Launch of NILS

1
Launch of NILS

• Ian Diamond
• ESRC
• 8/12/06

2
Social science is the study of society and the
manner in which people behave and impact on the
world around them. It encompasses many different
disciplines that focus on particular aspects of
society or human nature. Source Lowe,2006
3
Some current challenges

• Increasing longevity
• Low long term childbearing
• Increasingly diverse household structures
• Changing patterns of migration
• Future changes in availability of kin
• Marital breakdown
• Inequalities (some proxied by geography) in
  health, wealth and education

4
Heterogeneity and Homogeneity

• Differentiated by geography
• Differentiated by employment status
• Differentiated by education
• Differentiated by health (over time)?

5
Data about life expectancy Actual and
self-reported chances of living to 75
6
Proportion not working by age and wealthMen
aged 50 to State Pension Age
Source IFS Banks and Casanova (2003) in Marmot
et al (2003) report on wave 1 ELSA data
50 to 54
55 to 59
60 to 64
7
Sources of total wealth
Total wealth decile
Source IFS Banks, Emmerson, Oldfield and Tetlow
(2005), Individuals aged 50 to SPA
8
The Census

• The biggest and the best, Diamond, 1998

9
The LS One example

• The Healthy Worker Effect

10
ESRCs Commitment to LSs

• Support for OPCS LS since 1980s
• Support for ONS LS since birth of ONS

11
Some current projects

• Life expectancies and probability of survival by
  social class and mortality rates by social class
  and cause of death, 1972-2002 Bola Akinwale,
  Office for National Statistics
• Persistent disadvantage Morten Blekesaune and
  Richard Berthoud, University of Essex
• Marco Francesconi Intergenerational mobility
  among second generation immigrants
• Emily Grundy et al Fertility, marriage and
  household associations with the health and
  mortality of women in later life
• Jason Strelitz and Kathleen Kiernan From
  immigration to inclusion? A longitudinal study of
  immigration and outcomes for children

12
The future

• Use of grid technology
• Merging and analysing data of multiple types and
  from multiple sources
• Virtual safe havens
• Ethical and regulatory issues

13
Some future challenges

• Engagement of stakeholders
• Use of data

14
ESRC/NI RD Initiative

• KT Programme
• Hopefully announced early in January

15
The co-production of knowledge

• Integrating knowledge transfer and economic
  impact throughout the research process
• Model applies to all new major research and
  infrastructure investments
• Central to our new KTEI strategy

16
Co-production model stage 1

• 1. Scoping and specifying the research agenda
  working in partnership to identify the key
  research questions
• 2. Commissioning the research stakeholders fully
  involved in assessment of proposals and decisions
  on the research to be funded

17
Co-production model stage 2

• 3. Managing the research continual user
  involvement in shaping the research as it
  develops, monitoring performance and advising on
  outcomes, KT opportunities and possible new
  directions. Opportunities for people transfer
  between sectors.
• 4. Impacts and dissemination not only
  communicating research outcomes. Involvement of
  users in enabling greater economic impact and in
  measuring and assessing those impacts.

18

• Many of the major challenges facing us in the
  21st century are all social science in nature