The original ACE study, adapted surveys, and expanded surveys are listed below. The surveys are generally organized alphabetically. However, some resources have been prioritized to the top of each category.
If you have other surveys you think belong on this list, please provide that information in a comment. Thank you!
Original ACE Study
CDC-Kaiser Permanente ACE Study, 1998
Description: The CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study is one of the largest investigations of childhood abuse and neglect and later-life health and well-being. The original ACE Study was conducted at Kaiser Permanente from 1995 to 1997 with two waves of data collection. Over 17,000 Health Maintenance Organization members from Southern California receiving physical exams completed confidential surveys regarding their childhood experiences and current health status and behaviors.
Got Your ACE Score?
Description: Determine your ACE and Resilience Scores and get an explanation of what those scores mean at ACEsTooHigh.com.
Adapted ACE surveys
BRFSS Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) Module, 2009
Description: The BRFSS Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) module was adapted from the original CDC-Kaiser ACE Study and is used to collect information on child abuse and neglect and household challenges. The module is available in English and Spanish.
11 questions separate alcohol and other drugs, and different types of sexual abuse; there are no questions about neglect. Some states that have used the BRFSS module have added questions about neglect.
U.S. State ACE survey reports
Description: Link to state reports using Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) ACEs module data.
Adverse Childhood Experiences: National and State-Level Prevalence, 2014
Description: In this brief, the prevalence of one or more ACEs among children ages birth through 17, as reported by their parents, using nationally representative data from the 2011/2012 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) is described. Authors estimate the prevalence of eight specific ACEs for the U.S., contrasting the prevalence of specific ACEs among the states and between children of different age groups.
The corresponding fact sheet lists at-a-glance the 8 adverse childhood experiences Child Trends used to measure the prevalence of ACEs.
Loma Linda University Whole Child Assessment, 2016
Description: Attached to this blog post is the Whole Child Assessment, which is being used by pediatricians to screen for ACEs at Loma Linda University. It is available in English and Spanish.
National Survey of Children's Health, 2016
Description: The National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, and is conducted by the US Census Bureau. In summer 2016, participants were mailed an invitation to complete both a household screener and child-level questionnaire online using a secure, confidential website.
The Family Center's ACE Survey
Description: The survey asks the 10 original ACE questions in different ways to accommodate different languages used to describe particular types of trauma.
The Montefiore Medical Group Team Patient Screening Tool
Description: The Montefioire Medical Group Team uses an optional patient screening tool to identify the number of stressful events to which a child is exposed and help prevent or lower the risk for health problems in child patients. The same questions as those in the CDC-Kaiser assessment are asked, though the question stem language is adapted to read, "Since your child was born..."
Expanded ACE Surveys
Adverse Childhood Experiences in Shelby County Tennessee, 2014
Description: The ACE Task Force of Shelby County, TN, commissioned the Philadelphia-based Public Health Management Corporation to conduct an assessment of prevalence of ACEs in the Memphis area. Data of more than 1,500 adults across the County were collected through a confidential, random telephone survey in the summer of 2014.
For the purpose of the survey, ACEs include abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction. You can view the survey questions beginning on Page 5 of the full report.
The Center for Youth Wellness Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire, 2015
Description: The CYW Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (CYW ACE-Q) was developed through the Bayview Child Health Center partnership. The Questionnaire is free, but you must complete a quick, online form to gain access.
Section 2 of the Questionnaire includes seven (CYW ACE-Q Child) or nine (CYW ACE-Q Teen and CYW ACE-Q Teen SR) additional ACEs assessing for exposure to additional early life stressors that were identified by experts and community stakeholders. These items are hypothesized to also lead to disruption of the neuro-endocrine-immune axis, but are not yet correlated with population level data about risk of disease. They include involvement in the foster care system; bullying; loss of parent or guardian due to death, deportation or migration; medical trauma; exposure to community violence; and discrimination due to race, sexual orientation, place of birth, disability or religion.
The Children's Clinic ACE and Resilience Survey, 2015
Description: Pediatricians at the Children’s Clinic in Portland, OR, ask parents about their own childhood adversity in an effort to prevent their children from experiencing childhood trauma. They also include a resilience survey; they are using one of the Connor-Davidson surveys. Their 14-question ACE survey is attached at the bottom of this list.
Elsie Allen Health Center ACE Survey
Description: Students answer 6 additional questions, plus the original ACE Study 10-question survey. The questionnaire was designed by the clinic staff to address the kinds of experiences – such as homelessness and pregnancy – that are common in their students.
Improving the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study Scale, 2012
Description: The authors of this study intended to test and improve upon the list of adverse childhood experiences from the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study scale by examining the ability of a broader range to correlate with mental health symptoms. Additional victimization and adversity questions are included.
The ‘Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology of Exposure’ (MACE) Scale for the Retrospective Assessment of Abuse and Neglect During Development, 2015
Description: The 52-item MACE was developed following a review of questions contained in the ACE Study Family History Questionnaire, ACE Score Calculator, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), Juvenile Victimization Questionnaire, Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse Interview, Social Experience Questionnaire (SEQ-S), Parental and Peer Verbal Aggression Scales Conflict Tactics Scale, Abuse and Trauma Questionnaire, and Traumatic Antecedents Interview. The goal was to select examples of maltreatment (specifically forms of abuse, neglect, and peer victimization) that individuals directly experienced.
Philadelphia Urban ACE Study, 2013
Description: The Institute for Safe Families (ISF) formed the ACE Task Force in 2012 with an interest in examining the prevalence and impact of ACEs in Philadelphia, an urban city with a socially and racially diverse population. The Philadelphia Urban ACE Survey was a follow-up to PHMC’s Southeastern Pennsylvania Household Health Survey (SEPA HHS) – one of the largest local health surveys in the country.
In addition to the standard ACE indicators, the survey also asks 5 questions to measure stresses associated with growing up in an urban community: 1. witnessing violence other than a mother being abused, 2. experiencing discrimination based on race or ethnicity, 3. feeling unsafe in your neighborhood or not trusting your neighbors, 4. bullying, and 5. ever in foster care.
WHO Adverse Childhood Experiences International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ)
Description: The ACE International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ) is intended to measure ACEs in all countries, and the association between them and risk behaviors in later life. ACE-IQ is designed for administration to people aged 18 years and older. Questions cover family dysfunction; physical, sexual and emotional abuse and neglect by parents or caregivers; peer violence; witnessing community violence, and exposure to collective violence. ACE-IQ is currently being validated through trial implementation as part of broader health surveys. Includes questions about bullying and community violence.
And for more potential ACEs, see Health Care, Family and Community Factors Associated with Mental, Behavioral and Developmental Disorders in Early Childhood -- United States, 2011-2012, which appeared in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report March 11, 2016.
Youth Risk Behavior Survey (Monroe County, NY), 2015
Description: The Monroe County Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is conducted in county public high schools during the school year. Topics questioned include: violence, bullying, tobacco/e-cigarette use, alcohol use, marijuana use, other drug use, and sexual risks.
Additional Survey Resources
Expanded ACE Pyramid
Description: In this article -- Adding Layers to the ACEs pyramid...What do you think? -- Kanwarpal Dhaliwal makes the case for adding two more layers to the ACEs pyramid: social location (including systems trauma), and historical trauma.
Comments (0)