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NORC at the University Chicago

Katie O’Doherty

Pronouns: She/Her

Principal Research Director
Health Sciences
Katie focuses on integrating biomeasure collection into face-to-face and multimode surveys.

Katie is a principal research director in the Health Sciences department. She handles the design, oversight and management of complex field studies with expertise in the integration of biomeasures in face-to-face surveys. Katie has been involved with all aspects of survey research operations, including sample selection, questionnaire development, systems development and testing, design of field protocols, interviewer training, data collection, and data delivery. Recently she has expanded into integrating biomeasure collection into multimode surveys. 

Katie currently serves as project director of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), a longitudinal study that integrates survey and biomeasure data collection to examine health and social relationships of older adults. During her tenure at NORC, Katie played a critical role in successfully integrating biomeasures into the NSHAP interview. She was key player in the development of protocols for collecting biomeasures in a home setting, training field interviewers to implement these protocols, and producing standards and benchmarks for monitoring and evaluating the resulting data. This effort included not only the technical requirements for completing any specific biomeasure, but also all required forms and systems for data capture and, most importantly, strategies for gaining respondent cooperation and refusal conversion.

Katie is also the project director for the Abecedarian Project at Midlife, a longitudinal study that integrates a complex questionnaire with cognitive measures and biomeasure data collection. She also serves as a subject matter expert on the High School and Beyond (HS&B) Follow-up Surveys that combine web, phone and paper surveys with a home health visit with a phlebotomist.

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Expertise

Education

MA

University of Iowa

BA

Iowa State University

Publications

National Social Life, Health & Aging Project

A pioneering nationally representative study of the intersection between social and intimate relationships and healthy aging

Client:

National Institute on Aging

High School and Beyond Sixth Follow-Up Survey

Ongoing study of 1980 sophomores/seniors tracks influence of education and labor on health and aging

Client:

University of Minnesota

The Abecedarian Project at Midlife

Following up on groundbreaking research about early childhood intervention

Client:

University of Chicago

National Social Life, Health, and Aging COVID-19 Study

Assessing how resilience or vulnerabilities might affect older adults

Client:

National Institute on Aging

Publications

Research Library & Findings