Research projects

Overview The project used interviews and questionnaires to investigate the types of civic participation and conceptions of language and identity promoted within the statutory education system, and within civil society organisations working with young people, in both Wales and Scotland. In the project’s initial stages the four co-Is undertook around a total of 15-20 interviews with national-level elite…

Overview  The study carried out analysis of existing secondary sources of quantitative data in order to investigate levels of social capital within communities in relation to changing levels of provision of key public services. The  study built on research conducted in Phase 1 of WISERD on the use of enhanced two step floating catchment area (E2SFCA) techniques to examine…

Overview This project builds on previous research undertaken by the team. It will utilise a mixed methods approach, combining secondary analysis of existing datasets, development of case studies, documentary analysis and a series of interviews to investigate the impact of Faith-Based welfare provision on social cohesion. The project will proceed using a mixed methods design…

Overview This project utilised a range of econometric techniques to investigate the nature of the relationship between the domains of individual subjective wellbeing, individual and household characteristics, work/life circumstances, and a range of indicators related to the measurement of social cohesion and civil society. The main UK data sets used by the WP included: Understanding…

During rapid urbanization and marketization, China has experienced unbalanced economic and social development – both between and within cities – and social groups. To promote social justice and sustainable development, not to mention political stability, the establishment and improvement of the prevailing social welfare system is crucial. However, the demographic transitions and social changes during…

Overview Within the social science literature, the relationship between the family and civil society is complex and contradictory. While some theories place the family as the cornerstone of civil society, others put the family firmly outside civil society. Indeed, it is often argued that strong family ties weaken, rather than strengthen, the development of a…

Overview This project utilised two key large-scale secondary data sets in order to undertake detailed analysis of what impact grandparents can have on their grandchildren’s cognitive, social and emotional development. Through this analysis the project attempted to explore the complex relationships between social mobility, spatial mobility and intergenerational transmission. This study primarily used two existing large-scale…

Overview This project combined quantitative and qualitative research methodologies to examine the participation of European migrants from the A8 countries in local civil society. Fieldwork took place in three localities across Wales; one urban, one rural and one semi-rural. The project employed a mixed-methods approach. The research was conducted in two stages. The team will conduct 80 hour long…

Overview This project builds on previous WISERD research into geographical variations in trade union membership in Wales. (Beynon, Davies and Davies, 2012). The research programme derives from this analysis, which suggested that in South Wales collective understandings, rooted in an earlier period of unionisation, are spilling over into the contemporary period. This work was supported…

Overview This project explored the relationships between participation in higher education and engagement in civil society, especially at the local level. Do university graduates play a distinctive role in the institutions of civil society? More specifically, it examined the extent to which the institutional shift from an elite to a mass system of higher education has…

Overview This project will utilise a series of interviews and document-based analysis to explore the notion of stakeholder involvement in Local Employment Partnerships (LEPs), Enterprise Zones (EZs), City Deals and City Regions. Fieldwork will take place in four city regions, two within Wales and two within England. 100 semi-structured interviews will be carried out. Two…

Overview This project undertook a programme of quantitative data analysis, using the prism of ageing, to address the effects of and responses to nascent globalization for civil society and social participation at national and local levels. This work package comprised a series of projects aimed at addressing specific research questions relating to later life and social…

This project is currently considering the potential value of an analysis of virtual patterns of trade union organisation and mobilisation and specifically the contribution of social media to the rescaling of trade unionism. This includes both: the virtual linkages of the trade union movement with other forms of social and political activism; and the virtual…

This project utilised a range of econometric approaches to analyse entrepreneurial activity, the growth in Social enterprise and the changing role of the third sector. Research focused on the early stages of entrepreneurial activity and also on the survival and performance of small businesses in Wales (and beyond) as a means to contribute to economic growth…

Overview This project has examined experiences of participation at the local level and what they tell us about the changing patterns of mobilisation in particular places in Wales. Fieldwork took place in North and South Wales in three stages. 1. Mapping local level civil society groups. 2. Life history/narrative interviews, which will capture experiences and biographies of…

The Centre for Welsh Politics and Society / WISERD@Aberystwyth aims to use research on Welsh politics and society, comparative studies of Wales and other nations and regions, and analyses of Wales’s global connections, to make internationally-significant cutting-edge contributions to social science theories, debates and literature. Our research is organized around three key themes: Global Connections…

The aim of the project was to provide an analysis of the current state of education in Wales, based upon a critical review of the available evidence. This analysis provided the basis for the development of a future programme of educational research. More specifically, the objectives were: To construct a robust ‘political arithmetic’ of the performance…

Behaviour change is a topic which is of key importance to policy makers both in the Welsh Government and further afield. Behaviour change also emerged as a key theme during the WISERD localities stakeholder interviews and the subsequent stakeholder feedback sessions have indicated that a range of 3rd sector stakeholders in Wales are engaging with the…

WISERD analysed turnout data for the 2011 NAW elections and produced a report for the Electoral Commission.

Overview As a part of the development process for the Connected Communities programme, the AHRC supported research reviews in 2011 to address a wide range of underpinning issues. The aim of these reviews was to: stimulate debate and provide some early outputs from the programme; inform future discussions about its shape, focus and priorities; and…