Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Sgoil Cheumnaichean Saidheans Sòisealta na h-Alba
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Scottish Graduate School of Social Science

Sgoil Cheumnaichean Saidheans Sòisealta na h-Alba

Studentship opportunity

All Studentship Opportunities

Bias and Inclusion in Survey Data: Modelling Respondent Effort Across International and Youth-Focused Surveys

This studentship is funded by the ESRC through the Scottish Graduate School of Social Science (SGSSS)

Institution
University of Strathclyde
Pathway
Social Inequalities
Studentship
Steers – Advanced Quantitative Methods
Mode of study

Full-time / Part-time

Application deadline
4pm, 14 April 2022
Applications are due 24 March 2026, 5 pm GMT and
References are due 26 March 2026, 5 pm GMT

Project details

Across the world, surveys shape decisions made by governments, NGOs, journalists, international organisations, and private firms. They influence public policy, democratic debates, and how inequality is understood.

But surveys rely on a powerful assumption: that respondents are attentive, engaged, and equally willing to express their views.

What if that assumption is wrong?

If you are interested in quantitative methods, political behaviour, and the ethics of measurement, this PhD offers the opportunity to rethink how we evaluate public opinion data.

The Project

You will develop advanced probabilistic and latent modelling approaches to capture variation in respondent engagement and response quality. Rather than relying on blunt exclusion rules (such as response-time cut-offs), the project treats attentiveness as a spectrum — enabling more precise and inclusive assessments of data quality.

There is scope to examine:

  • How survey mode and environment shape engagement
  • Whether social desirability and framing effects vary across groups
  • How data-quality decisions affect representation and inequality

You will benchmark innovative modelling strategies against conventional rule-based approaches, assessing their implications for validity and democratic representation.

Data and Training

You will work with the British Election Study, Afrobarometer, and the UK Youth Poll, enabling comparative analysis across political, cultural, and generational contexts.

Supervised by Professors Thomas J. Scotto and Robert Mattes, and Dr Joe Greenwood-Hau, you will receive advanced training in latent modelling and applied survey research, with clear pathways to peer-reviewed publication and engagement with survey practitioners.

This project does not simply ask who to exclude from surveys.
It asks how to measure public opinion more accurately — and more fairly.

Supervisory Team: 

About the University

This studentship is based in the Department of Government and Public Policy at the University of Strathclyde and will be supervised by Professors Scotto and Mattes. The department has strong expertise in quantitative political science, survey research, and public opinion analysis, with a particular focus on political behaviour, representation, and inequality.

Doctoral students benefit from training in advanced quantitative methods and hands-on experience working with large national and international survey datasets, within a supportive and research-active environment.  With this studentship, we are looking to add to our small but focused PhD cohort an excellent student with interests in exploring new challenges in global survey research, in terms of respondent participant and engagement.

The student will also have opportunities to work closely with Dr Joe Greenwood-Hau, Lecturer and co-lead of the UK Youth Poll at the John Smith Centre, University of Glasgow. The John Smith Centre is a leading hub for research and engagement on youth participation, democratic innovation, and public leadership, providing the student with additional exposure to youth-focused survey research and applied public engagement.

Eligibility

Applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria:

  • Applicants must hold or be predicted a First or a good 2:1 undergraduate degree in the social sciences, or have relevant comparable experience.
  • Applicants can have a Masters degree, however this is not a requirement.
  • The applicant must also show demonstrable interest in the topic area under investigation.
  • Applicants can study part-time or full-time

Applicants can study part-time or full-time but remote (overseas) study (full-time or part-time) is not available.

  • Willingness to work independently and proactively, with supervisory guidance, to develop expertise in advanced quantitative methods and to engage with the emerging research literature on survey methodology and data quality.
  • Demonstrated basic competence in applied quantitative methods, including regression analysis, evidenced through formal coursework, a quantitative dissertation or project, or equivalent research experience.
  • Willingness to undertake, with supervisory support, additional formal coursework or training in advanced quantitative methods as required by the project.

International applicants need to meet the University’s English language requirements which is IELTS (Academic) 6.5 overall (no individual band less than 5.5) – taken within 2 years prior to start date.

Funding

As per guidance published by UKRI in October 2020, a maximum of 30% of all studentships awarded can be made to international students, with the remaining 70% going to home students. 

Residential Criteria

To be classed as a home student, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have settled status, or
  • Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have indefinite leave to remain or enter.

For more on the UKRI eligibility guidance, click here

As per guidance published by UKRI in October 2020, a maximum of 30% of all studentships awarded can be made to international students, of which SGSSS has now awarded for the 2021/22 round of studentship awards. As such, this opportunity is only open to home students.

Residential Criteria

To be classed as a home student, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Be a UK national (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have settled status, or
  • Have pre-settled status (meeting residency requirements), or
  • Have indefinite leave to remain or enter.

If you do not meet the criteria above, you will be classed as an international student and will not be eligible to apply. To establish if you would be classed as a home student, please see pages 4 and 5 of the UKRI eligibility guidance here.

Award details

The scholarship is available as a +3.5 (3 year PhD and placement) or a 1+3.5 (Masters year, 3 year PhD, and a placement) studentship depending on prior research training. This will be assessed as part of the recruitment process, however you can access guidance here to help you decide on which to apply for. The programme will commence in October 2026. The full ESRC studentship package includes, as advised by ESRC:

  • An annual maintenance grant (stipend)
  • Fees at the standard institutional home rate
  • Students can also draw on a pooled Research Training Support Grant (RTSG)

Other information

An example demonstrating engagement with applied quantitative analysis, which may include a course assignment, dissertation or thesis chapter, research paper, technical report, methods appendix, or other relevant quantitative work.

The example does not need to be polished or publication-ready, but should reflect the upper end of the applicant’s current quantitative skills (one example is sufficient).

How to apply

  1. Applicants must register on SGSSS Apply, completing their Equal Opportunities data.
  2. Applicants must apply via SGSSS Apply, uploading the following documentation:

    • Application Questions (answered within SGSSS Apply, no upload needed)
    • Academic transcripts
    • Academic prizes
    • Referee information
    • CV
    • Other information (if required by the advert)
We strongly encourage applicants review the applicant guidance document for more on the process. 

Please Note:

  • This is not an application to the relevant University, this is an application for SGSSS (ESRC) funding.
  • Students do not need a Masters/PhD offer from the relevant University before they can apply for funding, i.e. this studentship.
  • If successful in obtaining the SGSSS (ESRC) studentship, students can only start the funded studentship once they have an unconditional Masters/PhD degree offer from the relevant University. It is your responsibility to find out the University’s application process, including when you need to secure your offer, as SGSSS plays no role in this process.

This studentship opportunity will open for applications on 9th June.

Apply now via SGSSS Apply

Selection process

Applications will be ranked by an internal institutional selection panel, and you will be notified if you have been shortlisted for interview on 1 April. Interviews will take place on 8 April.

This studentship award is subject to the successful candidate securing admission to a PhD programme within the University of Strathclyde. The successful candidate will be invited to apply for admission to the relevant PhD programme.

Contact details

Name
Team SGSSS
Email
SGSSS Team (for questions on the application portal, only), for any questions on the project, email the supervisory team (see details in abstract above)

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