Evans, Sian

Start date:
October 2015
Research Topic:
The relationship of social network structure with social participation in midlife.
Research pathway:
Research Supervisor:
Prof. Ian Rees Jones and Dr Sin Yi Cheung
Supervising school:
School of Social Sciences,
Primary funding source:
ESRC Studentship

The central goal of my research is to identify the interrelationships between social participation and social networks in mid- to later life.  Specifically I aims to assess the external factors that influence these relationships, including class, ethnicity, place, and sense of belonging.  I will use a mixed methods approach by quantitatively analysing longitudinal data from the National Child Development Study (NCDS) and qualitatively analysing data from the Social Participation and Identity Project; a sub-sample qualitative study of NCDS participants.  Currently, my research questions are as follows:

  • How is social participation defined?
  • How are social networks structured?

In what ways are the structure of social networks related to patterns of social participation, and what external factors influence these relationships?