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September 04, 2025 | News | Research Funding

Two ERC Starting Grants for MPIDR

MPIDR

We are thrilled to announce that our colleagues, Marília Nepomuceno and Ugofilippo Basellini, have each been awarded a 1.5 million euro ERC Starting Grant for their research on longevity. more

September 02, 2025 | News

Julia Hellstrand Honored with Prestigious European Demographer Award

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Dr. Julia Hellstrand, alumna of the International Max Planck Research School for Population, Health, and Data Science and a fellow at the Max Planck – University of Helsinki Center for Social Inequalities in Population Health, has been awarded the European Demographer Award in recognition of her exceptional promise and contribution as an emerging leader in the field. more

September 01, 2025 | News | Anniversary

20th Anniversary of the European Doctoral School of Demography

MPIDR/Schulz

The European Doctoral School of Demography (EDSD) opened its doors on September 1, 2005, with Vladimir Canudas-Romo delivering the first lecture of the Basic Mathematics course. This week, a new group of 18 EDSD students and one guest will begin their classes at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR).  more

August 27, 2025 | News | Recommended Reading

Facebook Ads: A Tool for Scientific Data Collection?

iStockphoto.com / Boy Wirat

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) and Bielefeld University investigated how ad design influences the quality of survey responses on Facebook. They tested various ad designs and evaluated the results using six quality markers. Their findings reveal that ads explicitly referencing specific topics generate more clicks, yet often result in lower-quality responses. Neutral ads, on the other hand, lead to higher-quality responses. more

August 26, 2025 | Press Release

Cohort Life Expectancy is no Longer Rising as Quickly

iStockphoto.com / fizkes

Life expectancy rose rapidly in the first half of the 20th century, increasing from an average of 62 years for people born in 1900 to 80 years for those born in 1938. But will those born between 1939 and 2000 benefit from these rapid gains in longevity? A recent study suggests that none of these generations will reach 100 years of age on average. Even if adult survival improved twice as fast as we predict, cohort life expectancy would still not match the rapid increases seen in the early 20th century. more

August 22, 2025 | News | New Publication

Out-of-Home Care for Children in Finland Has Doubled Since 1993, New Research Shows

iStockphoto.com / smartboy10

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) analyzed how the risk of Finnish children being placed in out-of-home care has evolved. In 1993 fewer than three percent of children were expected to be placed in care, but by 2020 this figure had risen to six percent. more

August 07, 2025 | News | Spotlight

The Skill to Lead Helps Men Form a Family

istockphoto.com/StefaNikolic

Steffen Peters, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR), used register data to predict the likelihood of young men in Sweden forming a family based on their leadership skills. He found that those with higher leadership skills at the age of 17 to 20 years were 10–15 percent more likely to be married by the age of 39. more

August 05, 2025 | News | Excellent!

Lara Bister receives German Thesis Award

David Ausserhofer/Körber-Stiftung

Lara Bister received the first prize in the social sciences section of the Körber Foundation's German Thesis Award for her doctoral thesis on economic crises and health, with a focus on the long-term health effects of German reunification on children born during the transition period in East Germany. She began her academic career as a participant in the EDSD and IMPRS-PHDS doctoral programs at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research. more

July 22, 2025 | News | New Publication

Predicting Migration Flows by Gender Is Difficult with Current Data and Models

istockphoto.com/Naeblys

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) examined the limitations of theoretical and methodological approaches to understanding gender-specific migration trends. The study's findings reveal that the predictive performance of gravity-type models varies significantly based on the gender composition of migration flows. more

July 17, 2025 | News | Blog@MPIDR

MPIDR on Tour – Two Months at the UN in NYC

istockphoto.com / OlegAlbinsky

In spring 2025 Henrik Schubert, Research Scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) and newly graduated PhD from the University of Oxford, spent two months at the United Nations Population Division (UN) in New York City, USA. Henrik had the opportunity to apply his academic knowledge to the practical science being undertaken at the UN by observing and participating in its political work and workflows. And he got to experience what it's like to live in New York City.  more

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The Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) in Rostock is one of the leading demographic research centers in the world. It's part of the Max Planck Society, the internationally renowned German research society.