Gunnar Andersson, professor in demography and a new member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
Foto: Leila Zoubir

His research is largely based on analyzes of Swedish register data and have focused on several phases of life: fertility and family formation, migration and integration, marriage and divorce, and mortality. He and his colleagues have broadened demographic research at Stockholm University to make SUDA an all-encompassing demography unit.

Gunnar Andersson's work has also provided increased geographical breadth to the subject of demography in Sweden. He has been active at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, and at Stockholm University he has been involved in the promotion of international recruitment. He has been one of the driving forces behind a Nordic research network. The international work enables comparative studies between countries, but also counteracts tunnel vision in research, according to Gunnar Andersson.

The Royal Academy of Sciences describes Gunnar Andersson's research as innovative, and states that it has great value both nationally and internationally. How does it feel to receive these nice words and to have been selected?

– Of course it feels nice! Both for me personally and for the subject of demography in Sweden. I am not unfamiliar with appreciation in various international contexts, but it is very nice to be able to receive this kind of recognition at home.