YRBSS Frequently Asked Questions

YRBSS data are not available by zip code, census tract, or school. Sample size limitations and confidentiality requirements do not support analyses at these levels.

YRBSS data are available for a small number of specifically funded local school districts or counties. CDC funds certain local school districts to conduct the YRBS. Some of those local school districts are county-based.

See Participation Maps & History for more information about county-based local school districts with YRBSS data. Data are only available for local school districts or counties on the list. No other local YRBSS data are available.

County-level identifiers are not available in the National YRBS data set or in most state data sets.

YRBSS datasets are available for the United States overall, most states, some territories, some local school districts, and some tribal governments. Availability depends on YRBSS participation, data quality, and data-sharing policies.

See Participation Maps & History for more information about data availability.

National YRBS datasets and documentation are available for download at YRBSS Data & Documentation. There is no charge for the data nor is permission needed to download or use the data.

Results are not available from every state for several reasons. First, multiple states do not participate in the YRBSS. Second, some states that do participate do not achieve a high enough overall response rate to receive representative results. Therefore, their results are not posted on the CDC website and CDC does not distribute their data.

The Participation Map and the Participation History & Data Quality tables provide more details on which states participated in the YRBSS and whether they obtained representative data.

National YRBSS datasets and documentation are available for download at YRBSS Data & Documentation. There is no charge for the data nor is permission needed to download or use the data.

The national YRBSS datasets posted on the YRBSS website do not contain state or region identifiers because the national samples are not constructed to provide representative data at state or region levels.

However, national YRBSS datasets with state identifiers included are available upon request using the YRBSS Data Request Form.

The national YRBSS datasets will not contain data from every state because the national YRBS is an independent sample; it is not the aggregate of individual state and local datasets.

No, the national YRBSS results are not the combination of state and local school district data. The national YRBSS data are a separately drawn sample of high school students in grades 9–12 in the U.S. Some states may not have any schools chosen as part of the sample. States and local school districts each use a sample design that produces a representative sample of students in grades 9–12 for their state or local school district.

If you want to analyze state or local school district data please see Participation Maps & History for more information about data availability.

No. The national YRBSS sample is designed to be representative of students in grades 9–12 in the United States overall but does necessarily include students from every state.

National YRBSS datasets are available in two file formats: Access and ASCII. Additionally, SAS and SPSS programs are provided to convert the ASCII data into SAS and SPSS datasets. They can be downloaded at YRBSS Data & Documentation.

State, local school district, territory, and tribal government data sets from surveys conducted since 1999 are available in SAS, SPSS, ASCII, and Access formats. State, local school district, territory, and tribal government datasets from surveys conducted prior to 1999 are available in ASCII only.

State, territorial, and tribal governments, as well as local agencies and nongovernmental organizations use YRBSS data to set and track progress toward meeting school health and health promotion program goals.

They also use YRBSS data to support modification of school health curricula or other programs, support new legislation and policies that promote health, and seek funding and other support for new initiatives.

CDC and other federal agencies routinely use YRBSS data to assess trends in priority health behaviors among high school students, monitor progress toward achieving national health objectives, and evaluate the contribution of broad prevention efforts in schools and other settings.

These activities support efforts to reduce health risk behaviors among young people.

The Increasing Utility of School Health Data to Guide Evidence-Based Interventions - Smith Grant - 2022 - Journal of School Health - Wiley Online Library

Smith-Grant J, Pierre K, Stinson J, et al. J Sch Health 2022;92(12):1214-1216.

Yes. The YRBSS tracks aggregate changes in student behavior over time.

No. A new sample of schools and students is drawn for each survey cycle. Students who participated cannot be tracked because no identifying information is collected.

Although prevalence estimates generated for students in each racial or ethnic subgroup are representative of these students nationally, caution should be used when analyzing and interpreting these data. Because of the small numbers of students in some racial or ethnic subgroups who participate in any single National YRBSS, the estimates may lack precision. Precision can be improved by combining multiple years of National YRBSS data.

See Software for Analysis of YRBS Data for a review of software packages suitable for analyzing YRBSS data and guidance on how to use them.

National, state, territorial, and tribal government data and local data come from separate scientific samples of schools and students. National YRBSS data are not the aggregate of the state YRBSS data sets. State, territorial, and tribal government data and local YRBS data are not subsets of the National YRBSS data set. Both national, state, territory, tribal government YRBSs and local YRBSs all follow the same survey methodology and use the same core questionnaire.

No. However, middle school results are available for some states, districts, territories, and tribes that have elected to conduct a middle school YRBSS in their jurisdiction. Middle school YRBSS results are available on Youth Online.

No. The National YRBSS was not designed to produce representative estimates at the state level.

This type of analysis has significant limitations and should be conducted with caution. A state-level characteristic, such as the presence of a state law, can be added to a regression model as an exogenous (independent) variable and will yield statistically correct estimates. However, it is important to fully consider the context of these estimates.

The National YRBSS was not designed to produce representative estimates at the state level. The number of students chosen from each state varies considerably and is usually too small to generate precise or stable state-level estimates. In addition, fewer than 50 states are included in the national sample each cycle.

Researchers should fully investigate the implications and interpretations of this type of analysis and should understand the sampling design of the National YRBSS and how that design might influence their results. See Methodology of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System for more information about the National YRBSS sampling design.

No. The National YRBSS was not designed to produce estimates by urban or rural status. In the National YRBSS, primary sampling units (PSUs) are selected based on urban and non-urban definitions, but it does not necessarily follow that a non-urban area is rural. Urban status indicates only that the PSU was one of the largest 54 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). Non-urban indicates that the PSU was not one of the largest 54 MSAs. It could be rural but is not necessarily rural. See Methodology of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System for more information about the National YRBSS sampling design.

Before each YRBS cycle begins, CDC seeks input from subject matter experts (both inside and outside of CDC) regarding what questions should be changed, added, or deleted. This input is compiled for review by December of the odd-numbered year preceding the survey cycle (such as, December 1, 2019, for the 2021 YRBSS).

Proposed changes, additions, and deletions are then placed on a ballot, which is sent to the YRBS coordinators at all sites (states, territories, and local school districts). Each site votes for or against each proposed change, addition, and deletion. CDC considers the results of this balloting process when finalizing the standard questionnaire, which includes about 89 questions. A majority of sites must approve each change, addition, or deletion before it can be implemented.

For the national YRBSS, about 10 questions are added to the standard questionnaire each cycle. These questions typically reflect emerging areas of interest for CDC and stakeholders.

Additional questions of interest are included on an Optional Question List, from which sites can select questions for their questionnaire. Final wording for questionnaires and the Optional Question List is based on the results of cognitive testing and input from subject matter experts.

All suggested additions and changes should be submitted using the YRBSS Data Request Form. These suggestions must be received by December 1 of the odd-numbered year preceding the survey cycle (for example, December 1, 2019, for the 2021 YRBS). All suggestions are then compiled and reviewed by CDC before they are added to the ballot process described above.

Yes. Beginning with the 2021 cycle, the national YRBSS questionnaire is available in Spanish. Translation of state and local YRBSS questionnaires is left to the discretion of state and local agencies.

YRBS questionnaires are designed to be administered in a school setting. It is important to consider the language used in regular classrooms and common second languages, if any, spoken by the student population. Check with school officials before deciding whether or not translation is needed.

YRBSS questionnaires in English and Spanish are in the public domain. Questionnaires may be translated to any language. No specific permission is required.

There is no evidence that simply asking students about health behaviors will encourage them to try that behavior.

The YRBSS questionnaire should be cited as follows:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [survey year] Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Available at: www.cdc.gov/YRBS. Accessed on [date].

YRBSS data in a publication should be cited as follows:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [survey year] Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data. Available at: www.cdc.gov/yrbs. Accessed on [date].

The YRBSS assesses six categories of priority health behaviors. These categories are behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; sexual behaviors related to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV infection; alcohol and other drug use; tobacco use; unhealthy dietary behaviors; and inadequate physical activity. In addition, the YRBSS assesses obesity, overweight, and other important health issues.

Yes. State and local agencies that conduct a YRBS can add or delete questions to meet their policy or programmatic needs. Specific guidance on the parameters that must be followed during questionnaire modification is provided to those agencies funded by CDC to conduct a YRBS.

Yes. All students in sampled classrooms are included as long as they are able to respond to the questionnaire in a private and anonymous matter.

Yes. CDC worked with partners and researchers for several cycles to develop a credible question to capture whether students identify as transgender. Cognitive interviews conducted in March 2018 indicated that the question functioned well.

The question has been included on the YRBS Optional Question List since the 2019 YRBS cycle, and CDC added it to the standard YRBS questionnaire for the 2023 cycle.

Research indicates that data of this nature may be gathered as credibly from adolescents as from adults. Internal reliability checks help identify the small percentage of students who falsify their answers. To obtain truthful answers, survey administrators must ensure that students perceive the survey as important and know that procedures have been developed to protect their privacy and allow for anonymous participation.

The Methodology of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System contains a description of most of the methodological studies conducted on the YRBSS questionnaires or YRBSS data collection procedures.

These methodological studies include the following:

• test-retest reliability studies on the 1991 and 1999 versions of the questionnaire;
• a study assessing the validity of self-reported height and weight;
• a study assessing the effect of changing the race or ethnicity question;
• a study examining how varying honesty appeals, question wording, and data-editing protocols affect prevalence estimates; and
• a study examining how varying the mode and setting of survey administration affects prevalence estimates.

The YRBSS questionnaires are in the public domain, and no permission is required to use them. You may download the questionnaires at no charge.

See A Guide to Conducting Your Own Youth Risk Behavior Survey for information useful to communities and groups that plan to conduct their own YRBS.

CDC provides data processing assistance only to states, territories, and local school districts that it funds directly to conduct a YRBSS. However, information on how the data are processed can be found on the Methods page and in the Methodology of the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System.

CDC has funding available for all 50 states, a small number of territories and tribes, and eligible school districts and consortia during each 5-year funding cycle.