My ATP son/daughter is in their 30’s, why am I still being asked to complete surveys?

This is a common question we get from ATP parents and it’s a good one. We are now at a really exciting time in the ATP, when we are able to look at how your son/daughter’s health and well being during childhood and adolescence may influence their lives as adults. It is so important to look at these outcomes in the context of your life as well, and how things are going from your perspective. We are also interested in understanding how relationships between parents and their children develop and change (for better or worse) over the life course. So your continued involvement is very important!

Why do I need to provide alternative contact details?

As the ATP is an ongoing study, we need to contact you from time to time – to send you newsletters, invite you to participate in surveys or to check your details are correct. We ask that you provide us with the details of someone who will always know how to contact you in case we are unable to contact you on your listed phone numbers or email address. This information will only be used to get in touch with you, and will not be used as part of the research project in any way. To update your alternative contact person/s, please contact the ATP team, or for study members, simply respond to our brief, twice yearly email checking whether your details are up-to-date.

Why do you ask for a saliva sample from my child?

Study members who are participating in the ATP Generation 3 study sometimes ask this. We request a small sample of saliva (spit) and/or cheek cells from your child at age 8 weeks, 12 months and/or 4 years. This allows us to start looking into the exciting world of how social behaviour and the environment literally get “under the skin”. The samples we collect from your child are not for diagnostic research and so we are not looking for any particular disease or disorder. Rather we are interested in how the environment can change the way genes work to shape child development. The saliva sample is easily collected via either soft cheek swabs or a sponge (depending on the age of the child) with assistance from our qualified research team. The samples we collect are labelled with a unique ID number – no names are stored with the sample. Samples are kept at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne. If you would like to know more about this process, please contact the ATP team.