Cohort Profile: The Dutch ‘TRacking Adolescents’ Individual Lives’ Survey’; TRAILS

Extract

How did the study come about?

Mental disorders account for one-fifth of the total burden of disease in the Western world,¹ and, as such, should require due attention from the international epidemiological research community. Good quality research on the aetiology and course of psychopathology in the population is impossible without reliable and valid data from long-term longitudinal cohort studies.

Research on psychopathology in adolescence is important both from a scientific point of view and from the point of view of prevention and public health policy. Adolescence is characterized by major biological, psychological and social challenges and opportunities, where interaction between the individual and environment is intense, and developmental pathways are set in motion or become established.^2–4 Furthermore, adolescent psychopathology can have important consequences for education, relationships and socioeconomic achievement in later life.^5–7 These characteristics of adolescence do not only set high demands for cohort studies aiming to capture the most salient aspects of developmental pathways, they also ensure a great gain in empirical knowledge and an invaluable source of information for public health policy from such studies. In order to fully benefit from this potential, a multidisciplinary approach is essential.