University of Southampton Professor honoured for services to social science
Professor of Social Statistics, Chris Skinner, has been awarded a CBE in the New Year's Honours list. He's been recognised for services to social science.
“I am delighted to receive this honour, and see it as recognition of the leading work undertaken in this University in social statistics and research methods,” he comments.
Professor Chris Skinner has worked at the University for 31 years, starting in a temporary teaching post and registering for a PhD. He is now Acting Director of the University’s Southampton Statistical Sciences Research Institute.
He has led a number of major initiatives designed to enhance methodological capacity in social science research. For its first five years, he was Director of the National Centre for Research Methods, which plays a leading part in the strategy of the Economic and Social Research Council to improve methodological standards in social science research. It consists of a network of teams across UK universities, with a hub at Southampton – harnessing methodological expertise to address research challenges and the needs of UK researchers.
Other capacity-building initiatives he has directed include the Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences programme, targeted at junior researchers across 18 European countries, and the Centre for Applied Social Surveys. He also led the introduction of the current high-level professional training programme for statisticians employed in UK government.