DPRC promotes innovative, multidisciplinary research in Demography and Population Sciences. Integrating a wide range of expertise, from genetics and neuroscience to economics and sociology, the Center’s scholars advance the Center’s strengths in three major research themes:
- Foundations of Lifelong Health, furthering the study of early life biological, developmental and environmental (including social, economic, policy) processes responsible for lifelong health and wellbeing
- Interconnected Social Systems and Population Health, furthering research that leverages social connectivity to model demographic, developmental and health outcomes and to organize data collection
- Durham Population Lab, a collaborative initiative to examine social and environmental features that contribute to the early life precursors of divergent health trajectories in Durham, North Carolina's racially and socioeconomically diverse population
Data collection is a pillar of population science, and DPRC researchers are developing a wide range of innovative approaches. The breadth and depth of our scholar's research has produced a wealth of original data and new data collection tools. For more information, view our Data Collections page. To keep DPRC members at the forefront of Population research, DPRC also offers a Pilot Award Program that invests in notably innovative projects. Often these seed grants support primary data collection efforts that frequently lead to NIH funding to pursue a larger project.