Interpretation of Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) Trend Data

摘要

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) trend fact sheets provide information about whether the percentage of high school students who are engaging in specific health risk behaviors is increasing, decreasing, or staying the same over time. YRBS data are collected from a sample of the population of students in each jurisdiction. Consequently, it is not possible to determine whether the percentage of students who have engaged in a particular risk behavior has actually changed over time by simply looking at the prevalence estimates for each year on the trend fact sheets. The best way to determine whether an actual change has occurred over time is to conduct a statistical test that takes into account the YRBS sample design, changes in population characteristics over time, and all possible data points in each trend line. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has conducted appropriate statistical tests to determine whether changes have actually occurred in the prevalence of specific health risk behaviors since 1991 and between 2005 and 2007.