Public Lecture by Honorary Professor Michael Gebel: Expanding Horizons in International Comparative Life Course Research
Michael Gebel, TLU Honorary Professor and a professor of empirical social research methods University of Bamberg, will deliver a public lecture on the expansion of comparative life course research beyond its Western focus, highlighting global insights into youth education-to-work transitions and the opportunities and challenges of a more inclusive international perspective.
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iCal calendarThe founders of life course research emphasised that individual life courses are embedded in cultural, institutional and structural contexts. Nevertheless, the vast majority of empirical life course research focuses on a small number of Western, Northern European and North American countries. This excludes more than 90% of the world's population, as well as many countries undergoing significant social change. It will be argued that scientific ignorance and unawareness have contributed to this narrow research focus. The contribution of pioneers who expanded the scope of comparative life course research to include Central and Eastern European countries will be acknowledged. Then, the lecture will highlight the insights gained by recent extensions to other world regions, such as former Soviet countries, the Middle East, North Africa and East Asia. The lecture concludes with an overview of the significant potential and remaining challenges of expanding the scope of international comparative life course research further. The lecture will focus on youth life course transitions, particularly education-to-work transitions, and quantitative empirical research. However, the key arguments also apply to other life course transitions and qualitative research.
Michael Gebel is a Professor of Methods of Empirical Social Research at the University of Bamberg, where he also serves as Dean of Research and conducts internationally comparative life course and longitudinal data studies focused on education-to-work transitions and related issues. He has led major research projects including an ERC Starting Grant and has published widely on youth labour market transitions and causal analysis methods. Since 2025, he has also held the title of Honorary Professor at Tallinn University in recognition of his sustained academic collaboration.
TLU researchers and doctoral students are also welcome to attend a masterclass by Professor Gebel addressing key methodological challenges in quantitative data analysis on 16 February 11:00. More information and registration here.