A Resource for Researchers:
UCSUR offers assistance in social and behavioral science research

At a university renowned for research excellence, it should surprise no one that Pitt’s University Center for Social and Urban Research (UCSUR) continues to build a reputation as a dynamic resource for researchers interested in the basic and applied social and behavioral sciences.

Tucked in a modest six-floor building on University Place, UCSUR was established in 1972 to carry out basic and applied social science research. The center, under the direction of Richard Schulz since 1995, includes several thematic programs and survey research capabilities that serves a multitude of clients both on and off campus.

The activities conducted at UCSUR have practical “real world” applications, whether they involve children, youth, and families; regional economic analysis and forecasting; the psychosocial impact of aging; intergenerational relations; or environmental resource management.

A strong area of support UCSUR provides to faculty and others is its Survey Research Services, directed by Scott Beach, and highlighted by a 24-station, computer- aided telephone interviewing facility.

“We offer a full range of survey research capabilities,” said Beach. “We can get involved with a project from start to finish, or collaborate on only certain aspects.”

Specifically, UCSUR provides assistance in sample design, questionnaire development, interviewing and data collection, data management, statistical analysis of survey data, and report preparation and presentation.

“We can provide support for externally funded projects,” said Beach, who added that, while the majority of his clients are on campus, he and his associates have done work with other local and national universities, as well as local, state, and federal agencies.

“For Pitt, we do a lot of joint projects with faculty, especially those from the medical school and the Graduate School of Public Health,” he said. “But we’re available to help any faculty member, especially someone doing work in public policy, the social sciences, or the behavioral sciences. It works best if you get us involved early in the process.”

Among the types of survey projects undertaken include topics like public attitudes toward death and organ donation, racial polarization of attitudes toward the criminal justice system, family and peer risk factors for pre-adolescent drinking, self-care health behavioral differences between older African Americans and whites, and patient-physician relationships.

“Our staff has the training and experience to design scientifically valid studies customized to faculty research needs,” said Beach.