The Brussels Institute for Social and Population Studies (BRISPO) is an interdisciplinary research centre composed of sociologists, demographers, economists, psychologists, statisticians, and human geographers. Its members conduct research on the socioeconomic, cultural, and demographic dimensions of patterns of social inequality within Belgium, Europe, and beyond.
Recent news
PhD public defense of Wanru Xu
Wanru's thesis, "Escaping the System? Chinese Middle-Class Parents Negotiating Educational Privilege in Alternative Schools", was supervised by Prof. Bram Spruyt.
New article on reconceptualising skill in EU migration policy
The article titled "Beyond Economic and Educated: Reconceptualising Skill in EU Migration Policy Through Contextual Adaptability" by Anton Neronov and Tuba Bircan was published in "International Migration".
Opinion piece in De Standaard: 'Feelings of safety in the city deserve more than indignation'
The opinion piece is based on a recent literature study conducted by Petrus te Braak and Theun Pieter van Tienoven.
BRISPO Blog post: Exploring Migration and Societal Change Conference
A new blog post, written by our colleagues Iris Egea Quijada, Shabnam Khezri, Anton Neronov, and Fatıma Silpagar, has just been published.
New BRISPO Blog Post: Fieldnotes from ISA 2025
A Reflection from Tulya Su Guven and Fatima Silpagar from the 5th ISA Forum of Sociology in Rabat.
Job opportunity at BRISPO for a PhD student
We are looking for a PhD student for a project on the demographic behaviour of migrant communities in Belgium.
New paper on medical decision-making among patients with a migration background
The article "Preferences and challenges regarding medical decision-making among patients with a migration background in Belgium: a focus group study" by, among others, Amina Yakhlaf and Veerle Buffel, was published in "Archives of Public Health".
New publication by Julie Vanderleyden and Deborah De Moortel on Employment Quality Framework
The article "Employment Quality as a Framework to Understand Precarious Employment and Beyond in Cross-National Contexts: Conceptual, Methodological, and Practical Recommendations" was published in Sociology Compass.
Public PhD defense of Anaïs Glorieux
Anaïs's thesis is titled "Pitfalls and Progress: Exploring the complexities and forces shaping the PhD journey”.
BRISPO at the Citizen Science Fair: gendered perceptions of safety in Brussels
BRISPO was present at the very first Citizen Science Fair, organised by Scivil, the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences and the European Citizen Science project. It was a great success, even picked up for discussion in the European Parliament.
New article on the relationship between precarious employment conditions and mental health among healthcare workers
The paper, authored by Kim Bosmans, Mattias Vos, Christophe Vanroelen and their co-authors, explores the mediating role of psychological experience of work precarity.
New article by Petrus te Braak (BRISPO–TOR): Social resonance of environmental messages
New article in Humanities and Social Sciences Communications explores why environmental messages resonate differently across groups.
New Publication: Long-term Exposure to Air Pollution Linked to Increased Dementia Risk
The article by, inter alia, Mariska Bauwelinck, has just been published in "Environment International".
PhD public defence of Billie Martiniello
The PhD thesis is titled “Rather Christophe than Mustapha: Understanding and Responding to Ethnic Discrimination in the Rental Housing Market”.
Top photo: Alex Wasey
