Early Childhood Study Participant Information

The following information is intended for Early Childhood study participants.

Thank you for taking part in the Early Childhood study! This research would not be possible without you and many other parents across the city.

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out using our toll-free number, 855-447-2015, or email us at [email protected]. If you leave a voicemail, remember to tell us your full name and primary phone number so we can get back to you.

Other important contacts

Below we have answered questions that study participants often have. Please get in touch if you have a question that is not listed.

You (or your child's other parent) took a survey for the NYC Department of Health and agreed to be contacted again for a follow-up survey. The company that did the surveys for the Department of Health passed on the phone numbers of people who agreed to be contacted for a follow-up survey.

Unfortunately, we are only enrolling parents of children who were randomly selected for the New York City Department of Health survey. This ensures that the study will be representative of parents in New York City. 

Yes! We can email you a survey link. Call us at our toll-free number, 855-447-2015, to get started.

You can try, but the survey may not display correctly on all phones. If you get stuck, you can call the toll-free number, 855-447-2015, to complete the survey with one of our interviewers.

Call the toll-free number 855-447-2015 or email us about the problem. We will contact you to trouble-shoot. If that doesn't work, you can finish the survey by phone.

Click here to download the consent information for the online or phone survey. 

If you prefer, we can mail the consent information to you. Just call 855-447-2015, or ask your interviewer when you complete a phone survey.

Study participants usually get their checks within 2-3 weeks of completing their survey. If you haven't received your check, you can contact us at the study office 855-447-2015 and verify that we have your correct address.

You can also email us at [email protected] about your survey payment. 

Because our project uses an account at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, you can cash your survey payment check for FREE at any Chase Bank branch. Click here to download a letter describing the policy, which you can show to bank staff when you go in to cash your check. A map of Chase Bank locations in New York City is here. Note that you do not have to be a member of Chase Bank to cash your check there for free.

If you prefer, you can call 855-447-2015 or email us at [email protected] and we will send you a copy of the letter and map by mail.

Study participants often ask us this question. We are not allowed to donate to a charity from research funds. However, you can accept the survey incentive and make your own donation.

If you prefer not to provide your name and address, that's completely fine. You will not receive the survey payments but you can continue to participate. If you change your mind at any point, just tell your interviewer or add your contact information at the end of your online survey.

Call us at 855-447-2015 or email us at [email protected] with your new phone number, email address, or mailing address.

Yes, you will still be eligible.

We hope to continue the study for several years. Parents may opt out of any survey they do not wish to participate in.

Click here to see the study results as they are posted.

Your answers to the survey will be completely confidential and neither your name nor any other identifying information will be used in any reports based on these surveys. All survey responses are securely stored on encrypted computers at Columbia University. Names and contact information are stored separately from survey responses, and are also stored on encrypted computers at Columbia University.

Most surveys take about 15 minutes to complete.

Because of human subjects protection rules, we cannot hire past or current survey participants on our project. However, you are welcome to apply for other jobs at Columbia by clicking here.

Read about the NYC Longitudinal Study of Young Children’s Health and Development