Challenging Diversity? The Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Ethnic Diversity and Social Cohesion
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Social Sciences
Abstract
This FRL project is concerned with how rising immigration and increasing ethnic diversity affect social cohesion. The UK is currently undergoing a significant demographic shift in the ethnic composition of its populace, with the proportion of non-White British rising from 13% to 20% between 2001 and 2011. Across academic, governmental and public spheres, concerns are being articulated that this growing diversity poses a threat to: residential community cohesion (undermining trust and connectivity between neighbours); wider, societal cohesion (leading to civic disengagement, declining trust in strangers and lower support for welfare policies); and inter-group cohesion (cultivating inter-ethnic tensions, and driving support for far-right organisations). When even conservative estimates predict this trend will only increase, understanding if, how and why ethnic diversity affects social cohesion, and what can be done to ameliorate any pejorative effects, is of paramount importance to the maintenance of a cohesive, harmonious society.
Yet, significant gaps remain in our understanding of how of ethnic diversity affects social cohesion. Firstly, much of the current research focuses on how being exposed to diversity within one's residential community affects social cohesion. However, the community is just one site at which individuals come into contact with other ethnic groups. In places like schools, universities, workplaces, volunteering groups, individuals are being exposed to diverse environments everyday. However, how levels of diversity in these places affect social cohesion is largely unknown. This is an important omission given that individuals are actually more likely to encounter diversity in these places than in their neighbourhoods. Secondly, most research assumes that as diversity within an adult's neighbourhood increases, their social cohesion will shift accordingly. However, how adults respond to ethnically diverse environments is likely influenced by all kinds of experiences throughout their lives, such as the attitudes of their parents, the diversity of their schools, and how diverse the neighbourhoods were they grew up in. To understand how diversity affects social cohesion we therefore also need to know what individuals' experiences of ethnic diversity have been over their entire lives.
The primary aim of this research is therefore to try and create a much fuller picture of how ethnic diversity affects social cohesion by: firstly, looking at how coming into contact with other groups in schools, workplaces, or civic groups, along with neighbourhoods, affects cohesion; and secondly, how experiences of diversity over one's whole life affects cohesion. Only with this more complete picture of the complex social worlds of individuals can we hope to understand the effect of diversity on social cohesion. However, if we do find that increasing diversity, in certain places, at certain points over an individual's life, can harm social cohesion, then we need to know 'what works' to ameliorate such frictions. This research will therefore investigate how interventions, such as intercultural education, workplace diversity training, national multiculturalism policies, and ethnic mixing programs for adolescents can help alleviate any pressures of increasing diversity. Key to this endeavour will be an analysis of one of the current government's key integration policies: the National Citizen Service.
Yet, significant gaps remain in our understanding of how of ethnic diversity affects social cohesion. Firstly, much of the current research focuses on how being exposed to diversity within one's residential community affects social cohesion. However, the community is just one site at which individuals come into contact with other ethnic groups. In places like schools, universities, workplaces, volunteering groups, individuals are being exposed to diverse environments everyday. However, how levels of diversity in these places affect social cohesion is largely unknown. This is an important omission given that individuals are actually more likely to encounter diversity in these places than in their neighbourhoods. Secondly, most research assumes that as diversity within an adult's neighbourhood increases, their social cohesion will shift accordingly. However, how adults respond to ethnically diverse environments is likely influenced by all kinds of experiences throughout their lives, such as the attitudes of their parents, the diversity of their schools, and how diverse the neighbourhoods were they grew up in. To understand how diversity affects social cohesion we therefore also need to know what individuals' experiences of ethnic diversity have been over their entire lives.
The primary aim of this research is therefore to try and create a much fuller picture of how ethnic diversity affects social cohesion by: firstly, looking at how coming into contact with other groups in schools, workplaces, or civic groups, along with neighbourhoods, affects cohesion; and secondly, how experiences of diversity over one's whole life affects cohesion. Only with this more complete picture of the complex social worlds of individuals can we hope to understand the effect of diversity on social cohesion. However, if we do find that increasing diversity, in certain places, at certain points over an individual's life, can harm social cohesion, then we need to know 'what works' to ameliorate such frictions. This research will therefore investigate how interventions, such as intercultural education, workplace diversity training, national multiculturalism policies, and ethnic mixing programs for adolescents can help alleviate any pressures of increasing diversity. Key to this endeavour will be an analysis of one of the current government's key integration policies: the National Citizen Service.
Planned Impact
Given the topical yet sensitive nature of the debate into ethnic diversity and social cohesion this FRL project has the capacity to have substantial impact across a range of non-academic beneficiaries, significantly contributing to the maintenance of a vibrant and fair society; in particular, through its production of a robust evidence-base on the efficacy of site-specific and national interventions, alongside its investigation of the government's National Citizen Service (NCS). See 'pathways to impact' for a full list of beneficiaries.
1. Governmental departments and policy groups
The findings will have direct relevance for bodies dealing with integration and cohesion, including the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), and the All Party Parliamentary Group on Race and Community. However, the scope of this project, integrating adults and adolescents, across sites such as workplaces, communities, and schools, is relevant to a range of departments e.g. Education, the Home Office, the Cabinet Office, and the DWP, with the capacity to demonstrate the need for cross-departmental approaches to issues of social cohesion, pertinent given the government's predominant focus on communities as key sites of integration and the relegation of national government to 'exceptional circumstances'. The project will also provide critical feedback into the efficacy of a flagship governmental policy: the NCS. This project will also aid local government, providing key evidence for supporting collaborations between schools, community groups, civic organisations and employers in the management of local issues of cohesion. Given parallel international debates, this project has the ability to contribute similarly to non-UK governments.
2. NCS Trust and youth engagement schemes
The NCS analysis will provide both robust monitoring of its efficacy and evidenced-based insights into how the aims of the scheme (such as fostering positive out-group relations and social cohesion) can be effectively maximised (especially through the analysis of randomised prejudice-reduction interventions). This body of evidence will also prove useful for other youth organisations and 'service learning' schemes aiming to contribute (locally or nationally) to local, inter-group and wider social cohesion, both within and outside of the UK.
3. Educational institutions and employers
The analysis of how diversity (and disadvantage) can affect both cohesion within these organisations, and wider societal cohesion, can build awareness of possible sites of friction. However, the analysis of within-site interventions, such as intercultural teaching and workplace diversity schemes, will provide effective evidence for negotiating issues of diversity amongst their members, as well as augmenting diversity's positive contribution, especially pertinent given the responsibilities of organisations to tackle issues of discrimination and equality.
4. Third-sector organisations
The project findings will resonate strongly with third-sector organisations working on issues of social cohesion, in the UK and internationally. In particular, those organisations promoting cohesion by bringing together representatives from local business, schools, voluntary organizations, housing services, and community groups may particularly benefit from the holistic analysis of such approaches to social cohesion.
5. Public sphere
This project will also contribute to the debates ongoing within political, media and general-public spheres. The application of quantitative modelling to large-scale, representative data sets will produce a strong evidence-base to examine the myriad claims of the impacts of immigration and ethnic diversity on society. Ultimately, however, all individuals will benefit from the maintenance of a harmonious and cohesive society, while the parallel analysis of disadvantage may potentially help refocus the debate on to forces more detrimental to social cohesion.
1. Governmental departments and policy groups
The findings will have direct relevance for bodies dealing with integration and cohesion, including the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), and the All Party Parliamentary Group on Race and Community. However, the scope of this project, integrating adults and adolescents, across sites such as workplaces, communities, and schools, is relevant to a range of departments e.g. Education, the Home Office, the Cabinet Office, and the DWP, with the capacity to demonstrate the need for cross-departmental approaches to issues of social cohesion, pertinent given the government's predominant focus on communities as key sites of integration and the relegation of national government to 'exceptional circumstances'. The project will also provide critical feedback into the efficacy of a flagship governmental policy: the NCS. This project will also aid local government, providing key evidence for supporting collaborations between schools, community groups, civic organisations and employers in the management of local issues of cohesion. Given parallel international debates, this project has the ability to contribute similarly to non-UK governments.
2. NCS Trust and youth engagement schemes
The NCS analysis will provide both robust monitoring of its efficacy and evidenced-based insights into how the aims of the scheme (such as fostering positive out-group relations and social cohesion) can be effectively maximised (especially through the analysis of randomised prejudice-reduction interventions). This body of evidence will also prove useful for other youth organisations and 'service learning' schemes aiming to contribute (locally or nationally) to local, inter-group and wider social cohesion, both within and outside of the UK.
3. Educational institutions and employers
The analysis of how diversity (and disadvantage) can affect both cohesion within these organisations, and wider societal cohesion, can build awareness of possible sites of friction. However, the analysis of within-site interventions, such as intercultural teaching and workplace diversity schemes, will provide effective evidence for negotiating issues of diversity amongst their members, as well as augmenting diversity's positive contribution, especially pertinent given the responsibilities of organisations to tackle issues of discrimination and equality.
4. Third-sector organisations
The project findings will resonate strongly with third-sector organisations working on issues of social cohesion, in the UK and internationally. In particular, those organisations promoting cohesion by bringing together representatives from local business, schools, voluntary organizations, housing services, and community groups may particularly benefit from the holistic analysis of such approaches to social cohesion.
5. Public sphere
This project will also contribute to the debates ongoing within political, media and general-public spheres. The application of quantitative modelling to large-scale, representative data sets will produce a strong evidence-base to examine the myriad claims of the impacts of immigration and ethnic diversity on society. Ultimately, however, all individuals will benefit from the maintenance of a harmonious and cohesive society, while the parallel analysis of disadvantage may potentially help refocus the debate on to forces more detrimental to social cohesion.
People |
ORCID iD |
| James Laurence (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Laurence J
(2021)
The Impact of Youth Engagement on Life Satisfaction: A Quasi-Experimental Field Study of a UK National Youth Engagement Scheme
in European Sociological Review
Laurence, J.
(2018)
Meeting, Mixing, Mending: How NCS Impacts Young People's Social Integration
Laurence, J
(2015)
Handbook of Research Methods and Applications in Social Capital
Laurence J
(2018)
Ethnic Diversity, Inter-group Attitudes and Countervailing Pathways of Positive and Negative Inter-group Contact: An Analysis Across Workplaces and Neighbourhoods.
in Social indicators research
Laurence J
(2018)
Ethnic diversity, ethnic threat, and social cohesion: (re)-evaluating the role of perceived out-group threat and prejudice in the relationship between community ethnic diversity and intra-community cohesion
in Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
Laurence J
(2016)
Does Ethnic Diversity Have a Negative Effect on Attitudes towards the Community? A Longitudinal Analysis of the Causal Claims within the Ethnic Diversity and Social Cohesion Debate
in European Sociological Review
Laurence J
(2018)
Countervailing contact: Community ethnic diversity, anti-immigrant attitudes and mediating pathways of positive and negative inter-ethnic contact in European societies.
in Social science research
Laurence J
(2019)
Community disadvantage, inequalities in adolescent subjective well-being, and local social relations: The role of positive and negative social interactions.
in Social science & medicine (1982)
| Description | This project has made significant progress towards fulfilling its initial aims. In doing so, it has yielded several key accomplishments. Firstly, it has led to a number of key theoretical advances in the field of ethnic diversity and social cohesion. For example, it has worked towards reconciling a persistent theoretical paradox within the current literature: the competing predictions of the contact and threat hypotheses. By incorporating segregation into the current debate, the project shows how diversity can trigger both contact and threat; however, the extent to which it does depends not only on the amount of diversity in a community but also on how segregated it is. The project also demonstrated, for the first time, the importance of considering the valence of inter-ethnic contact in the diversity/cohesion relationship. Previous work largely assumed it was the absence of mixing which threatens cohesion with increasing diversity. However, diversity leads to increasing positive but also negative contact experiences. This shows, for the first time, that ethnic diversity can polarise inter-ethnic relations as a result of, not due to a lack of, inter-group mixing. Secondly, the project has made critical methodological advances. In particular, the project performed some of the first tests of the causal assumptions within the current literature through complex longitudinal modelling of individual-level longitudinal data linked to UK census data on communities. This work demonstrates the importance of longitudinal analysis for studies of communities; not least by being able to properly account for, and tease out, the role of selection in contextual-effects. However, this work also demonstrates the possibilities available with current data resources of more robustly testing the role of communities in individuals' lives. Thirdly, the project has produced impactful, policy-relevant research which has already been drawn on to inform recent government policy documents on integration in the UK, including the 2017 Casey Review, and the 2018 Integration green paper and London integration plan. Of particular note is the research it produced for the National Citizen Service (NCS) Trust and Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). This was able to show how youth social/civic engagement programs are particularly effective for building cohesion among young people facing greater barriers to integration in their everyday lives. Through the lens of the NCS, and applying a quasi-experimental approach, the project robustly demonstrated that young people who engage with lower pre-participation integration, or who come from more segregated or disadvantaged communities, report the greatest improvements in integration post-participation. In doing so, the project demonstrates how youth engagement schemes help close the gaps between the most and least socially integrated young people in society. Fourthly, the project fostered collaborations with a diverse set of academics (social psychologists, geographers) and non-academic partners (DCMS, NCS, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government). This has enriched the quality of the research and led to important capacity building, providing researchers with experience of working closely with practitioners, and giving non-academics important theoretical and methodological advice (e.g. skills to improve policy-evaluations). The culmination of these partnerships is in a new interdisciplinary research network, leading to a joint grant application involving governmental and third sector partners [514 words]. |
| Exploitation Route | The project identified critical omissions in previous studies into ethnic diversity and social cohesion. By addressing them, the project's key findings will hopefully be integrated into future academic studies and taken forward to trigger new streams of research; in particular, the need to pay close attention to negative (as well as positive) social contact, to study segregation alongside ethnic diversity, and the importance of longitudinal approaches to unpicking processes of contextual- versus compositional-effects. The project has also demonstrated the possibilities available with current data of linking detailed individual panel data and multiple contextual-level censuses, which should inspire further academic use of rich, longitudinal data sources in this way. Among non-academics, the project's findings could be taken forward in a number of ways. The insights into who benefits most from youth social/civic engagement programs should prove useful for both national/local government stakeholders involved in the promotion of youth engagement, as well as individual groups (e.g. uniformed youth groups) and schools involved in recruiting young people to engage. The insights into when (under segregated conditions) increasing diversity can generate tensions should help in the nascent government integration strategy, identifying at-risk communities, and the levers available to minimise conflict in these areas. Lastly, the project highlighted the role workplaces can play in integration, with the potential to be taken forward by business groups and associations in the social role they can play in an increasingly diverse society [232 words]. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy Education Government Democracy and Justice Security and Diplomacy |
| Description | 1. Work on the National Citizen Service The National Citizen Service (NCS) is a UK Government sponsored scheme engaging 15-17 year olds in a programme of service learning. It is run by the NCS Trust, alongside the Cabinet Office and Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. The NCS Trust supported my original project application. Since beginning the project I have been liaising with both the NCS Trust and Cabinet Office to be able to examine the efficacy of the scheme for social cohesion. This has involved invitations to discuss the project at the NCS Trust offices, at the Cabinet Office, and an invitation to participate in the All Party Parliamentary Group on the National Citizen Service and Volunteering. Through discussions with the NCS Trust/Cabinet Office, I was able to have a number of survey questions specific to my research project included on the 2015-16 Cabinet Office-run evaluation of the NCS programme, which aimed to improve the evaluation's measurement of issues related to social cohesion and inter-group relations. Based on the engagement with the NCS/Cabinet Office, I was invited to become part of the NCS Advisory Committee, organised by the Cabinet Office, to discuss methods of improving the scheme's outcomes. Furthermore, this work has led me to help other youth organisations (e.g. City Year) develop their own evaluation programmes. The additional survey questions I designed for the 2015 evaluation have now been integrated on the scheme evaluation permanently, helping to increase the robustness of the measures used to monitor scheme efficacy. Based on the research into the scheme I also wrote a report into the impacts of NCS on social integration ('Meeting, Mixing, Mending'), which was released in February 2018. This has led to interest within NCS on how the recommendations of the report can be integrated into the program. For example, the report was able to identify some of the limitations of the scheme for fostering positive social contact in less diverse Local Authorities. This has led to discussions of how to best overcome such limitations and maximise the benefits with the NCS Trust. The research and report were also used to inform (and were cited in) the recent UK government green paper on social integration, and has led to follow-up requests for meetings with various government departments e.g. Integration & Vulnerability section of the Home Office Resettlement, Asylum Support & Integration Directorate. The report has become part of the NHS National Institute for Health and Care Excellence evidence bank. In addition, the report was the inspiration for a BBC news item special on the role that NCS can play for building social integration in society, and featured in an Op-Ed in the Huffington Post, More recent work on our shared interests in the impact of NCS on wellbeing are under way. In particular, another report on wellbeing is in its pre-production stages. 2. Work with government/policy My current work, including my recent publications, has also led me to develop ties within government. This has included an invitation to give evidence to the government commissioned Louise Casey Review on issues of integration in the UK. It has also led to invitations to discuss my research with the members of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG); in particular, my current research into the role of segregation in social cohesion. The DCLG are currently beginning a new project into examining processes of integration and cohesion in the UK and my work has helped inform new directions to take their investigation. In particular, this involved meetings with members of the DCLG on the measurement of ethnic diversity and residential segregation, and the opportunities this can provide for producing a typology of communities to focus on integration. I was also invited to participate in a 'listening session', pre-release of the 2017 Casey report on Integration, to inform the development of its recommendations. 3. Wider-engagement Recent research published in peer-reviewed journals has also been cited on BBCS Radio 4 and Radio 5, and drawn on by journalists in discussions of immigration and cohesion, as well as generating a number of reddit threads. Subsequent formal press releases generated attention within a number of national publications (e.g. the Daily Mail, the Times), international publications (e.g. Junge Freiheit/Germany; La Presse/Canada) and regional publications (e.g. Northwest Property Trade magazine), as well as invitations to discuss the findings on the radio (e.g. BBC Three Counties), and invitations to write blog posts for Think Tanks (e.g. Policy Exchange). My work has also been drawn on by third-sector organisations to inform their approach to questions on social integration e.g. Runnymede Trust's integration briefings. In addition, I have been approached to contribute pieces for two separate reports into practical policy solutions designed to foster social integration. The first, 'On Cohesion', was developed between the University of Manchester and the Manchester Mayor's Office, to explore questions of social integration across Manchester. This featured in media outlets as well as being cited by the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Kate Gilmore. The second, '"If you could do one thing" 10 local actions to promote social integration', was commissioned by the British Academy and launched at the Houses of Parliament alongside the All Party Parliamentary Group on Social Integration. Both these reports have led to significant follow up interest in the work. I was also invited on to several podcasts to contribute insights from the research on social integration, including 'Belong - the Cohesion and Integration Network'. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2014 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy,Other |
| Impact Types | Societal Policy & public services |
| Description | Involved in a pre-Green Paper release committee |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | Louise Casey Review on Integration |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
| Description | National Citizen Service Advisory Committee |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Impact | (1) The NCS has included my survey instruments in their subsequent evaluations of their scheme to more robustly measure the impact of the NCS on social integration. (2) Based on the findings of my report the NCS are looking into alternative implementation-designs to increase levels of mixing between young people from different ethnic groups. |
| Description | Research featured in government green paper on social integration |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Citation in other policy documents |
| URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/689944/Integrated_Communit... |
| Description | School of Social Sciences Small Grants competition |
| Amount | £10,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | University of Manchester |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 04/2016 |
| End | 08/2016 |
| Title | Two-wave adolescent panel data on inter-group attitudes |
| Description | - A two-wave panel data set of adolescents in Great Britain was collected. Surveys were used to gain insights into questions of intra- and inter-ethnic group social cohesion. Representativeness of the sample was achieved via a successful application to the National Pupil Database. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | - The data is currently being collected and as such has had no impacts as yet |
| Description | Collaboration with the Centre for Social Investigation, Nuffield College, University of Oxford |
| Organisation | University of Oxford |
| Department | Centre for Social Investigation |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I worked with the Centre for Social Investigation (CSI), Nuffield College, to analyse data from the National Citizen Service (NCS) youth civic engagement scheme. I provided the data and analytical methods to produce a report into the efficacy of the NCS for social integration in the UK. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Nuffield College contributed time, co-researcher opportunities, and dissemination opportunities. |
| Impact | A report was produced ("Meeting, Mixing, Mending: How NCS Impacts Young People's Social Integration") in collaboration with Nuffield College (see research outputs section) |
| Start Year | 2017 |
| Description | Collaboration with the National Citizen Service |
| Organisation | National Citizen Service |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | - I have designed a series of questions for the National Citizen Service evaluation designed to test how participation affects social cohesion. These questions were included in the National Citizen Service scheme evaluation, as conducted by the UK Government Cabinet Office - The data on which my analysis will be based is currently being collected. Future contributions will be made when this data is analysed |
| Collaborator Contribution | - Through involvement with the National Citizen Service I have been able to include specific survey questions, fundamental to my research, on to the evaluation of the National Citizen Service - The National Citizen Service has allowed provided opportunities to develop contacts in the Cabinet Office, and the UK Government more widely, who are interested in the outcomes of this research |
| Impact | - A series of questions I produced have been added to the National Citizen Service evaluation study currently being undertaken - Future outcomes/outputs will emerge when the data collection has been completed and the data analysed |
| Start Year | 2014 |
| Description | Collaboration with the Oxford Centre for the Study of Intergroup Conflict |
| Organisation | University of Oxford |
| Department | Oxford Centre for the Study of Intergroup Conflict |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | - I have brought theoretical and methodological expertise from sociology and social statistics to a project run principally by social psychologists. I have analysed their data, addressing new questions and applying robust methodologies, and acted as first author on two collaborative journal articles. |
| Collaborator Contribution | - They have provided access to unique data sets allowing me to test questions I had previously been unable to examine due to data limitations. - They provided guidance in the development of a set of survey questions, bringing to bare insights on instrument design and survey methodologies from social psychology. These questions were eventually integrated into the UK Government Cabinet Office evaluation programme of the Government sponsored National Citizen Service. |
| Impact | This collaboration is multidisciplinary, including: Sociologists, Social Psychologists, and Psychologists Journal article(s) (submitted): - Laurence, J., Schmid, K. and Hewstone, M. (Under Review) "The Conditions of Conflict: Community Ethnic Composition, Prejudice, and the Moderating Role of Inter-Ethnic Segregation for the Contact and Threat Hypotheses." Social Forces[submitted: 3-1-2017] Journal article(s) (accepted): - Laurence, J., Schmid, K. and Hewstone, M. (Under Review) "Ethnic diversity in the workplace and neighbourhood: prejudice and the countervailing roles of positive and negative inter-group contact amongst white British." Social Indicators Research [Online first: 31-01-17] Outcomes: - Questions designed in collaboration with this research team were integrated into an evaluation of the UK Government sponsored 'National Citizen Service' through negotiation with the UK Government Cabinet Office, who lead the evaluation programme |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | Collaboration with the UK Government Cabinet Office/Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport |
| Organisation | Cabinet Office |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | - I designed a series of questions to be included in the Cabinet Office led evaluation of the National Citizen Service - This data has now been collected and analysis has begun with results being fed back to the Cabinet Office and DCMS - Further contributions to follow after the data is collected and analysed |
| Collaborator Contribution | - They provided the opportunity to include specific survey questions on their evaluation study of the National Citizen Service for my research project - They also provided access to the evaluation data |
| Impact | - A series of survey questions were included on their evaluation study of the National Citizen Service - Further contributions to follow after the data is collected and analysed |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | BBC Radio 5 Interview |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | The activity involved being interviewed on BBC Radio 5 Live during the run-up to the 2015 General Election. The interview was focused on issues of segregation and community relations, drawing on research from my project. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | BBC Three Counties Radio Interview |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The activity involved an invitation to take part in a radio interview during the BBC Three Counties radio show call-in show. The show was discussing the pros and cons of immigration and I was invited on to discuss my a recently published paper on the impact of ethnic diversity on people's attitudes towards their communities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Blog post for Integration Hub |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I wrote a blog post on the role of contact valence, and the role of workplaces, for social integration. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://www.integrationhub.net/the-limits-of-social-mixing/ |
| Description | Blog post for LSE Policy Blogs |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I wrote a blog post on the role of contact valence, and the role of workplaces, for social integration. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/understanding-the-impact-and-limits-of-social-mixing/ |
| Description | Blogging for a Think Tank |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I received an invitation to write a blog post for a think tank (the Integration Hub at Policy Exchange). The intended purpose was to increase the exposure of a recently published piece of research. This has led to queries from people to learn more about the research from reading the blog post. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| URL | http://www.integrationhub.net/an-inconvenient-truth/ |
| Description | Conference presentation (The Netherlands) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Paper presentation at IMISCOE Annual Conference, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 28-30 June, 2017. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Conference presentation (United States) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Paper presentation at the Research Committee on Social Stratification and Mobility (RC28), New York, US, 8-10 August, 2017. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Discussion on Evaluation of Uniformed Youth Groups |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to consult on the best modes of evaluating uniformed youth engagement schemes (e.g. cubs, scouts) |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Discussion with Deputy Director, Integration & Vulnerability; Resettlement, Asylum Support & Integration Directorate |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Engaged in a discussion regarding my research on the National Citizen Service scheme and social integration, considering the implications of this for young asylum seekers/refugees in the UK. Focused on how my findings can be used to improve outcomes for vulnerable young people. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Engagement with Runnymede Trust - race equality think tank |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | A discussion of my research which led to the inclusion of some of my key findings in a report released by the Runnymede Trust on how to build social integration in Great Britain |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://www.runnymedetrust.org/uploads/policyResponses/Integration%20for%20All.pdf |
| Description | Immigration conference (Switzerland) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I attended the 12th IMISCOE Annual Conference, Geneva, Switzerland, 25-27 July. I presented a paper on my research into ethnic diversity, segregation and social cohesion. The purpose of this was to generate further exposure of my research as well as develop ties with colleagues in the field. I was awarded the Rinus Penninx Best Paper Award for my paper. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Interview with La Presse (Canadian International Newspaper) regarding Manchester terrorist attacks |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Unknown |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Pre-green paper on Social Integration meeting |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to participate in a discussion regarding the government's forthcoming green paper on Social Integration. This involved discussing my research and making suggestions for the development of policy. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Presentation of research findings to NCS Trust management and implementation teams |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The meeting involved presented findings from my research into NCS to the implementation and management teams of NCS Trust. This sparked questions and led to further research and producing a report on the findings. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| URL | https://www.nuffield.ox.ac.uk/media/2497/csi-how-ncs-impacts-young-peoples-social-integration.pdf |
| Description | Print media from press release |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | A press release was circulated from the University of Manchester based on a published article. The intention was to expose my research to a wider audience. The press release was picked up by a number of national news organisations (such as the Daily Mail, The Times, Breitbart, The Express), international publications (such as Junge Freiheit/Germany), as well as regional organisations, such as The Northwest Property Trade Magazine and Mancunian Matters. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
| Description | Project website |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I have developed a project website to host the emerging findings from my research project. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015,2016 |
| URL | http://inharmonicities.weebly.com/ |
| Description | Symposium on social inequality, labour markets and wellbeing (Manchester) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to present my research at a Symposium on social inequality, labour markets and wellbeing at the University of Manchester. The purpose was to generate greater exposure for my research. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Workshop speaker invitation (Institute for Social and Economic Research) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to present my research at the "Emerging Patterns in Migration Research" workshop, to mark the launch of a new migration research institute at the University of Essex. The aim is to continue involvement in the institute and develop further links between my own institute and the new migration institute. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Workshop speaker invitation (Institute for Social and Economic Research, University of Essex) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The talk was by invitation to present my recent research (derived from the project) to other academics and practitioners in the social sciences |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Workshop speaker invitation (Mannheim) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to talk at a workshop series at the University of Mannheim on my research into ethnic diversity and social cohesion. The purpose of this was to generate further exposure of my research as well as develop ties with colleagues in the field. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Workshop speaker invitation (Uppsala University, Sweden) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | I was invited to present my findings at a workshop exploring social trust at Uppsala University, Sweden. This has led to the an ongoing development of a grant application between our institutes. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |