, Stroke

Functional limitations (ADLs and/or IADLs), Hearing disability, Mental health disability, Special equipment use/assistive technology, Visual disability, Work limitation

Grip strength, Walking speed, Peak flow, Memory recall

• Health behavioral risks, Diet/nutrition, Health trajectories, Trends in disability
• National level variations of social & economic support 
• Retirement, Wealth, Work quality, Financial transfers, Disability insurance
• Social support, Social networks, Family structure, Volunteering
• Periods and causes of disability/periods of ill health over life course
• Consequences of illness/disability on life and work

Households (Adults ages 50 and older residing in one of the participating countries)

Individual

Europe

Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

Cross - National

Country data available:

• Wave 1 (2004-5): Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Israel, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, and Sweden
• Wave 2 (2006-7) added: Czech Republic, Ireland, and Poland
• Wave 4 (2010-11) added: Estonia, Hungary, Portugal, and Slovenia
• Wave 5 (2013) added: Luxembourg
• Wave 6 (2015) added: Croatia
• Wave 7 (2017) added: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Romania, and Slovakia

Country

Aging/Older people

• Computer assisted personal interviews (CAPI)
• Self-completed questionnaires 
• Physical examination and blood draws (starting at Wave 6) at home
• End-of–life interviews with proxy

2004-present (ongoing)

Every 2 years

• Large sample size across 28 countries allowing for comparisons of health, social and economic trends over time and across nations.
• Objective markers of health are also included (biomarkers and physical examination). 
• Outcome measures have been harmonized with other ongoing studies, such as the UK ELSA and US HRS study, allowing for comparisons of trends among different countries.
• A simplified version of the data is available for student training and teaching purposes:
• easySHARE Guide

• Attrition and loss to follow up.
• Information on earlier life medical history is self-reported and collected retrospectively.
• Imputed variables may have limited use in longitudinal analyses, as the underlying information may not be comparable.

http://www.share-project.org/

http://www.share-project.org/data-access.html 

Data Use agreement, No cost

First Results from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe

http://www.share-project.org/fileadmin/pdf_documentation/FRB1/FRB1_all_chapters.pdf

• Wave 1
• Wave 2
• Wave 3 (SHARELIFE)
• Wave 4
• Wave 5
• Wave 6
• Job Episodes Panel
• Longitudinal Weights
• All Waves 

Special SHARE datasets:

• easySHARE
• Simplified data for teaching & student training purposes)
• SHARE-RV (German SHARE subsample)
• German SHARE data linked with administrative records of the German Pension Insurance (DRV)
• REGLINK-SHAREDK: (Danish subsample)
• Links Danish SHARE Survey Data with data from Danish national registers
• Access requires special application & permission

Other longitudinal ageing studies:

• Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)
• English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA)
• Health and Retirement Study (HRS) - U.S.
• Japanese Study of Aging and Retirement (JSTAR)
• Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA)
• Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI)
• Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS)
• World Health Organization Study on global Ageing and adult health (SAGE)
  

Data Resource Profile: The Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE)

https://academic.oup.com/ije/article/42/4/992/657275

Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe: First Results from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe

http://www.share-project.org/fileadmin/pdf_documentation/FRB1/FRB1_all_chapters.pdf

Publications based on SHARE data:

http://www.share-project.org/share-publications.html

Data Documentation:

http://www.share-project.org/data-documentation.html 

The Survey of Health, Aging, and Retirement in Europe – Methodology

http://www.share-project.org/fileadmin/pdf_documentation/Methodology/Methodology_2005.pdf