- Docente: Nicola Barban
- Credits: 10
- SSD: STAT-03/A
- Language: English
- Teaching Mode: In-person learning (entirely or partially)
- Campus: Bologna
- Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in Statistical Sciences (cod. 6810)
Learning outcomes
The course trains students to apply data science approaches to the study of human populations. Students will learn to analyse fertility, mortality, and migration, and to understand how social, economic, political, and environmental factors shape population change. The course covers traditional demographic data (censuses, registers, surveys) as well as new digital data sources and digital traces. Students will use R or Python to manage, clean, integrate, and analyse large-scale datasets. The course includes methods for text-as-data (e.g., news articles, social media, historical texts) to study demographic discourse and behaviour. Geographical data and spatial analysis tools are introduced to explore territorial patterns and inequalities. Students learn principles of reproducibility and Open Science, with emphasis on transparent workflows and code sharing. By the end of the course, students will be able to interpret results critically and communicate findings effectively. The course prepares students to design and implement research projects in population, social change, and public policy.
Syllabus
Office hours
See the website of Nicola Barban