David Lam
Director of PSC

Population Studies Center

The Population Studies Center has a rich history as an interdisciplinary community of scholars in population research and training. For almost 50 years, we have been a leader in collecting data for population research and in creating new data collection and analysis methods. Our faculty and students conduct research in every region of the world.

Our Services and Activities

Research

• We draw our almost 100 affiliated faculty members from the University of Michigan and the larger community of university-based scholars in Southeast Michigan. Disciplines include anthropology, biostatistics, economics, geography, history, natural resources, political science, psychology, public health, public policy, social work, sociology, and statistics.
• Our independent population researchers are at the forefront of key areas of demographic research, including family formation, fertility, and children; human capital, labor, and wealth; health, disability, and mortality; aging; methodology; and regional studies. In addition to research on the United States we have a long history of international research and training, including major projects in China, Nepal, and South Africa.
• We produce, archive, and share key population data sets, benefiting population researchers worldwide and contributing to improvements for many of the populations studied.
• We have led methodological advances in research design, survey research methods, quantitative analysis, qualitative methods, and mixed-method approaches.

Training

• We provide apprenticeship training and fellowship support to graduate students in sociology, economics, public health, and anthropology who specialize in the field of demography. Our goal is to produce trained social scientists with broad knowledge in population studies and specialized skills in statistical and demographic techniques who can undertake independent research on an array of population topics.
• We offer postdoctoral training to demographic researchers in a broad range of fields.
• We provide short-term collaborative research and training opportunities for international scholars at the invitation of our researchers. Scholars receive advanced training in conjunction with collaborative work.
• Our Social Science Data Analysis Network provides materials to introduce data analysis to undergraduates and high school students. The Network includes CensusScope, an easy-to-use
• tool for investigating U.S. demographic trends.