Abstract
In 1995-1996, the MacArthur Midlife Research Network carried out a national survey of over 7,000 Americans aged 25 to 74 ( ICPSR 2760 ). The purpose of the study was to investigate the role of behavioral, psychological, and social factors in understanding age-related differences in physical and mental health.
With support from the National Institute on Aging, an initial follow-up of the original Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) samples was conducted in 2004 (MIDUS 2). The daily stress and cognitive functioning projects were repeated at MIDUS 2; in addition the protocol was expanded to include biomarkers and neuroscience. In 2005, a baseline sample of 592 African Americans from Milwaukee was added to MIDUS to examine health issues in minority populations.
In 2013, a third wave (MIDUS 3) of survey data was collected on longitudinal participants. Data collection for this follow-up wave largely repeated baseline assessments (e.g., phone interview and extensive self-administered questionnaire), with additional questions in selected areas (e.g., economic recession experiences, optimism and coping, stressful life events, and caregiving). A third wave of cognitive functioning data and a second wave of the Milwaukee sample were also collected. Data collection for the daily diary, biomarkers, and neuroscience is ongoing. This dataset includes mortality information for all known MIDUS decedents (N=2,822) from the Core National and Milwaukee samples as of December 2025.
The primary purpose of this study was to obtain information about the underlying cause of death for Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) and Milwaukee decedents.