Tsogolo La Thanzi (TLT and TLT-2): Couples Data, Malawi, 2009-2015 [Healthy Futures] Version 1

Tsogolo la Thanzi (TLT) is a longitudinal study in Balaka, Malawi designed to examine how young people navigate reproduction in an AIDS epidemic. Tsogolo la Thanzi means "Healthy Futures" in Chichewa, Malawi's most widely spoken language. New data are being collected to develop better understandings of the reproductive goals and behavior of young adults in Malawi -- the first cohort to never have experienced life without AIDS. To understand these patterns of family formation in a rapidly changing setting, TLT used the following approach: an intensive longitudinal design where respondents are interviewed every fourth months at TLT's centralized research center. Data collection began in May of 2009 and was completed in June of 2012. To assess changes on a longer time-horizon, a follow-up survey referred to as Tsogolo la Thanzi 2 (TLT-2) was fielded between June and August of 2015. The Couples Data include supplementary data intended to link partners across the full TLT-1 and TLT-2 time period for the purpose of conducting couple-level analyses. The purpose of this data collection was to create a couple-linking file that identifies and links respondents in relationships and describes the status of their relationships across the course of the study. Tsogolo la Thanzi (TLT) is an ongoing longitudinal study of young Malawians living within a 7-kilometer radius of Balaka. Please refer to the Baseline data (ICPSR 36863) and the TLT-2 2015 follow-up (ICPSR 38444) for more details on the overall study design. Couples Data were constructed from all 10 waves of TLT-1 (2009-2012) and TLT-2 (2015 follow-up). Each unique couple contributes 10 observations to these data and each observation details the relationship status of that couple during one wave of the TLT study. The Couples Data includes a unique identifier for each couple, COUPLEID, and identifiers for male and female respondents, MALEID and FEMALEID, which match the variable RESPID in previous Tsogolo la Thanzi (TLT) waves. These variables are designed to allow users to merge the Couples Data with the main TLT datasets. Other variables include a wave-indicating variable, two linking variables indicating responses where partners answered questions about one another, and two variables indicating relationship status. All other variables were drawn directly from previous TLT waves, and are labelled with the original variable names. Users should refer to the User Guide for additional details on how these data were compiled. Users are also advised to reference relevant questionnaires and documentation from the TLT website, namely Documentation Guide 18: Data Key (2009-2019) Response Rates: 95 percent of recruited respondents completed interviews at baseline. For information on sampling, please refer to the Tsogolo la Thanzi (TLT) Baseline data (ICPSR 36863), the TLT-2 2015 follow-up (ICPSR 38444), the Sampling Protocol, and the TLT-2 Overview available on the TLT study website. The Couples Data include a total of 1220 unique couples that were linked during the full TLT-1 and TLT-2 period. Datasets: DS1: Tsogolo La Thanzi (TLT and TLT-2): Couples Data, Malawi, 2009-2015 [Healthy Futures] Young women and men aged 15-25 in 2009 living in a 7km radius around Balaka, Malawi. face-to-face interviewFor further information, please visit the Tsogolo la Thanzi website.