Project acronym ACTSELECTCONTEXT
Project Action Selection under Contextual Uncertainty: the Role of Learning and Effective Connectivity in the Human Brain
Researcher (PI) Sven Bestmann
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS5, ERC-2010-StG_20091118
Summary In a changing world, one hallmark feature of human behaviour is the ability to learn about the statistics of the environment and use this prior information for action selection. Knowing about a forthcoming event allows for adjusting our actions pre-emptively, which can optimize survival.
This proposal studies how the human brain learns about the uncertainty in the environment, and how this leads to flexible and efficient action selection.
I hypothesise that the accumulation of evidence for future movements through learning reflects a fundamental organisational principle for action control. This explains widely distributed perceptual-, learning-, decision-, and movement-related signals in the human brain. However, little is known about the concerted interplay between brain regions in terms of effective connectivity which is required for flexible behaviour.
My proposal seeks to shed light on this unresolved issue. To this end, I will use i) a multi-disciplinary neuroimaging approach, together with model-based analyses and Bayesian model comparison, adapted to human reaching behaviour as occurring in daily life; and ii) two novel approaches for testing effective connectivity: dynamic causal modelling (DCM) and concurrent transcranial magnetic stimulation-functional magnetic resonance imaging.
My prediction is that action selection relies on effective connectivity changes, which are a function of the prior information that the brain has to learn about.
If true, this will provide novel insight into the human ability to select actions, based on learning about the uncertainty which is inherent in contextual information. This is relevant for understanding action selection during development and ageing, and for pathologies of action such as Parkinson s disease or stroke.
Summary
In a changing world, one hallmark feature of human behaviour is the ability to learn about the statistics of the environment and use this prior information for action selection. Knowing about a forthcoming event allows for adjusting our actions pre-emptively, which can optimize survival.
This proposal studies how the human brain learns about the uncertainty in the environment, and how this leads to flexible and efficient action selection.
I hypothesise that the accumulation of evidence for future movements through learning reflects a fundamental organisational principle for action control. This explains widely distributed perceptual-, learning-, decision-, and movement-related signals in the human brain. However, little is known about the concerted interplay between brain regions in terms of effective connectivity which is required for flexible behaviour.
My proposal seeks to shed light on this unresolved issue. To this end, I will use i) a multi-disciplinary neuroimaging approach, together with model-based analyses and Bayesian model comparison, adapted to human reaching behaviour as occurring in daily life; and ii) two novel approaches for testing effective connectivity: dynamic causal modelling (DCM) and concurrent transcranial magnetic stimulation-functional magnetic resonance imaging.
My prediction is that action selection relies on effective connectivity changes, which are a function of the prior information that the brain has to learn about.
If true, this will provide novel insight into the human ability to select actions, based on learning about the uncertainty which is inherent in contextual information. This is relevant for understanding action selection during development and ageing, and for pathologies of action such as Parkinson s disease or stroke.
Max ERC Funding
1 341 805 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-06-01, End date: 2016-05-31
Project acronym ANXIETY MECHANISMS
Project Neurocognitive mechanisms of human anxiety: identifying and
targeting disrupted function
Researcher (PI) Sonia Jane Bishop
Host Institution (HI) THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS5, ERC-2010-StG_20091118
Summary Within a 12 month period, 20% of adults will meet criteria for one or more clinical anxiety disorders (ADs). These disorders are hugely disruptive, placing an emotional burden on individuals and their families. While both cognitive behavioural therapy and pharmacological treatment are widely viewed as effective strategies for managing ADs, systematic review of the literature reveals that only 30–45% of patients demonstrate a marked response to treatment (anxiety levels being reduced into the nonaffected range). In addition, a significant proportion of initial responders relapse after treatment is discontinued. There is hence a real and marked need to improve upon current approaches to AD treatment.
One possible avenue for improving response rates is through optimizing initial treatment selection. Specifically, it is possible that certain individuals might respond better to cognitive interventions while others might respond better to pharmacological treatment. Recently it has been suggested that there may be two or more distinct biological pathways disrupted in anxiety. If this is the case, then specification of these pathways may be an important step in predicting which individuals are likely to respond to which treatment. Few studies have focused upon this issue and, in particular, upon identifying neural markers that might predict response to cognitive (as opposed to pharmacological) intervention. The proposed research aims to address this. Specifically, it tests the hypothesis that there are at least two mechanisms disrupted in ADs, one entailing amygdala hyper-responsivity to cues that signal threat, the other impoverished recruitment of frontal regions that support cognitive and emotional regulation.
Two series of functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments will be conducted. These will investigate differences in amygdala and frontal function during (a) attentional processing and (b) fear conditioning. Initial clinical experiments will investigate whether Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Specific Phobia involve differing degrees of disruption to frontal versus amygdala function during these tasks. This work will feed into training studies, the goal being to characterize AD patient subgroups that benefit from cognitive training.
Summary
Within a 12 month period, 20% of adults will meet criteria for one or more clinical anxiety disorders (ADs). These disorders are hugely disruptive, placing an emotional burden on individuals and their families. While both cognitive behavioural therapy and pharmacological treatment are widely viewed as effective strategies for managing ADs, systematic review of the literature reveals that only 30–45% of patients demonstrate a marked response to treatment (anxiety levels being reduced into the nonaffected range). In addition, a significant proportion of initial responders relapse after treatment is discontinued. There is hence a real and marked need to improve upon current approaches to AD treatment.
One possible avenue for improving response rates is through optimizing initial treatment selection. Specifically, it is possible that certain individuals might respond better to cognitive interventions while others might respond better to pharmacological treatment. Recently it has been suggested that there may be two or more distinct biological pathways disrupted in anxiety. If this is the case, then specification of these pathways may be an important step in predicting which individuals are likely to respond to which treatment. Few studies have focused upon this issue and, in particular, upon identifying neural markers that might predict response to cognitive (as opposed to pharmacological) intervention. The proposed research aims to address this. Specifically, it tests the hypothesis that there are at least two mechanisms disrupted in ADs, one entailing amygdala hyper-responsivity to cues that signal threat, the other impoverished recruitment of frontal regions that support cognitive and emotional regulation.
Two series of functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments will be conducted. These will investigate differences in amygdala and frontal function during (a) attentional processing and (b) fear conditioning. Initial clinical experiments will investigate whether Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Specific Phobia involve differing degrees of disruption to frontal versus amygdala function during these tasks. This work will feed into training studies, the goal being to characterize AD patient subgroups that benefit from cognitive training.
Max ERC Funding
1 708 407 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-04-01, End date: 2016-08-31
Project acronym AVIAN DIMORPHISM
Project The genomic and transcriptomic locus of sex-specific selection in birds
Researcher (PI) Judith Elizabeth Mank
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS8, ERC-2010-StG_20091118
Summary It has long been understood that genes contribute to phenotypes that are then the basis of selection. However, the nature and process of this relationship remains largely theoretical, and the relative contribution of change in gene expression and coding sequence to phenotypic diversification is unclear. The aim of this proposal is to fuse information about sexually dimorphic phenotypes, the mating systems and sexually antagonistic selective agents that shape sexual dimorphism, and the sex-biased gene expression patterns that encode sexual dimorphisms, in order to create a cohesive integrated understanding of the relationship between evolution, the genome, and the animal form. The primary approach of this project is to harnesses emergent DNA sequencing technologies in order to measure evolutionary change in gene expression and coding sequence in response to different sex-specific selection regimes in a clade of birds with divergent mating systems. Sex-specific selection pressures arise in large part as a consequence of mating system, however males and females share nearly identical genomes, especially in the vertebrates where the sex chromosomes house very small proportions of the overall transcriptome. This single shared genome creates sex-specific phenotypes via different gene expression levels in females and males, and these sex-biased genes connect sexual dimorphisms, and the sexually antagonistic selection pressures that shape them, with the regions of the genome that encode them.
The Galloanserae (fowl and waterfowl) will be used to in the proposed project, as this clade combines the necessary requirements of both variation in mating systems and a well-conserved reference genome (chicken). The study species selected from within the Galloanserae for the proposal exhibit a range of sexual dimorphism and sperm competition, and this will be exploited with next generation (454 and Illumina) genomic and transcriptomic data to study the gene expression patterns that underlie sexual dimorphisms, and the evolutionary pressures acting on them. This work will be complemented by the development of mathematical models of sex-specific evolution that will be tested against the gene expression and gene sequence data in order to understand the mechanisms by which sex-specific selection regimes, arising largely from mating systems, shape the phenotype via the genome.
Summary
It has long been understood that genes contribute to phenotypes that are then the basis of selection. However, the nature and process of this relationship remains largely theoretical, and the relative contribution of change in gene expression and coding sequence to phenotypic diversification is unclear. The aim of this proposal is to fuse information about sexually dimorphic phenotypes, the mating systems and sexually antagonistic selective agents that shape sexual dimorphism, and the sex-biased gene expression patterns that encode sexual dimorphisms, in order to create a cohesive integrated understanding of the relationship between evolution, the genome, and the animal form. The primary approach of this project is to harnesses emergent DNA sequencing technologies in order to measure evolutionary change in gene expression and coding sequence in response to different sex-specific selection regimes in a clade of birds with divergent mating systems. Sex-specific selection pressures arise in large part as a consequence of mating system, however males and females share nearly identical genomes, especially in the vertebrates where the sex chromosomes house very small proportions of the overall transcriptome. This single shared genome creates sex-specific phenotypes via different gene expression levels in females and males, and these sex-biased genes connect sexual dimorphisms, and the sexually antagonistic selection pressures that shape them, with the regions of the genome that encode them.
The Galloanserae (fowl and waterfowl) will be used to in the proposed project, as this clade combines the necessary requirements of both variation in mating systems and a well-conserved reference genome (chicken). The study species selected from within the Galloanserae for the proposal exhibit a range of sexual dimorphism and sperm competition, and this will be exploited with next generation (454 and Illumina) genomic and transcriptomic data to study the gene expression patterns that underlie sexual dimorphisms, and the evolutionary pressures acting on them. This work will be complemented by the development of mathematical models of sex-specific evolution that will be tested against the gene expression and gene sequence data in order to understand the mechanisms by which sex-specific selection regimes, arising largely from mating systems, shape the phenotype via the genome.
Max ERC Funding
1 350 804 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-01-01, End date: 2016-07-31
Project acronym BIG_IDEA
Project Building an Integrated Genetic Infectious Disease Epidemiology Approach
Researcher (PI) Francois Balloux
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS8, ERC-2010-StG_20091118
Summary Epidemiology and public health planning will increasingly rely on the analysis of genetic sequence data. The recent swine-derived influenza A/H1N1 pandemic may represent a tipping point in this trend, as it is arguably the first time when multiple strains of a human pathogen have been sequenced essentially in real time from the very beginning of its spread. However, the full potential of genetic information cannot be fully exploited to infer the spread of epidemics due to the lack of statistical methodologies capable of reconstructing transmission routes from genetic data structured both in time and space. To address this urgent need, we propose to develop a methodological framework for the reconstruction of the spatiotemporal dynamics of disease outbreaks and epidemics based on genetic sequence data. Rather than reconstructing most recent common ancestors as in phylogenetics, we will directly infer the most likely ancestries among the sampled isolates. This represents an entirely novel paradigm and allows for the development of statistically coherent and powerful inference software within a Bayesian framework. The methodological framework will be developed in parallel with the analysis of real genetic/genomic data from important human pathogens. We will in particular focus on the 2009 A/H1N1 pandemic influenza, methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clones (MRSAs), Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, a fungus currently devastating amphibian populations worldwide. The tools we are proposing to develop are likely to impact radically on the field of infectious disease epidemiology and affect the way infectious emerging pathogens are monitored by biologists and public health professionals.
Summary
Epidemiology and public health planning will increasingly rely on the analysis of genetic sequence data. The recent swine-derived influenza A/H1N1 pandemic may represent a tipping point in this trend, as it is arguably the first time when multiple strains of a human pathogen have been sequenced essentially in real time from the very beginning of its spread. However, the full potential of genetic information cannot be fully exploited to infer the spread of epidemics due to the lack of statistical methodologies capable of reconstructing transmission routes from genetic data structured both in time and space. To address this urgent need, we propose to develop a methodological framework for the reconstruction of the spatiotemporal dynamics of disease outbreaks and epidemics based on genetic sequence data. Rather than reconstructing most recent common ancestors as in phylogenetics, we will directly infer the most likely ancestries among the sampled isolates. This represents an entirely novel paradigm and allows for the development of statistically coherent and powerful inference software within a Bayesian framework. The methodological framework will be developed in parallel with the analysis of real genetic/genomic data from important human pathogens. We will in particular focus on the 2009 A/H1N1 pandemic influenza, methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clones (MRSAs), Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, a fungus currently devastating amphibian populations worldwide. The tools we are proposing to develop are likely to impact radically on the field of infectious disease epidemiology and affect the way infectious emerging pathogens are monitored by biologists and public health professionals.
Max ERC Funding
1 483 080 €
Duration
Start date: 2010-11-01, End date: 2015-10-31
Project acronym BIOMOF
Project Biomineral-inspired growth and processing of metal-organic frameworks
Researcher (PI) Darren Bradshaw
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), PE5, ERC-2010-StG_20091028
Summary This ERC-StG proposal, BIOMOF, outlines a dual strategy for the growth and processing of porous metal-organic framework (MOF) materials, inspired by the interfacial interactions that characterise highly controlled biomineralisation processes. The aim is to prepare MOF (bio)-composite materials of hierarchical structure and multi-modal functionality to address key societal challenges in healthcare, catalysis and energy. In order for MOFs to reach their full potential, a transformative approach to their growth, and in particular their processability, is required since the insoluble macroscopic micron-sized crystals resulting from conventional syntheses are unsuitable for many applications. The BIOMOF project defines chemically flexible routes to MOFs under mild conditions, where the added value with respect to wide-ranging experimental procedures for the growth and processing of crystalline controllably nanoscale MOF materials with tunable structure and functionality that display significant porosity for wide-ranging applications is extremely high. Theme 1 exploits protein vesicles and abundant biopolymer matrices for the confined growth of soluble nanoscale MOFs for high-end biomedical applications such as cell imaging and targeted drug delivery, whereas theme 2 focuses on the cost-effective preparation of hierarchically porous MOF composites over several length scales, of relevance to bulk industrial applications such as sustainable catalysis, separations and gas-storage. This diverse yet complementary range of applications arising simply from the way the MOF is processed, coupled with the versatile structural and physical properties of MOFs themselves indicates strongly that the BIOMOF concept is a powerful convergent new approach to applied materials chemistry.
Summary
This ERC-StG proposal, BIOMOF, outlines a dual strategy for the growth and processing of porous metal-organic framework (MOF) materials, inspired by the interfacial interactions that characterise highly controlled biomineralisation processes. The aim is to prepare MOF (bio)-composite materials of hierarchical structure and multi-modal functionality to address key societal challenges in healthcare, catalysis and energy. In order for MOFs to reach their full potential, a transformative approach to their growth, and in particular their processability, is required since the insoluble macroscopic micron-sized crystals resulting from conventional syntheses are unsuitable for many applications. The BIOMOF project defines chemically flexible routes to MOFs under mild conditions, where the added value with respect to wide-ranging experimental procedures for the growth and processing of crystalline controllably nanoscale MOF materials with tunable structure and functionality that display significant porosity for wide-ranging applications is extremely high. Theme 1 exploits protein vesicles and abundant biopolymer matrices for the confined growth of soluble nanoscale MOFs for high-end biomedical applications such as cell imaging and targeted drug delivery, whereas theme 2 focuses on the cost-effective preparation of hierarchically porous MOF composites over several length scales, of relevance to bulk industrial applications such as sustainable catalysis, separations and gas-storage. This diverse yet complementary range of applications arising simply from the way the MOF is processed, coupled with the versatile structural and physical properties of MOFs themselves indicates strongly that the BIOMOF concept is a powerful convergent new approach to applied materials chemistry.
Max ERC Funding
1 492 970 €
Duration
Start date: 2010-11-01, End date: 2015-10-31
Project acronym BIOPROPERTY
Project Biomedical Research and the Future of Property Rights
Researcher (PI) Javier Lezaun Barreras
Host Institution (HI) THE CHANCELLOR, MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), SH2, ERC-2010-StG_20091209
Summary This research project investigates the dynamics of private and public property in contemporary biomedical research. It will develop an analytical framework combining insights from science and technology studies, economic sociology, and legal and political philosophy, and pursues a social scientific investigation of the evolution of intellectual property rights in three fields of bioscientific research: 1) the use of transgenic research mice; 2) the legal status of totipotent and pluripotent stem cell lines; and 3) modes of collaboration for research and development on neglected diseases. These three domains, and their attendant modes of appropriation, will be compared across three general research themes: a) the production of public scientific goods; b) categories of appropriation; and c) the moral economy of research. The project rests on close observation of research practices in these three domains. The BioProperty research programme will track the trajectories of property rights and property objects in each of the three fields of biomedical research.
Summary
This research project investigates the dynamics of private and public property in contemporary biomedical research. It will develop an analytical framework combining insights from science and technology studies, economic sociology, and legal and political philosophy, and pursues a social scientific investigation of the evolution of intellectual property rights in three fields of bioscientific research: 1) the use of transgenic research mice; 2) the legal status of totipotent and pluripotent stem cell lines; and 3) modes of collaboration for research and development on neglected diseases. These three domains, and their attendant modes of appropriation, will be compared across three general research themes: a) the production of public scientific goods; b) categories of appropriation; and c) the moral economy of research. The project rests on close observation of research practices in these three domains. The BioProperty research programme will track the trajectories of property rights and property objects in each of the three fields of biomedical research.
Max ERC Funding
887 602 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-03-01, End date: 2014-12-31
Project acronym BLUELEAF
Project The adaptive advantages, evolution and development of iridescence in leaves
Researcher (PI) Heather Whitney
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS8, ERC-2010-StG_20091118
Summary Iridescence is a form of structural colour which changes hue according to the angle from which it is viewed. Blue iridescence caused by multilayers has been described on the leaves of taxonomically diverse species such as the lycophyte Selaginella uncinata and the angiosperm Begonia pavonina. While much is known about the role of leaf pigment colour, the adaptive role of leaf iridescence is unknown. Hypotheses have been put forward including 1) iridescence acts as disruptive camouflage against herbivores 2) it enhances light sensing and capture in low light conditions 3) it is a photoprotective mechanism to protect shade-adapted plants against high light levels. These hypotheses are not mutually exclusive: each function may be of varying importance in different environments. To understand any one function, we need a interdisciplinary approach considering all three potential functions and their interactions. The objective of my research would be to test these hypotheses, using animal behavioural and plant physiological methods, to determine the functions of leaf iridescence and how the plant has adapted to the reflection of developmentally vital wavelengths. Use of molecular and bioinformatics methods will elucidate the genes that control the production of this potentially multifunctional optical phenomenon. This research will provide a pioneering study into the generation, developmental impact and adaptive significance of iridescence in leaves. It would also answer questions at the frontiers of several fields including those of plant evolution, insect vision, methods of camouflage, the generation and role of animal iridescence, and could also potentially inspire synthetic biomimetic applications.
Summary
Iridescence is a form of structural colour which changes hue according to the angle from which it is viewed. Blue iridescence caused by multilayers has been described on the leaves of taxonomically diverse species such as the lycophyte Selaginella uncinata and the angiosperm Begonia pavonina. While much is known about the role of leaf pigment colour, the adaptive role of leaf iridescence is unknown. Hypotheses have been put forward including 1) iridescence acts as disruptive camouflage against herbivores 2) it enhances light sensing and capture in low light conditions 3) it is a photoprotective mechanism to protect shade-adapted plants against high light levels. These hypotheses are not mutually exclusive: each function may be of varying importance in different environments. To understand any one function, we need a interdisciplinary approach considering all three potential functions and their interactions. The objective of my research would be to test these hypotheses, using animal behavioural and plant physiological methods, to determine the functions of leaf iridescence and how the plant has adapted to the reflection of developmentally vital wavelengths. Use of molecular and bioinformatics methods will elucidate the genes that control the production of this potentially multifunctional optical phenomenon. This research will provide a pioneering study into the generation, developmental impact and adaptive significance of iridescence in leaves. It would also answer questions at the frontiers of several fields including those of plant evolution, insect vision, methods of camouflage, the generation and role of animal iridescence, and could also potentially inspire synthetic biomimetic applications.
Max ERC Funding
1 118 378 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-01-01, End date: 2016-07-31
Project acronym CBSCS
Project Physiology of the adult carotid body stem cell niche
Researcher (PI) Ricardo Pardal
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSIDAD DE SEVILLA
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), LS3, ERC-2010-StG_20091118
Summary The discovery of adult neural stem cells (NSCs) has broaden our view of the physiological plasticity of the nervous system,
and has opened new perspectives on the possibility of tissue regeneration and repair in the brain. NSCs reside in specialized
niches in the adult mammalian nervous system, where they are exposed to specific paracrine signals regulating their
behavior. These neural progenitors are generally in a quiescent state within their niche, and they activate their proliferation
depending on tissue regenerative and growth needs. Understanding the mechanisms by which NSCs enter and exit the
quiescent state is crucial for the comprehension of the physiology of the adult nervous system. In this project we will study
the behavior of a specific subpopulation of adult neural stem cells recently described by our group in the carotid body (CB).
This small organ constitutes the most important chemosensor of the peripheral nervous system and has neuronal glomus
cells responsible for the chemosensing, and glia-like sustentacular cells which were thought to have just a supportive role.
We recently described that these sustentacular cells are dormant stem cells able to activate their proliferation in response to a
physiological stimulus like hypoxia, and to differentiate into new glomus cells necessary for the adaptation of the organ.
Due to our precise experimental control of the activation and deactivation of the CB neurogenic niche, we believe the CB is
an ideal model to study fundamental questions about adult neural stem cell physiology and the interaction with the niche. We
propose to study the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which these carotid body stem cells enter and exit the quiescent
state, which will help us understand the physiology of adult neurogenic niches. Likewise, understanding this neurogenic
process will improve the efficacy of using glomus cells for cell therapy against neurological disease, and might help us
understand some neural tumors.
Summary
The discovery of adult neural stem cells (NSCs) has broaden our view of the physiological plasticity of the nervous system,
and has opened new perspectives on the possibility of tissue regeneration and repair in the brain. NSCs reside in specialized
niches in the adult mammalian nervous system, where they are exposed to specific paracrine signals regulating their
behavior. These neural progenitors are generally in a quiescent state within their niche, and they activate their proliferation
depending on tissue regenerative and growth needs. Understanding the mechanisms by which NSCs enter and exit the
quiescent state is crucial for the comprehension of the physiology of the adult nervous system. In this project we will study
the behavior of a specific subpopulation of adult neural stem cells recently described by our group in the carotid body (CB).
This small organ constitutes the most important chemosensor of the peripheral nervous system and has neuronal glomus
cells responsible for the chemosensing, and glia-like sustentacular cells which were thought to have just a supportive role.
We recently described that these sustentacular cells are dormant stem cells able to activate their proliferation in response to a
physiological stimulus like hypoxia, and to differentiate into new glomus cells necessary for the adaptation of the organ.
Due to our precise experimental control of the activation and deactivation of the CB neurogenic niche, we believe the CB is
an ideal model to study fundamental questions about adult neural stem cell physiology and the interaction with the niche. We
propose to study the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which these carotid body stem cells enter and exit the quiescent
state, which will help us understand the physiology of adult neurogenic niches. Likewise, understanding this neurogenic
process will improve the efficacy of using glomus cells for cell therapy against neurological disease, and might help us
understand some neural tumors.
Max ERC Funding
1 476 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2010-11-01, End date: 2015-10-31
Project acronym CHANGING FAMILIES
Project Changing Families: Causes, Consequences and Challenges for Public Policy
Researcher (PI) Nezih Guner
Host Institution (HI) FUNDACIÓ MARKETS, ORGANIZATIONS AND VOTES IN ECONOMICS
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), SH1, ERC-2010-StG_20091209
Summary The household and family structure in every major industrialized country changed in a fundamental way during the last couple of decades. First, marriage is less important today, as divorce, cohabitation, and single-motherhood are much more common. Second, female labor force participation has increased dramatically. As a result of these changes, today s households are very far from traditional breadwinner husband and housekeeper wife paradigm. These dramatic changes generated significant public interest and a large body of literature that tries to understand causes and consequences of these changes.
This project has two main goals. First, it studies changes in household and family structure. The particular questions that it tries to answer are: 1) What are economic factors behind the rise in premarital sex and its destigmatization? What determines parents incentives to socialize their children and affect their attitudes? 2) What are the causes and consequences of the recent rise in assortative mating and diverging marriage patterns by different educational groups? 3) Why are marriage patterns among blacks so different than whites in the U.S.?
The second aim of this project is to improve our understanding of income risk, the role of social insurance policies and labor market dynamics by building models that explicitly considers two-earner households. In particular, we ask the following set of questions: 1) What is the role of social insurance policies (income maintenance programs or progressive taxation) in an economy populated by two-earner households facing uninsurable idiosyncratic risk? 2) How does marriage and labor market dynamics interact and how important this interaction for our understanding of labor supply and marriage decisions?
Summary
The household and family structure in every major industrialized country changed in a fundamental way during the last couple of decades. First, marriage is less important today, as divorce, cohabitation, and single-motherhood are much more common. Second, female labor force participation has increased dramatically. As a result of these changes, today s households are very far from traditional breadwinner husband and housekeeper wife paradigm. These dramatic changes generated significant public interest and a large body of literature that tries to understand causes and consequences of these changes.
This project has two main goals. First, it studies changes in household and family structure. The particular questions that it tries to answer are: 1) What are economic factors behind the rise in premarital sex and its destigmatization? What determines parents incentives to socialize their children and affect their attitudes? 2) What are the causes and consequences of the recent rise in assortative mating and diverging marriage patterns by different educational groups? 3) Why are marriage patterns among blacks so different than whites in the U.S.?
The second aim of this project is to improve our understanding of income risk, the role of social insurance policies and labor market dynamics by building models that explicitly considers two-earner households. In particular, we ask the following set of questions: 1) What is the role of social insurance policies (income maintenance programs or progressive taxation) in an economy populated by two-earner households facing uninsurable idiosyncratic risk? 2) How does marriage and labor market dynamics interact and how important this interaction for our understanding of labor supply and marriage decisions?
Max ERC Funding
1 037 000 €
Duration
Start date: 2010-11-01, End date: 2015-10-31
Project acronym CHILDCOHAB
Project Nonmarital childbearing in comparative perspective: trends, explanations, and lifecourse trajectories
Researcher (PI) Brienna Perelli-Harris
Host Institution (HI) UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON
Call Details Starting Grant (StG), SH3, ERC-2010-StG_20091209
Summary Over the past several decades, childbearing within cohabitation has risen sharply throughout most of Europe, Australia, and the U.S. This project aims to study the diffusion of childbearing within cohabitation using a number of analytic levels and methodological perspectives. We will explore the following questions:
1) Trends: How does fertility differ by union status, and how do these differences change over time? Are there differences by parity, age pattern, or timing? How does the decline in marital fertility contribute to the increase in share of nonmarital births?
2) Explanations: What are the underlying reasons for increasing childbearing within cohabitation? What has produced variation across countries? How do policies impact and/or respond to childbearing within cohabitation? How do societal-level perceptions of cohabitation, marriage, and childbearing differ across countries?
3) Lifecourse trajectories: How do the lifecourse trajectories for women who bear children differ by union status? Are women who give birth within cohabitation more likely to experience changes in family structure? Is childbearing within cohabitation associated with future negative social, emotional, or economic outcomes?
To answer these questions, we will use an innovative mixed-methods strategy that 1) analyzes a unique database of harmonized reproductive and union histories, 2) conducts qualitative research into the role of policies and general perspectives on nonmarital childbearing, and 3) examines longitudinal surveys in comparative perspective. Ultimately, we aim to develop a new theoretical framework for understanding the diffusion of family change. This research will provide insights into whether lifecourse trajectories are diverging, potentially exacerbating social inequality.
Summary
Over the past several decades, childbearing within cohabitation has risen sharply throughout most of Europe, Australia, and the U.S. This project aims to study the diffusion of childbearing within cohabitation using a number of analytic levels and methodological perspectives. We will explore the following questions:
1) Trends: How does fertility differ by union status, and how do these differences change over time? Are there differences by parity, age pattern, or timing? How does the decline in marital fertility contribute to the increase in share of nonmarital births?
2) Explanations: What are the underlying reasons for increasing childbearing within cohabitation? What has produced variation across countries? How do policies impact and/or respond to childbearing within cohabitation? How do societal-level perceptions of cohabitation, marriage, and childbearing differ across countries?
3) Lifecourse trajectories: How do the lifecourse trajectories for women who bear children differ by union status? Are women who give birth within cohabitation more likely to experience changes in family structure? Is childbearing within cohabitation associated with future negative social, emotional, or economic outcomes?
To answer these questions, we will use an innovative mixed-methods strategy that 1) analyzes a unique database of harmonized reproductive and union histories, 2) conducts qualitative research into the role of policies and general perspectives on nonmarital childbearing, and 3) examines longitudinal surveys in comparative perspective. Ultimately, we aim to develop a new theoretical framework for understanding the diffusion of family change. This research will provide insights into whether lifecourse trajectories are diverging, potentially exacerbating social inequality.
Max ERC Funding
1 131 600 €
Duration
Start date: 2011-03-01, End date: 2016-05-31
