Survey Sampling

Mothers who are Los Angeles County residents who delivered a baby during the preceding two to six months are eligible for LAMB.  The survey asks about some events that happened several months prior to pregnancy, so mothers who have babies over seven months old are ineligible because of the difficulty they might have recalling events accurately. Adoptive mothers are ineligible because many of the questions ask about attitudes and perceptions only known to the birth mother.  

Data Collection

The Project adopts a mixed data collection method from the CDC's Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). 
All mothers chosen to participate in LAMB receive a letter that explains the project, invites participation, and announces the arrival of the survey packet in 10 to 14 days.  Respondents receive a $20 to $25 Ralphs/Food4Less certificate.  Mothers who do not respond to the survey in two weeks are sent a reminder postcard.  After 7-10 days, non-respondents are mailed a second survey packet.  Lastly, non-respondents are mailed a third and final survey packet.