Contact: Jon Meerdink ([email protected]) ANN ARBOR — A valuable member of the Institute for Social Research community has passed away. Barbara Opal, who worked for the University of Michigan for 50 years, died on Thursday, January 19, 2023. She was 68. Opal spent nearly all of her career in ISR’s Center for Political Studies (CPS),… Continue reading Institute for Social Research remembers Barbara Opal, a long-time member of the ISR community
Project: CPS
Gun control measures associated with reduced police use of force
Contact: Jared Wadley As police departments and activists look for strategies to reduce excessive use of force by police, new research from the University of Michigan shows limited data, lack of transparency and irregular implementation of reforms make it difficult to determine which approaches are effective. The Black Lives Matter movement, which gained worldwide attention… Continue reading Gun control measures associated with reduced police use of force
Winter Seminar Series Examines Political Polarization
The U.S. is experiencing unprecedented levels of political polarization, especially in terms of affective polarization, or feelings of dislike and distrust towards members of the opposing political party. This winter, the Research Center for Group Dynamics at the Institute for Social Research is hosting an interdisciplinary Winter Seminar Series, free and open to the public, to… Continue reading Winter Seminar Series Examines Political Polarization
ISR honors Rosemary Sarri with research symposium
ANN ARBOR — The Institute for Social Research honored the memory of trailblazing researcher Rosemary Sarri with a research symposium on Friday, December 2, 2022. Past students and colleagues presented work in Sarri’s memory, sharing insights and discoveries achieved during and after her long career in the social sciences. The speakers were Sara Goodkind, Brittani… Continue reading ISR honors Rosemary Sarri with research symposium
Insights Speaker Series recaps 2022 midterm elections with three presentations
Contact: Jon Meerdink ([email protected]) ANN ARBOR — Three researchers with expertise in American politics weighed in on the 2022 midterm elections in the latest edition of the Insights Speaker Series on Thursday, November 17. Jowei Chen, Mara Ostfeld, and Nick Valentino shared their perspectives on the election results and the overall trends on display in… Continue reading Insights Speaker Series recaps 2022 midterm elections with three presentations
Learning science in a hurry
How Americans learned to acquire coronavirus information for personal health decisions and public policy judgments in the COVID-19 pandemic Contact: Morgan Sherburne, 734-647-1844, [email protected] ANN ARBOR—With the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, people were plunged into a situation that required them to acquire information about an emerging scientific issue to assess the adequacy of government… Continue reading Learning science in a hurry
Detroiters say quality K-12 schools is top policy priority for November elections
Contact: Morgan Sherburne, 734-647-1844, [email protected] DETROIT—Detroit residents say the quality of K-12 schools is their top priority for the November elections, followed closely by inflation, affordable housing, affordable health care and crime. That’s according to a new representative survey of Detroiters by the University of Michigan’s Detroit Metro Area Communities Study. The survey—which took place… Continue reading Detroiters say quality K-12 schools is top policy priority for November elections
Voters must wade through political information for accuracy
Contact: Jared Wadley, 734-834-7719, [email protected] ANN ARBOR—Voters can easily find endless information about political issues and candidates from various sources, from the internet to media outlets. The challenge, however, is determining the information’s accuracy and the reason why the content is shared, said Arthur Lupia, the Gerald R. Ford Distinguished University Professor at the University… Continue reading Voters must wade through political information for accuracy
Mara Ostfeld explains how skin color is more than skin deep in ISR Insights talk
Contact: Jon Meerdink ([email protected]) ANN ARBOR — The Institute for Social Research’s Insights Speaker Series returned on Thursday, October 6 with a look at the impact of skin color in the United States. Mara Ostfeld, a faculty associate at ISR’s Center for Political Studies, spoke on the different ways that a person’s skin color affects… Continue reading Mara Ostfeld explains how skin color is more than skin deep in ISR Insights talk
Mark Tessler’s new guidebook to kindle social science research in the Arab world
Contact: Tevah Platt [email protected] ANN ARBOR – The Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan is the world’s largest academic social science survey and research organization, and the torch it carries, “social science in the public interest,” reflects a determined commitment to educating future generations of social scientists. A new book on the… Continue reading Mark Tessler’s new guidebook to kindle social science research in the Arab world