Research & Innovation Services

My first social science course in university was not in sociology but demography. I was then a maths major. I was quickly captivated by what I now know is the sociological imagination – the intersection and interaction of history, wider social forces and structures, with individual biography. Each is shaped by the other.  In demography, the intersection is decidedly counter-intuitive. Let me illustrate with an example: Couples in the post World War II period did not rub their hands together saying, “Oh boy, let’s have larger numbers of children, so that down the line, policy-makers will be worried when they all get older at once.” It is clearly ridiculous at the individual or micro-level, yet the individual decisions of couples then collectively make a huge difference to our population age structure today and going forward. It is this counter-intuitive relation of individual actions to collective challenges and behaviours that fascinated me then and still does.

My research is in population change, life course, and family change across the globe. Clearly, this is a hot topic of strong public interest not only in Canada but around the world. I have been regularly in demand in policy circles and by the public and media. There is significant hunger for better understanding of population issues and changes.

I have been the recipient of many, many honours, the most recent being the first social scientist at the University of Lethbridge to be awarded a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair.  Being elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1994 was a significant honour, particularly being inducted into the Royal Society at Rideau Hall by the Governor General of Canada. Another huge honour was being awarded the University Cup at the University of Alberta, the highest honour that University offers for significant contributions over a sustained period to both teaching and research.  Perhaps the biggest honour I have ever received, and one I continue to receive, is the knowledge that my research has made, and is making, a difference to policy around the world. When I first made that discovery, it was a bit of a shock. We in research tend to think we work along talking with our peers (it is peer-review after all that gets our work into circulation in journals). And policy-making occurs behind the curtains, so an article, a talk, or a policy consultation based on research can have an effect not immediately visible. It is immensely gratifying to discover that one’s research has made and is making a difference in the world.

Students have always been fundamental to my research in several ways. I am a firm believer and practitioner of research walking and talking. It usually does that in a classroom where I share my research with eager students. Students have also asked crucial questions in classes and in discussions about course material, that push my research in new and exciting directions.  My graduate students, many of whom are illustrious academics now, have been colleagues in the research venture. They not only are ‘trained’ as granting agencies characterize the process, but engage with the tough questions of research and in that way, the educational process goes both ways. I have learned greatly from students.

Research is so desperately needed in this crazy world, possibly social science research even more so, although in policy circles, it is not seen as valuable. Most of the most intractable problems facing humanity in the 21st century are human or social problems. We need more real knowledge and understanding of these social problems. So, my dream funding would elevate social sciences funding first to be comparable with medical/health funding and with funding for the sciences. I would then invest more, much more, in big picture research questions such as how many people can the earth support, how can we feed and provide quality of life to people now deprived, and how can we reduce conflict, war, abuse and deprivation?