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Swedish Institute for Social Research

Anders Stenberg appointed new professor

Anders Stenberg has been appointed as a new professor at Stockholm University. He plans to continue his research on Swedish Higher Vocational Education (Yrkeshögskolan) in his new role. "It's an incredibly exciting area. If you look at those 25 years or older, Higher Vocational Education accounts for half of all post-secondary education," says Stenberg.

Swedish Institute for Social Research

Marie Evertsson new Director at SOFI

Marie Evertsson, professor of sociology, will become the new director of the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI).

Postdoctoral Fellow in Sociology
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Postdoctoral Fellow in Sociology

The Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University is seeking a postdoctoral researcher in sociology. Suitable candidates are dedicated researchers who wish to delve into areas such as social policy, welfare, inequality, and the labor market.

Martin Hällsten.
Swedish Institute for Social Research

5 questions for Martin Hällsten

Welcome to SOFI, Martin Hällsten! Martin is a Professor of Sociology who studies social mobility across one or several generations. He examines aspects such as class, occupation, education, wealth, and other inherited factors to trace inequality back through generations. We asked him a few questions to get to know him and his research.

Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page
Carina Mood och Jan O. Jonsson
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Lecture on Immigrant Student Integration Now Available Online

SOFI professors Jan O. Jonsson and Carina Mood, recently presented their research findings at a lecture at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Their research focuses on the integration of children and youth with immigrant backgrounds in Swedish schools.

Image of GAINS logo
Swedish Institute for Social Research

GAINS: Research for a More Inclusive Future

In an ever-relevant societal debate, the Gender Analysis and Interdisciplinary Research Network, Stockholm (GAINS), promotes research in gender-related issues. Among others in the GAINS group, Johanna Rickne, Marie Evertsson, and Anne Boschini, at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI), study some of today's most debated topics, such as quotas, same-sex couples, discrimination in the labor market, and sexual harassment.

Economy and Society - Theme page Gender and Equality - Theme page
Image of wooden blocks piled up with the words economic, social and environmental
Swedish Institute for Social Research

New study from SOFI: Welfare state's role in mitigating poverty from environmental taxes

In a new study, three researchers at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University ,demonstrate how the welfare state protects households from falling into poverty as a result of environmental taxes related to consumption, writes Henrik Pehrsson, communications officer, in a article for Stockholm University.

Climate and Environment - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page
Son sitting in his fathers shoulders.
Swedish Institute for Social Research

New Report: Social competence crucial for the modern father role

With increased gender equality in society, expectations of what it means to be a father have also changed. However, the development of family policies and support for fathers has not kept pace. In a new SNS report, two economists highlight how social competence has become an increasingly important factor in the likelihood of becoming a father.

Economy and Society - Theme page Gender and Equality - Theme page
Image of Johanna Rickne and Olle Folke, receiver of Assar Lindbeck Medal 2023.
Swedish Institute for Social Research

SOFI:s Johanna Rickne awarded the Assar Lindbeck Medal 2023

The Assar Lindbeck Medal for 2023 is awarded to Johanna Rickne, professor of economics at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University, and Olle Folke, professor of political science at the Department of Political Science, Uppsala University, for their innovative research on gender equality and political economy.

Economy and Society - Theme page Gender and Equality - Theme page
Baby standing in front of window looking out
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Low-income families in Sweden struggle with exclusion

In a recently conducted study, researchers from Stockholm University and Oxford University shed light on how families in Sweden with low income are struggling with the sense of being excluded. Dealing with low income issues both substantial effort and a lot of time, the researchers note.

Economy and Society - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page Health and Living Conditions - Theme page
Image of professor Matthew Lindquist
Swedish Institute for Social Research

New Report: Early and Improved Healthcare Interventions for Youth Reduce Crime

Children and young people who have been placed in social care are more likely to commit crimes later in life than those who have not. However, with better social care and early interventions, the risk of them committing crimes decreases, writes Matthew Lindquist, Professor of Economics at the Swedish Institute for Social Research at Stockholm University, in a new SNS report.

Children and Young People - Theme page Economy and Society - Theme page
Doctor and patient in a hospital room
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Countries with strong primary care show more equity in health

The health level among highly- and low-educated people is more equal in countries with a high-quality primary care. For people with low education, primary care can function as a gatekeeper, reducing the correlation between education level and health. This is shown in a new dissertation in sociology from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University.

Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page
Child with parents, holding hands
Swedish Institute for Social Research

How are children influenced by their parents’ separation?

What are the circumstances that make some children more resilient to a parental separation than others? A new dissertation in sociology from Stockholm University investigates the heterogeneity in children’s outcomes after a parental separation. Among other things, the studies show that children with separated parents, living in shared parental residence, are doing nearly as well as children whose parents stay together.

Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page Health and Living Conditions - Theme page Children and Young People - Theme page
Two siblings playing i the woods
Swedish Institute for Social Research

We follow our older siblings' choice of higher education

Older siblings’ choice of higher education has a big impact on what their younger siblings apply for, even when it leads them to worse* education. This is the result of a new study with data from four countries, including Sweden and USA. The study is published in the highly ranked scientific journal The Quarterly Journal of Economics.

Two parenst and a doughter walkning hand in hand in a summer park

Do biological factors explain the unequal division of parental leave?

Parents who have adopted a child share their parental leave in much the same way as families who have a biological child. A new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) which has compared adoptive and biological parents’ leave use shows that biological factors may not explain the unequal division of parental leave.

Gender and Equality - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page Children and Young People - Theme page
Singelmamma med ett barn på en parkbänk, höstväder

Single parents face higher risk of relative poverty in societies with many dual-earner households

Single-parent incomes are less likely to reach above the poverty thresholds in societies with a large share of dual-earner households. But this pattern only appears in countries with low public expenditures on childcare and income-transfer policies. These are the findings of a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI), recently published in a special issue of the scientific journal ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science.

Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page Organization and Working Life - Theme page
En kvinna i mörk kavaj sitter med ryggen mot kameran vid ett bord, flera andra tittar på henne.
Swedish Institute for Social Research

The gender wage gap – worst in high-prestige occupations

The wage gap between men and women has since the 1980’s decreased in most occupational groups – but not in the professions with the highest prestige. This is the result of a study in sociology from Stockholm university. And the gender wage gap cannot be explained by women’s level of education or work life experience.

Researchers Rense Nieuwenhuis, Kenneth Nelson, Susanne Alm at Stockholm University
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Singles without children new risk group for poverty in Sweden

There has been an extraordinary increase in the share of poor single households in Sweden, official statistics show. While the risk of poverty among single parents has long been known to be a problem, a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) shows that single persons without children also faced a drastic increase in poverty risk. The researchers can now link this increase in poverty to cutbacks in the unemployment insurance.

Johanna Rickne, Professor of Economics, Swedish Institute for Social Research
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Women in leadership positions face more sexual harassment

Power in the workplace does not stop women’s exposure to sexual harassment. On the contrary, women with supervisory positions are harassed more than women employees. These are the results from a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research at Stockholm University, which examined the conditions in Sweden, USA and Japan.

SOFI building at Frescati
Swedish Institute for Social Research

The Swedish Research Council grants new funding to SOFI

Two projects at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) have been granted new research funding from the Swedish Research Council in the annual call for humanities and social sciences.

Swedish Institute for Social Research

New book: Integration among young people - a multicultural generation is growing up

Sweden has, in just a couple of decades, become a multi-ethnic society. Among young people today, building the Sweden of the future, more than one in four has a foreign background. In the book Integration among young people (in Swedish) the sociologists Carina Mood, Jan O. Jonsson and Georg Treuter have followed over 5,000 young people through their teenage years to early adulthood and had them describe their lives and living conditions in terms of school, leisure time, attitudes, visions of the future and much more .

En kvinna sitter på en säng i ett rum vid ett fönster, med ryggen mot kameran.
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Young women who are exposed to violence face elevated risks of labour market exclusion

Being young and exposed to violent crime can increase the risk of labour market exclusion later in life, at least if you are a woman. For young men, there is not the same risk – unless they themselves have also committed a violent crime, then the risk of exclusion from the labour market increases for them as well. This is shown in a new dissertation in sociology from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University.

Children and Young People - Theme page Gender and Equality - Theme page Law, Crime and Justice - Theme page Organization and Working Life - Theme page
Two children on bikes
Swedish Institute for Social Research

The Stockholm Health Day 2022: Workshop on the topic of Children and Health

Researchers at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) organise The Stockholm Health Day, a workshop on the topic of children and health. The workshop aims to bring together researchers to lay the foundation for a network within health economics.

Children and Young People - Theme page Economy and Society - Theme page Climate and Environment - Theme page Health and Living Conditions - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Social Stratification, Welfare and Social Policy seminar – schedule for the fall of 2022

The Social Stratification, Welfare and Social Policy seminars are held every other Tuesday 13.00 at SOFI, Stockholm University.

Children and Young People - Theme page Gender and Equality - Theme page Health and Living Conditions - Theme page Organization and Working Life - Theme page School, Education and Learning - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page
A school canteen with small tables, plates, bananas and glasses
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Should Spain implement the universal school lunch?

In a new article in The Conversation, SOFI-researcher José Montalbán Castilla discusses effects of having free school lunch for children. How does the students’ academic career, health and work life benefit from having free school lunches early in life? José Montalbán Castilla summarizes the different school lunch systems across the world, and highlights evidence from Sweden.

Children and Young People - Theme page Economy and Society - Theme page Health and Living Conditions - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page Organization and Working Life - Theme page School, Education and Learning - Theme page
Kenneth Nelson, professor of sociology at Stockholm Univerity, in a big room with books and a tv
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Kenneth Nelson appointed professor at the University of Oxford

Kenneth Nelson, professor of sociology since 2014, has been appointed professor at the University of Oxford. He will hold the Barnett Professorship in Social Policy at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention. The professorship also entails a fellowship at St Cross College.

Students in a classroom all raising their hands, a male teacher smiling
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Being top of the class can affect your education and income later in life

In addition to the positive effects of having high grades in itself, being top of the class increases the probability that a student finishes a longer education or gets a higher income later in life. For students at the lower end of the grade distribution, being a bit more highly ranked compared to other students in the school increases the probability of finishing upper secondary school. These are the results of a new dissertation in economics from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University.

Children and Young People - Theme page Economy and Society - Theme page Organization and Working Life - Theme page School, Education and Learning - Theme page
Students in a class room has a math class
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Why do girls opt out of math in school?

In school, girls in general outperform boys in math-related fields. But even when girls have a relatively higher ability in math, they more often choose other education trajectories. A new study from Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) puts a piece to the puzzle on why girls don’t seem to aim for the science and technology fields in their education and work careers.

Children and Young People - Theme page Gender and Equality - Theme page Health and Living Conditions - Theme page Mathematics and Statistics - Theme page School, Education and Learning - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page
Swedish Institute for Social Research

Men face a greater risk of ethnic discrimination in the labour market

Men with foreign-sounding names applying for a job receive significantly fewer responses to their applications than female applicants with a foreign-sounding name. Both male and female recruiters appear to discriminate against them, although in different occupational groups.

Economy and Society - Theme page Society, Democracy and Welfare - Theme page Organization and Working Life - Theme page
Students in a classroom
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

Why do girls opt out of math in school?

In school, girls in general outperform boys in math-related fields. But even when girls have a relatively higher ability in math, they more often choose other education trajectories.

Older people laughning and drinking coffee
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

Time for the sixth round of SWEOLD

The SWEOLD survey has been running since 1992 and aims to investigate changes in the living conditions of the population over 75. The researchers behind the study can now describe developments over the past 30 years, a period during which there have been clear changes in welfare.

En bild från filmklippet om LNU2020 med prifessor Carina Mood
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

"It is important that people's own voices are heard"

The seventh round of the Living Standards Survey (LNU) at SOFI is currently contucted. Carina Mood, Professor of Sociology, talks about the work of collecting people's own voices about their living conditions.

Grafik: viktig information

Stockholm University will open gradually from 1 June

The Swedish Public Health Agency has withdrawn the recommendation on distance education for universities, from 1 June. As a consequence, the University President has decided to proceed with a gradual opening of the University from 1 June, regarding both teaching and examination.

Två syskon leker i skogen, de balanserar på en trädstam
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

We follow our older siblings' choice of higher education

In a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University Researchers have been able to isolate a direct effect, and measure how an older sibling's educational experience affects the choices of younger siblings.

Två syskon leker i skogen, de balanserar på en trädstam
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

We follow our older siblings' choice of higher education

In a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University Researchers have been able to isolate a direct effect, and measure how an older sibling's educational experience affects the choices of younger siblings.

The Swedish Institute for Social Research

The gender wage gap – worst in high-prestige occupations

The wage gap between women and men are biggest among occupations with high prestige, a study in sociology show. Unlike in other occupational groups the difference has not decreased in this category.

The Swedish Institute for Social Research

The gender wage gap – worst in high-prestige occupations

The wage gap between women and men are biggest among occupations with high prestige, a study in sociology show. Unlike in other occupational groups the difference has not decreased in this category.

Researcher Susan Niknami
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

What happens to children with parents in prison?

Approximately one out of ten children who come from a poor background experience at least one time during childhood an arresting of their parent. There is an ongoing study at SOFI on how the life chances of these children are affected.

Researcher Susan Niknami
The Swedish Institute for Social Research

What happens to children with parents in prison?

Approximately one out of ten children who come from a poor background experience at least one time during childhood an arresting of their parent. There is an ongoing study at SOFI on how the life chances of these children are affected.

The Swedish Institute for Social Research

Singles without children new risk group for poverty in Sweden

While the risk of poverty among single parents has long been known to be a problem, a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) shows that single persons without children also faced a drastic increase in poverty risk. The researchers can now link this increase in poverty to cutbacks in the unemployment insurance.

The Swedish Institute for Social Research

Singles without children new risk group for poverty in Sweden

While the risk of poverty among single parents has long been known to be a problem, a new study from the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) shows that single persons without children also faced a drastic increase in poverty risk. The researchers can now link this increase in poverty to cutbacks in the unemployment insurance.

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