A new method of deriving velocity and acceleration curves for height from the kernel estimation of distance.

Further development of the optimal kernel (OK) method of growth curve analysis of Gasser et al. (1984b) is presented with the aim of eliminating the necessity of repeated changes in bandwidth to suit different characteristics of the velocity and acceleration curves at varying ages. After using the OK method to obtain a distance curve for height, we introduce a new method (VADK) to derive velocity and acceleration curves from the fitted distance curve. The results from growth data on 16 boys and 15 girls from the Edinburgh Longitudinal Study are presented in a preliminary test of this method in comparison with the OK estimation.