Tag Archives: research

Graduate Research Assistant Research | MCRIC 

Expanded Development of Body-Worn Camera Analytics for Community and Officer Safety is a project that aims to develop algorithms to automatically detect and predict use of force, as well as escalation and de-escalation in police officer-civilian interactions that are captured in Body-Worn Camera (BWC) footage data. This project is in collaboration with the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) and has been funded by Maryland Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy. The interdisciplinary research team consists of researchers from the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UMD and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The project end date is June 30, 2025.

The research assistantship involves up to 40 hours per week of working collaboratively within an interdisciplinary team. The duties of the research assistantship may include contributing to the following project activities:

  • attending project meetings (virtual) and possibly observing BPD de-escalation training sessions (in person);
  • conducting literature review on use of force, escalation and de-escalation; and
  • writing the final report and a grant proposal to continue the research project.

If you have an interest in research on policing, police community relations, use of force, technology, this send Bianca Bersani (bbersani@umd.edu) an email ASAP (by Friday, May 23rd), with a short note about your interests, and a CV noting skillsets. 

Post-Doc Research Associate | The Woodlawn Study

Post-Doc Research Associate

Job Description Summary

Join the Woodlawn Study Team!
We are excited to share the availability of a 2-year post-doctoral research associate at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. Led currently by Dr. Kerry Green, the Woodlawn Study is a longitudinal community cohort study that began as a school-based intervention in 1966. This rich longitudinal study spans over 50 years with the most recent interviews conducted with cohort members at age 62 in 2022-2024. More information about the study can be found at www.woodlawn.umd.edu.

Key responsibilities:

  • Analyze the existing Woodlawn datasets (age 6, age 16, age 32, age 42) to identify life course factors that impact the aging experience at 62
  • Write and publish articles in peer-reviewed journals
  • Present study findings at scientific meetings
  • Assist with the preparation of applications for external funding
  • Collaborate with the research team to build knowledge

Additional Benefits:

  • Work closely with the research team in a collaborative environment
  • Develop skills in quantitative data analysis
  • Opportunities for first-authored manuscripts
  • Mentorship in grant writing
  • Faculty status at the University of Maryland

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

  • PhD in Public Health or a related field by the start date
  • Interest in the aging process
  • Experience analyzing quantitative data, particularly longitudinal data and latent variable modeling
  • Passion for life course research, urban health, and underserved populations

PREFERENCES:

  • Familiarity with national aging datasets (e.g., Health and Retirement Study)
  • Familiarity with Stata, R, and SPSS

Best Consideration Date: 4/17/2025

KIMCHI MEMORIAL GRADUATE AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT

KIMCHI MEMORIAL GRADUATE AWARD ANNOUNCEMENT

Purpose
In memory of the life and accomplishments of Dr. Anat Kimchi (Criminology and Criminal Justice graduate student), the Kimchi Memorial Graduate Awards Committee will be selecting the fourth Annual Kimchi Memorial Award recipients from among graduate student applicants in Criminology and Criminal Justice.
The Kimchi funds may be used for expenses related to summer research support, professional conference travel, data collection/access, academic training, or to defray the costs of achieving key academic milestones in the graduate program. The focus of these awards is on research related to racial inequality, social justice, punishment and recidivism research, and other areas of scholarship in the study of formal institutions of social control in society.
For example, award monies might be utilized to support various activities that are related to these areas of research, such as:

  • Travel to upcoming academic or policy-related conferences
  • Summer research stipends (e.g. to complete/submit paper for publication)
  • ICPSR or other data training workshops
  • Paying for data access for a student dissertation or related work
  • Purchasing specialized software needed for research purposes
  • Key activities tied to programmatic milestones (e.g. finishing dissertation)

Award Eligibility
University of Maryland Criminology & Criminal Justice doctoral students who have completed their master’s thesis are eligible to apply for the Kimchi Memorial Graduate Awards. Preference will be given to students who have advanced to candidacy. The Award Committee is comprised of 3 full-time faculty members and 1 current graduate student. Graduate students serving on the committee are ineligible to receive the Kimchi Award during their tenure on the committee.

Proposal Structure
To be considered for a Kimchi Memorial Graduate Award, applicants must submit a written project proposal to the Kimchi Award Committee. Applicants can submit a travel/data award, research award, or both. Travel/data proposals should be no more than 3 double-spaced pages. Research proposals should be no more than 5 double-spaced pages. The application process is the same for both but research proposals should be more detailed than travel proposals.
For both types of awards, applicants should provide a summary of the proposed project, including a discussion of the importance of the planned activity and its potential impact on criminal justice research, policy and practice. Proposals should include: a description of the research problem; discussion of relevant literature (other studies that address the topic and use the same or related data); and a detailed description of the methodology, including prior experience with the data or analytic method. The proposal should also clearly describe the project’s dissemination strategy (e.g., publication, dissertation, white paper, policy brief, agency report, paper presentation at a professional conference) and discuss whether it is related to the goals of a specific criminal justice or related agency. Successful applications will consider the feasibility of the study (i.e., how likely it is that the project will be successfully executed) and how the proposed project fits into the broader substantive research areas defined below under Award Criteria. A CV should be attached along with the completed application. For more information about the Kimchi Award, please see: https://go.umd.edu/kimchiaward.

Award Criteria
The committee anticipates being able to support 1 research award that totals no more than $3600, plus up to 2 travel/data awards, each not exceeding $540 in a given year. Travel/data funds can be used to support travel to a national conference, offset costs of a statistical or other training workshop, or help pay
for data access or other specialized research costs. Students who receive a Kimchi Award are expected to use the funds to support the proposed activity. Award amounts may vary depending on individual projects and fund priorities and no award may be given some years. Key criteria that should be used to
structure the written proposals include:

  1. Scholarly Importance and Potential Impact of the Research
    • Novelty and importance of the research topic
    • Potential to make meaningful research contribution to discipline
  2. Substantive Relevance of Proposed Topic Areas
    • Preference will be given to proposals related to:
      ▪ Racial and/or social justice
      ▪ Community corrections (e.g. probation, parole, etc.)
      ▪ Prosecution, sentencing or imprisonment
  3. Data and Methods
    • Projects should involve high-level quantitative data analysis
    • Integration of multiple or complex data sources
    • Application of rigorous and sophisticated analytical approaches
  4. Justice Policy and Translational Criminology
    • Extent to which research might impact policy
    • Potential to enact meaningful change in criminal justice system
    • Additional efforts directly related to translational criminology
  5. Overall Quality and Level of Development in the Proposal
    • Quality of writing, organization, and connections to prior work
    • Quality of description of data and methods
    • Completeness of research ideas and feasibility of project

Application Timeline
Student may apply for funds to support projects that will occur at any point during the upcoming year (i.e. Summer, 2025– Spring, 2026). Completed proposals must be submitted to Jessica Townsend (jessicat@umd.edu) with the Subject Line: Kimchi Graduate Award by 5pm on Friday, February 28, 2025. The committee anticipates making final award announcements by Mid-March, 2025.

Research and Data Analyst | Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Program

Shepard-Byrd Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Prevention Strategy
Research and Data Analyst

Salary: $21/hour
Hours: 20 hours/month
Location: Annapolis, MD
Job Type: Part-Time Contractual
Job Number:
Department: Chief Administrative Office: Office of Equity and Human Rights (OEHR)
Opening Date: 12/05/2024
Closing Date: Until filled

OVERVIEW
In 2023, Anne Arundel County was awarded a grant through the US Department of Justice: Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to implement the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Program in the county. This is a four (4) year grant, in which Anne Arundel County will develop a comprehensive multi-pronged Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Prevention Strategy, with a focus on prevention, investigation, and prosecution, while providing quality services to victims of hate bias incidents.

POSITION DESCRIPTION
Anne Arundel County Government is seeking a Research and Data Analyst to support the Anne Arundel County Shepard-Byrd Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Prevention Strategy.

This is a professional-level position in the Office of the County Executive. The position will report to the Senior Project Manager over the Shepard-Byrd Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Prevention Strategy in the Office of Equity and Human Rights (OEHR). This is a part-time contractual, non-benefited position focused ONLY (100%) on Shepard-Byrd Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Prevention Strategy activities. It is a public-facing position and will serve as a representative of the County Executive and its Administration.

The Research and Data Analyst is responsible for:

  • Reviewing and redacting hate bias incidents and hate crimes police reports.
  • Conducting trend analysis.
  • Developing presentations for internal and external audiences.
  • Recommend data-driven solutions for improving current practices.
  • Researching other Hate Bias Initiatives and reports to augment the County’s strategy

Examples of Duties and Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

  • Develop and track performance metrics in line with the County’s Shepard-Byrd Hate Crimes and Hate Bias Incidents Prevention Strategy goals and priorities, and identify areas that may need further review;
  • Create data visualizations and end-user reports;
  • Manage ongoing agency performance tasks for the performance improvement initiatives which includes things like troubleshooting issues as they arise, to updating tracking sheets and backend of visualizations annually;
  • Work collaboratively with Anne Arundel County Police Department to identify opportunities for operational improvement;
  • Compile, process, and analyze hate bias and hate crime data in a clear and concise manner;
  • Support the OEHR team in the administration of various Shepard-Byrd Hate Bias Prevention Strategy efforts;
  • Proficient in data cleaning and analysis techniques, with an understanding of basic statistical concepts;
  • Familiarity with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping software such as ESRI;
  • Knowledge of online data visualization platforms such as Quicksight, Tableau, or ESRI

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

  • Possess a four-year degree from an accredited college or university in Business or Public Administration, Research and Evaluation, Social Sciences, or a related field.
  • Two (2) or more years of professional experience performing data analysis and results dissemination, program evaluation and/or process improvement in an academic, data administration, or business analytics environment.
  • Strong interpersonal skills with the capacity to communicate with multiple stakeholder groups.
  • Ability to explain complex, technical information to a non-technical audience.
  • Experience working with law enforcement is preferred.
  • Proficiency in Google Suite and/or Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).

To apply, please send your resume directly to Nicola.smithkea@aacounty.org.

2025 Northwestern Main and Advanced Causal Inference Workshops

We are excited to be holding our 14th annual workshop on Research Design for Causal Inference at Northwestern Law School in Chicago, IL. We invite you to attend.

Main Workshop: Monday – Friday, July 28 – August 1, 2025
Advanced Workshop: Sunday – Wednesday, August 3-6, 2025

What’s special about these workshops are the world-class speakers, who are experts in the topics they will discuss. See the link below for speaker details.

Target audience for the workshops: Quantitative empirical researchers (including faculty, graduate students, post-docs, and other researchers) in social science, including law, political science, economics, many business-school areas (finance, accounting, management, marketing, etc.), medicine, sociology, education, psychology, etc. –anywhere that causal inference is important.

In person-registration is limited to 125 participants for each workshop. There will also be a Zoom option, but come in person if you can; the online experience is not the same.

For information and to register: https://www.law.northwestern.edu/research-faculty/events/conferences/causalinference

Main Workshop Outline
Monday, July 28 (Donald Rubin; Harvard University)
     Introduction to Modern Methods for Causal Inference
Tuesday, July 29 (Jens Hainmueller, Stanford University)
     Matching and Reweighting Designs for “Pure” Observational Studies
Wednesday, July 30 (Jens Hainmueller, Stanford University)
     Panel Data and Difference-in-Differences
Thursday, July 31 (Heather Royer, UC Santa Barbara)
     Regression Discontinuity
Friday, August 1 Morning: (Tymon Sloczynski, Brandeis University)
     Instrumental variable methods
Friday, August 1 Afternoon: Feedback on your own research

Advanced Workshop Outline
Sunday afternoon, August 3 (optional) (Christian Hansen, Univ. of Chicago)
     Primer on machine learning approaches to prediction 
Monday, August 4:  Christian Hansen
     Applications of machine learning to causal inference
Tuesday, August 5:  Andrew Goodman-Bacon (Federal Reserve Board)
     Advanced Difference-in Differences
Wednesday, August 6:  Peter Hull (Brown University)
     Advanced Instrumental Variables

Stata and R coding:  On selected days after the lectures, we will run parallel Stata and R sessions to illustrate code for the research designs discussed in the lectures. 

Workshop Organizers
Bernie Black (Northwestern University)
Scott Cunningham (Baylor University)

Questions:  Please email Bernie Black (bblack@northwestern.edu) or Scott Cunningham (scunning@gmail.com) for questions or fee waiver requests, and Sebastian Bujak (sebastian.bujak@law.northwestern.edu) for logistics and registration questions.

Research Study Participation Opportunity

You are invited to participate in a research study in Washington, D.C. in February 2025. Participating in our study will require up to three hours of your time, spread out over six months, most of which is done through online surveys. You will also be asked to visit one museum on the National Mall. You can receive up to $50 in Amazon gift cards and a chance to win one of ten (10) iPads in a raffle throughout the course of the study.

If interested in participating, please click here to provide some information about yourself. More details on the study will follow.

NIBRS Animal Cruelty Data Research Award

Promoting the Analysis of NIBRS Animal Cruelty Data
AWI’s Center for the Study of NIBRS Animal Cruelty Data is pleased to offer two $5,000 grants for master’s and doctoral students to utilize National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) animal cruelty data in their research

Apply Now

Preview the form.

Application Deadline

  • Completed application forms and accompanying materials must be submitted by February 28, 2025.


Application Requirements

  • Analysis of NIBRS animal cruelty data must play a central part in the proposed research project. Datasets for analysis can be downloaded here (the raw data can also be obtained from the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer or the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research’s National Archive of Criminal Justice Data).
  • Applicants must submit the following:
    • Completed application form
    • Resume/CV
    • Letter(s) of support from their institution

Additional Information

  • Award notifications will be sent in March 2025.
  • Award recipients must agree to submit a written summary of the results of the project at its conclusion. This summary may be edited for potential publication in the AWI Quarterly magazine.
  • Award recipients must agree to submit their results for publication in a professional journal or presentation at an appropriate conference.
  • For additional information, please contact claire@awionline.org.

PhD Student | Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research

PhD Student | Research Group Migration and Health Inequalities

The Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) is seeking to appoint a full-time PhD student to join the ERC-funded Research Group on Migration and Health Inequalities. The group, led by Silvia Loi, brings together experts from Demography, Quantitative Sociology, and Social Epidemiology to address the pressing scientific and societal question: Why do immigrants age in poorer health compared to non-immigrants? 
The research group agenda builds up on these three research areas:

  1. quantify the gaps in healthy ageing trajectories between immigrants and non-immigrants by age, gender, socioeconomic status, and their interactions; 
  2. identify the critical events and circumstances in immigrants’ lives that put them on a different healthy ageing trajectory from non-immigrants; 
  3. study the impact of family composition and family ties in mitigating health inequalities by migration background. 

We are seeking a qualified and highly motivated student with a quantitative background with interests at the intersection of migration, ageing and health, broadly defined. The successful candidate must have a Master’s degree in Demography, Sociology, Social Epidemiology or related fields, and a strong quantitative background. Candidates with interests in topics surrounding migration, health and ageing in any setting and comparing across gender, socioeconomic class, or geographical location are welcome. Demonstrable skills in R or Stata are highly desirable. 

This PhD studentship offers an excellent opportunity for motivated students to work with a highly international team of researchers, to take advantage of the interdisciplinary intellectual environment at the MPIDR, as well as substantial financial support for travel, research training and data acquisition. 
Admitted students take part in the International Max Planck Research School for Population, Health and Data Science (IMPRS-PHDS) that merges demography, epidemiology and data science. IMPRS-PHDS equips doctoral students not only with advanced knowledge of the theory and methods of demography and epidemiology (broadly defined as ‘population health’), but also with strong technical skills in statistics, mathematical modeling, and computational and data management methods (broadly referred to as ‘data science’). PHDS supports strong interdisciplinary research training and exchange within a network of universities in Europe and the US. The research school offers a core training program in Rostock, extensive networking opportunities across partner sites, and high-quality supervision across at least two institutes. For more information on the IMPRS-PHDS curriculum please see https://www.imprs-phds.mpg.de.

Please apply online via this survey and include in a single PDF file:

  1. Curriculum Vitae including a list of publications 
  2. Copies of transcripts of undergraduate and, if applicable, Master’s degree;
  3. Motivation letter, 1-2 pages that describe how your research interests fit into the research agenda of the Research Group and the related project. Please include your research accomplishments, and highlight your technical skills, and areas of expertise;
  4. A writing sample;
  5. Contact information for up to 2 academic referees.

In order to receive full consideration, applications should be submitted by 28 February 2025. Online interviews will be held in the first half of March 2025. The starting date is flexible, but no later than 1 November 2025.
The advertised position is located at the MPIDR. It is expected that the successful applicant will be in residence at the MPIDR, in Rostock, Germany.
The PhD student is offered a 3-year contract with remuneration based on the salary structure of the German public sector (Öffentlicher Dienst, TVöD Bund) currently starting at 34,295.22 € gross a year, and will be expected to be in residence at the Institute.

Post-Doctoral Researcher | Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research

Post-Doctoral Researcher | Research Group Migration and Health Inequalities

The Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) is seeking to appoint a full-time post-doctoral researcher to join the ERC-funded Research Group on Migration and Health Inequalities. The group, led by Silvia Loi, brings together experts from Demography, Quantitative Sociology, and Social Epidemiology to address the pressing scientific and societal question: Why do immigrants age in poorer health compared to non-immigrants? 
The research group agenda builds up on these three research areas:

  1. quantify the gaps in healthy ageing trajectories between immigrants and non-immigrants by age, gender, socioeconomic status, and their interactions; 
  2. identify the critical events and circumstances in immigrants’ lives that put them on a different healthy ageing trajectory from non-immigrants; 
  3. study the impact of family composition and family ties in mitigating health inequalities by migration background. 

We are seeking a creative, self-driven, collaborative scholar with a strong quantitative background that can contribute to advancing one or more the three research areas of the group. The selected candidate will be a member of the Research Group on Migration and Health Inequalities, and will have the opportunity to collaborate with other units, such as the Max Planck – University of Helsinki Center for Social Inequalities in Population Health (MaxHel)

We provide a stimulating research-oriented community, excellent infrastructure at the MPIDR, and an institutional culture that enables everyone to develop their individual skills and competencies. The MPIDR is one of the leading demographic research centers in the world, studying issues of theoretical and policy relevance. These include, but are not limited to mortality, fertility, migration, aging, health, and the redistribution of work and transfers over the life course. The MPIDR is part of the Max Planck Society, a network of 86 institutes that form Germany’s premier basic-research organization. Max Planck Institutes have an established record of world-class, foundational research in the sciences, technology, social sciences, and the humanities.

The successful candidate must have a PhD (or receive it soon) in Demography, Sociology, Social Epidemiology or related fields, a strong quantitative background and is expected to have a profile along at least one of the following lines:

  1. Migrant health
  2. Social determinants of health
  3. Social inequalities
  4. Measuring and modelling life-course processes

Demonstrable skills in R or Stata are highly desirable. Previous experience working with register data will be considered an advantage.

Please apply online via this survey and include in a single PDF file:

  1. Curriculum Vitae including a list of publications;
  2. Motivation letter, 1-2 pages that describe how your expertise fits into the research agenda of the Research Group and the related project. Please include your research accomplishments, and highlight your technical skills, and areas of expertise;
  3. A writing example (e.g., one of your publications or working paper);
  4. Contact information for up to 2 academic referees.

In order to receive full consideration, applications should be submitted by 28 February 2025. Online interviews will be held in the first half of March 2025. We expect candidates to start in the first half of 2025, though a later date might be possible under special circumstances. The successful applicant will be offered a 2-years contract with remuneration commensurate to experience (starting from approx. 57,000 EUR gross per year for researchers who have just completed their PhD, up to approx. 70,000 EUR gross per year for more senior scientists), based on the salary structure of the German public sector (Öffentlicher Dienst, TVöD Bund). The advertised position is located at the MPIDR. It is expected that the successful applicant will be in residence at the MPIDR, in Rostock, Germany, and support for relocation costs is available.

Statistician | DC Government

Statistician

Job ID: 28750
Full/Part Time: Full-Time
Regular/Temporary: Regular
Minimum Rate: $109,999.00
Date Closed: 01/30/2025

Introduction

This position is in the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC). CJCC is an independent agency within the District of Columbia government. The mission of CJCC is to foster systemic change in the justice system, serving as a forum to identify issues and their solutions, proposing actions and facilitating cooperation what will improve public safety and related criminal and juvenile justice services for District of Columbia residents, victims, and offenders.

This position serves as an expert, authoritative Statistician, responsible for performing one or more of the following major duty functions: management and maintenance of the DC Statistical Analysis Center; leading key criminal and juvenile justice research and analysis; providing consultation on relevant and methodologically rigorous analyses; and collaborating with the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Department of Justice on the District’s criminal and juvenile justice data. The incumbent provides professional consultation in applying statistical theories, techniques, and methods to gather, research, analyze, interpret, and/or report quantified information.

Duties and Responsibilities 

Serves as the expert consultant on the statistical aspects of various matters relevant to the criminal and juvenile justice system, or on the technical aspects of a specialized statistical activity, and as such, provides authoritative counsel. Serves as the activity representative to deal with commitment authority for decisions relating to agency statistical resources. Plans, develops and provides technical direction for statistical research programs, where the investigations involve citywide and national data collection problems, which have a bearing on public policy, and/or affect the administrative operational policies of a department or agency of the District or Federal government. Conducts an analysis of the root causes that led to the incarceration of current committed youth, including a voluntary survey of a current committed youth and any self-reported adverse childhood experiences.

Oversees the work of data analysts and research interns; lending statistical, methodological and analytical expertise to shape and direct juvenile and criminal justice research within CJCC, coordinating major research projects with staff; reviewing the work; and providing direction as needed. Develops and maintains wide, continuing relationships with ranking statistical executives, both within and outside the District and Federal government, on broad statistical programs to avoid overlap of objectives and to ensure integration of coordinated statistical programming. Provides final budget recommendations for statistical activities in support of agency programs. Collaborates with CJCC programmatic staff to determine deliverables for grant applications, and white papers, conferences, forums, and summits. Responds to requests for statistical information from partner agencies.  

Qualifications & Education 

Education: Must have a degree that included 15 semester hours in statistics (or in mathematics and statistics, provided at least 6 semester hours were in statistics), and 9 additional semester hours in one or more of the following: physical or biological sciences, medicine, education, or engineering; or in the social sciences including demography, history, economics, social welfare, geography, international relations, social or cultural anthropology, health sociology, political science, public administration, psychology, etc. 

-or-

A combination of education and experience — courses as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. The experience should have included a full range of professional statistical work such as (a) sampling, (b) collecting, computing, and analyzing statistical data, and (c) applying statistical techniques such as measurement of central tendency, dispersion, skewness, sampling error, simple and multiple correlation, analysis of variance, and tests of significance.

Specialized Experience: This position requires one (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lowest grade level in the District of Columbia government. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level. Specialized experience is experience which is directly related to the line of work of the position and has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position.