A newly announced three-year European Union Twinning initiative will support the development of research methods expertise at the University of Tallinn, Estonia. The aim is to strengthen research on youth transitions from a life course perspective.
Professor Ann Berrington, Fertility and Family strand leader at the Centre for Population Change (CPC), will be part of the University of Southampton research team alongside Southampton Lead Professor Ros Edwards and Dr Susie Weller. They will work in partnership with Professors Saar at the University of Tallinn, Blossfeld at the University of Bamberg, Germany, and Liefbroer at the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI).
Professor Berrington comments: “I am excited about this EU project which brings together leaders in the qualitative and quantitative analysis of transitions to adulthood, including our international partners: Professors Saar (Tallinn), Blossfeld (Bamberg) and Liefbroer (NIDI). A mixed methods approach is likely to lead to a better understanding of the ways in which young adults’ lives are becoming more uncertain, and the implications of this for their later life courses".
The ‘YouthLife’ project aims to bridge qualitative and quantitative approaches to life course research with the aim of advancing mixed methods design for the new Estonian Longitudinal Study of Youth. It will also foster mutually advantageous networking and knowledge exchange between the international partners.
The project is funded by the EU Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme and is due to start in January 2021.
See the full press release from the Centre for Population Change here.