Brienna Perelli-Harris

Professor Brienna Perelli-Harris serves as Head of the Department of Social Statistics and Demography within the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Southampton. A leading demographer, her research spans family formation behaviors, marriage, cohabitation, fertility, and population displacement with specialized expertise in Ukrainian demographic crises amid conflict. She leads the ESRC-funded UK Generations and Gender Survey and investigates forced migration and depopulation effects in Eastern Europe.

Education:

• PhD in Sociology, University of Michigan (2006)
• Postdoctoral Research, University of Wisconsin (2006-2008)

Research Focus: Professor Perelli-Harris examines family demography through comparative lenses, analyzing how cohabitation reshapes family structures and how economic uncertainty influences fertility decisions. Her Ukraine-focused work integrates conflict demography with forced displacement studies, using survey data and online focus groups to assess well-being among Internally Displaced Persons and perceptions of depopulation in Eastern Ukraine. She employs mixed methods including advanced quantitative analysis, qualitative approaches, and policy evaluation.

Publication Trends: Recent works (2024-2025) reveal dual emphases: (1) UK family dynamics exploring childcare sharing in flexible work environments and intergenerational co-residence patterns; and (2) Ukrainian demographic crises examining fertility decline amid conflict and PTSD among displaced populations. Cross-cutting themes include climate concerns affecting childlessness intentions and methodological innovations in life-history survey design.

Awards and Honors:

• Dirk van de Kaa Award for Social Demography (European Association for Population Studies, 2016)
• ERC Starting Grant (European Research Council, 2011)

Advising and Funding: She supervises PhD candidate Stephanie Thiehoff and has secured major grants including the ESRC-funded Generations and Gender Survey (focusing on online methodology) and an ERC Starting Grant for cross-national cohabitation research. Her completed ESRC Secondary Data Initiative project analyzed relationship quality across Europe during the pandemic. External roles include Associate Editor for Population Studies and Scientific Board Member for the UK Household Longitudinal Survey.

Research Groups: She contributes to the Centre for Population Change, Centre for Eastern European and Eurasian Studies, and Global Health (Demography) group, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration on demographic challenges.