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Active projects

The multiple paths of lone parenthood

Directed by : Laura Bernardi

Lone parenthood is an increasingly important reality in Switzerland. The Swiss Federal Statistical Office states that one in six households with children consists of a parent who raises their children alone, at least for most of the time. Eight in nine of these families are composed of mothers, although the diversity of their backgrounds makes lone parents an increasingly heterogeneous group.​​​​​​​

FamyCH: Family Custody Arrangements and Child Well-Being in Switzerland

Directed by : Joëlle Darwiche, Laura Bernardi, Sabrina Burgat & Elli Mosayebi

The overall project focuses on post-separation custody arrangements and their impact on children and will contribute to the identification of risk and resilience factors for child well-being after parental union dissolution in Switzerland. Building on the insights of social demography, psychology, architecture and housing studies, and law, this interdisciplinary project investigates the interdependent effects of four key dimensions on child well- being: socio-structural (social inequalities within and between families), relational (interpersonal relationships between family members), spatial (housing-mobility arrangements), and legal (legal regulations and court decisions).

Liberal and radical equality of opportunity (EQUALOPP)

Directed by : Michael Grätz

The project aims at developing novel ways to measure equality of opportunity using survey data from Switzerland, Germany, the UK, the US, and administrative data from Switzerland, Norway, and Sweden.

The politics of equal-opportunity policy in compulsory education in Switzerland

Directed by : Flavia Fossati

This project examines the attitudes of the Swiss population, especially native parents, and teaching staff, towards policy measures to promote equal opportunities for immigrant students. Moreover, this study also examines the reasons for the failure or success of some important reforms to promote equal opportunities for immigrants (e.g., in the cantons of Geneva, Zurich, and Neuchâtel). These reasons for the failure or success of these policies may be related to the preferences of the native population and those of teachers as well as to the strategies, preferences and decisions of political actors in the educational field.

Young adults' social networks in Switzerland : Which social capital for their education and professional integration?

@Kemalbas, iStock
Directed by : Eric Widmer, Eva Nada, Marlène Sapin, Gil Viry, Ivan de Carlo & Myriam Girardin 

Educational and occupational choices are not made by individuals in isolation but, on the contrary, in interaction with significant members of their personal networks, particularly friends and family. However, the importance of the social capital generated by these networks for educational pathways and entry into working life remains largely unexplored in Switzerland. The proposed research aims to identify the links between the professional and educational situation of young adults in Switzerland, their personal networks and the social capital that these networks generate.