Analytic methods

News

Kopelman: How to win without winning

May 29, 2022

Written by Shirli Kopelman We are fortunate to have known leading intellectual and longtime Michigan faculty member Anatol Rapoport (1911-2007) as a father, friend, and colleague. He was a mathematical psychologist, philosopher, and pioneer of...

Publication

Stange and co-authors study cost differences across fields of study at colleges and universities

Apr 29, 2022

Determining the monetary value of an education often is calculated based on what students pay in tuition and fees compared to what they earn after graduation. But, Kevin Stange, Ford School associate professor of public policy, and four other...

Publication

New language-learning algorithms risk reinforcing inequalities, social fragmentation, per U-M study

Apr 27, 2022

The use of large language models could transform many facets of modern life, including how policymakers assess public sentiment about pending legislation, how patients evaluate their medical care and how scientists could translate research findings...

News

Ford School highly ranked in latest survey, recognized again as the #1 social policy program

Mar 28, 2022

The Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan is recognized again as one of America’s top graduate programs in public affairs, according to the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings. According to the rankings, based...

Image of Weill Hall with the words "Top-ranked. World-class."

In the Media

Farley breaks down population trends following pandemic

Mar 25, 2022 News Nation

The COVID-19 pandemic made big cities less attractive, with no events to attend or restaurants to sample. Reynolds Farley, a research scientist at the Population Studies Center, discussed the trend. “Cities growing and declining, that’s strongly...

Photo of Ren Farley speaking into a megaphone as he leads a tour of U-M students in downtown Detroit

Publication

Atran studies important differences between Islamist terrorist groups and other criminal groups

Feb 21, 2022

Islamist terrorist organizations are often described as similar to other criminal organizations, like gangs. A new study, “Willingness to sacrifice among convicted Islamist terrorists versus violent gang members and other criminals,” published by...

Publication

Atran establishes values, strength of beliefs, and character as essential in the will to fight in wars

Feb 15, 2022

During the war in Afghanistan, America’s longest war, the Taliban suffered high casualties and territorial losses against a well-funded and well-armed opponent. Despite these circumstances, the Taliban endured the lengthy war, and ultimately emerged...

In the Media

U-M listed as one of America's best universities for social science research, including public policy

Jan 31, 2022 Forbes

The Higher Education Research and Development (HERD) Survey, recently released by the National Science Foundation (NSF), measures the dollars spent annually on research and development at American colleges and universities. The survey summarizes the...

News

Ford School faculty named among “Top 2% Scientists”

Jan 26, 2022

Stanford University named 16 Ford School faculty on their “Top 2% Scientists” list, representing the most-cited scientists with career and single-year impact in various disciplines. The faculty researchers join over 180,000 scientists...

News

Achieving comprehensive immigration reform in 48 hours!

Jan 23, 2022

Excitement was in the air as some 150 senators, ambassadors and representatives of national and international interest groups eyed each other at an eventing meeting, anxious, suspicious, hopeful that a comprehensive immigration reform package, so...

Publication

Student questions fuel productive change - Stevenson

Jan 12, 2022

How can professors encourage students to question them? In a recent article, “Sparking Student Curiosity,” Betsey Stevenson, professor of public policy and economics, lays out her philosophy on teaching and guiding critical thinking. Since they...

Photo of Betsey Stevenson leading a class

Alumni spotlight

Stephanie Sandoval-Pistorius focuses on people-centered medical research

Jan 10, 2022

Stephanie Sandoval-Pistorius is pursuing her PhD in neuroscience at Michigan Medicine, studying the molecular underpinnings of Parkinson’s disease. She will go on to UCSF for her postdoctoral training, where she will investigate pathological brain...

News

Jacob and Weiland rank in annual Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings

Jan 10, 2022

Education Week has unveiled the 2022 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings, which rank the 200 university-based scholars in the United States who did the most last year to shape educational practice and policy. Brian Jacob and Christina Weiland...

Headshots of Brian Jacob and Christina Weiland

Alumni spotlight

Beza Merid, PhD: STPP gave me insights into how policy can develop justice-based health innovations

Dec 23, 2021

Beza Merid was a faculty affiliate with STPP when he became a research fellow in cardiology at Michigan Medicine. Now at Arizona State University, he appreciates how influencing innovation policy can create better health outcomes for underserved...

Publication

IES Predoctoral Fellows Moffett and Wessiman, Weiland, and colleagues explore effects of pre-k classroom organization

Dec 16, 2021

What are the best ways to judge how instruction in pre-kindergarten classrooms is organized? Linkages between facets of classroom organization such as better organization of materials, smooth transitions, and clear routines are thought to make...

Publication

Axelrod - "Preventing extreme polarization of political attitudes"

Dec 15, 2021

After the 2020 general election and the January 6 insurrection, the country seems more politically polarized than ever. Ford School professor Robert Axelrod, the William D. Hamilton Distinguished University Professor Emeritus, along with Joshua J....

State & Hill

Faculty findings, fall 2021

Dec 13, 2021

Who would pay if we stop using natural gas? New research co-authored by economist Catherine Hausman considers the equity impacts of transitioning from natural gas to other energy sources. According to the U.S. Energy Information...

Yellow gas pipes in natural gas treatment plant

News

University of Michigan and the City of Flint partner on new fiscal reporting pilot program for transparency, better governance

Dec 1, 2021

The water crisis in Flint and the bankruptcy in Detroit were separate events that had a common theme -- they had been caused in part by fiscal challenges decades in the making. Avoiding similar tragedies in the future could be tied to greater...

Photo of a large metal arch with a sign reading "Flint: Vehicle city" at a gateway to Flint, Michigan

News

Leveraging technology to improve education outcomes

Nov 29, 2021

Researchers from U-M campuses and all across the country are using education data provided by the State of Michigan to study a wide variety of topics ranging from the effects of COVID-19 on public school enrollment to the role of neighborhood...

Glasses rest on a desktop with various coding windows open on a screen behind

Publication

Supporting 'Preschool for All' in Washington state

Nov 12, 2021

Policy Brief from the University of Michigan’s Education Policy Initiative outlines a vision for high-quality universal preschool in the state of Washington High-quality preschool helps prepare children for kindergarten and promotes their...

Photo of a teacher and three young elementary school students around a classroom table

In the Media

Michelmore explains how the Child Tax Credit may effect labor force participation

Nov 10, 2021 Washington Post

In the debate over the expanded Child Tax Credit, economists disagree on how many parents will leave the labor force. Katherine Michelmore speaks to the Washington Post about her research and why previous estimates are too high. "We’ve since done...

Photo of Katherine Michelmore teaching a Ford School class

News

Shaefer inspires students, salutes mentors, at inaugural Kohn lecture

Nov 6, 2021

Associate Dean for Research and Policy Engagement Luke Shaefer delivered the inaugural Hermann and Amalie Kohn Professorship in Social Policy and Social Justice Lecture. Shaefer, who also serves as faculty director of Poverty Solutions, is the first...

News

Lin discusses increased surveillance on faculty of Chinese heritage

Oct 29, 2021

The Department of Justice's China Initiative was launched in 2018 to reduce theft of U.S. intellectual property funded by the government. A recent survey by the U-M Association of Chinese Professors (UM-ACP) found an increased sense of worry over...

Photo of Ann Chih Lin in Weill Hall's 2nd floor hallway

Publication

Latino Michiganders: Key findings from U-M Poverty Solutions

Oct 15, 2021

ANN ARBOR—As National Hispanic Heritage Month, which celebrates the culture and contributions of Latinos in the U.S., comes to a close, Poverty Solutions at the University of Michigan highlights key data from its research that relates to Latinos...

In the Media

Axelrod discusses strategy, real-world implications of game theory

Oct 4, 2021 Freakonomics podcast

Robert Axelrod, William D. Hamilton Distinguished University Professor Emeritus, recently broke down game theory strategy on the People I (Mostly) Admire podcast with Freakonomics author Steven Levitt. He explains how game theory and the prisoner's...

In the Media

Human oversight of automated decision-making doesn't work, says Green

Sep 28, 2021 Protocol

Commenting on his recent research, Ben Green told Protocol, “The point is not to say: Let's just allow these algorithms to be used without the human oversight. But if we're only comfortable with these algorithms because we have human oversight, we...

News

Green calls for increased regulation with government use of algorithms

Sep 22, 2021

Do algorithms help or hinder human decision-making? In a recent op-ed for The Hill, Ben Green, an assistant professor and postdoctoral scholar, argues that policymakers need to consider how humans interact with AI when regulating the use of AI in...

News

Ford School PhD student Jane Furey wins AERA award for excellence in education research

Sep 14, 2021

Jane Furey, a joint PhD student in public policy and sociology at the Ford School of Public Policy, was recently awarded the Palmer O. Johnson Memorial Award for an outstanding article from the American Educational Research Association...

News

Gerber named Center for Academic Innovation Faculty Innovator in Residence

Sep 9, 2021

Ford School professor Elisabeth Gerber and director of the Michigan Center for Interprofessional Education Rajesh Mangrulkar are joining the Center for Academic Innovation as CAI Faculty Innovators in Residence, working with CAI experts and with...

Publication

Should complex, high-stakes government decisions be reliant on predictive algorithms?

Aug 27, 2021

Machine learning is increasingly used for government decision-making to predict adverse outcomes. For instance, many cities and states in the U.S. have adopted pretrial risk assessments that inform decisions about whether to release criminal...