OVERVIEW

The course offers a selection of methods and techniques useful for identifying, summarizing, and communicating the information contained in statistical data for the interpretation of social phenomena. By combining theoretical lectures and practical exercises, students learn the principles of statistical investigation, the organization of collected data, their analysis, and the communication of the results obtained.

The course is structured in three parts: Statistics for the Social Sciences; Selected Topics in Economic and Social Statistics; Introduction to Demography.

The course is worth 6 ECTS credits for students enrolled in Scienze Internazionali e Diplomatiche, Economia e Commercio, and Media Comunicazione e Società, and 9 ECTS credits for students enrolled in Scienze dell'Amministrazione e della Politica. The differences in the exam programs are specified in the sections below.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course provides tools for describing and analyzing social and economic data, with particular focus on descriptive and official statistics. Students learn how to represent, summarize, and compare variables, identify relationships between characteristics, and construct and interpret statistical indicators. The main sources of official data are introduced, along with basic elements of demographic analysis and measures of inequality, with particular attention to gender disparities. The aim is to develop skills applicable to empirical analysis and to support public policy.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The primary objective of the course is to provide a comprehensive overview of the process followed in a statistical survey: from defining the object of study, to its quantitative measurement, data analysis, and evaluation of results for policy-making purposes. This objective is achieved by alternating between two teaching phases: traditional lectures and practical exercises. Particular attention is given to the use of statistics as a communication tool for decision-makers.

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding Students will acquire adequate knowledge of the fundamental elements of descriptive statistical analysis, as well as of the nature and measurement principles of the main economic and social phenomena of interest to public decision-makers (such as wealth, well-being, inflation, unemployment, demographic change, etc.).

Applying Knowledge and Understanding Students will be able to interpret basic statistical reports, produce their own, retrieve the data necessary to understand economic, social, and demographic phenomena, and replicate the analyses studied in the course on new data.

Making Judgements Students will be able to assess the quality of data available online, particularly in terms of whether their collection and analysis adhere to the quality standards of official statistics. Moreover, having understood the foundations of statistical indicator construction, they will be able to evaluate the adequacy and methodological robustness of summary indicators representing social phenomena.

Communication Skills Students will acquire fundamental statistical vocabulary, enabling them to communicate clearly and unambiguously with both specialist and non-specialist audiences. In particular, they will learn to interpret, from an operational perspective, press releases, data tables, and graphical representations commonly used in the economic, social, and demographic sciences, especially when produced by official statistical agencies.

Learning Skills By becoming familiar with numerous official surveys, students will be able to assess the quality of the data they will encounter during their academic studies and professional careers.

Knowledge Acquired

• Fundamental elements of descriptive and demographic statistical analysis
• Main official statistical sources and surveys
• Understanding of methods used to construct economic and social indicators

Skills Developed

• Ability to read, interpret, and autonomously produce a statistical report
• Ability to retrieve statistical data and reports to construct a relevant socio-economic framework
• Ability to carry out descriptive data analysis

TEACHING METHODS

All lectures will be delivered in person in Genoa at the Albergo dei Poveri campus. Recordings of all lectures will be made available via links published on Aulaweb.

In addition, students enrolled in MEDIA, COMUNICAZIONE E SOCIETÀ 11417 (L-20) – SAVONA will also have the option to attend the lectures synchronously via Microsoft Teams.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Part I – Statistics for the Social Sciences

Introduction

• Statistics: history and objectives
• Analysing a social phenomenon
• Data sources
• Datasets, statistical units, and variables
• Data analysis

Variable Representation: Tables and Graphs

• Unitary distribution, absolute and quantity frequencies
• Relative and percentage frequency distributions
• Cumulative distributions
• Aggregated distributions
• Graphical representations of distributions

Summarizing Distributions: Central Values

• Characteristic values
• Central values
• Mode
• Median
• Quantiles
• Means

Summarizing and Comparing Distributions: Measures of Inequality

• Inequality measures
• Indices of variability
• Dispersion indices for ordinal qualitative variables
• Variability for quantitative variables
• Concentration of a transferable variable
• Graphical representation of variability: the box-plot
• Standardization
• Measures of comparison

Analysis of the Relationship Between Two Variables

• Bivariate frequency distributions
• Analysis of relationships between two variables
• Measures of dependence
• Relationships between quantitative variables

Part II – Official Statistics for the Study of Socio-Economic Phenomena

Introduction to Official Statistics

• The National Statistical System and the National Statistical Programme
• Main statistical sources
• Data quality
• Statistical data and administrative data
• Census and sample surveys
• Introduction to statistical inference
• Overview of main sampling methods

Statistical Indices and Indicators

• Definitions
• The Lazarsfeldian paradigm in the construction of statistical indicators
• Composite and synthetic indicators

Selected Topics in Economic and Social Statistics

• Measuring the wealth and well-being of a population
• Inflation
• Labour market statistics
• Measures of poverty and deprivation

Part III – Gender Inequality and Introduction to Demographic Analysis

Gender Inequality

• Gender and sex
• Gender stereotypes
• Main (in)equality indicators: WEF Gender Gap Report, EIGE Gender Equality Index
• Gender-based violence

Introduction to Demography

• Objectives and definitions

Time, Age and Generations

• Individuals and their life histories
• Time and duration. The Lexis diagram
• Generational histories and population status
• Generations and contemporaries: longitudinal vs. cross-sectional observation
• Analytical tools: events, rates and probabilities, intensity and timing

Renewal Processes: The Extinction of Generations

• Mortality and survival
• The life table
• Measures of longevity

Renewal Processes: The Formation of New Generations

• Factors of human reproduction
• Cohort fertility measures: intensity, timing, offspring composition
• Period fertility measures: cross-sectional and cohort analysis
• Reproductivity and replacement level

Population Size and Structure

• Age and sex composition: the population pyramid
• Demographic structure indices

Demographic Situation and Long-Term Perspectives

• Population stock and variation
• Demographic balance and its components
• Population change and its pace
• Projections and forecasts

The Demographic Transition

• The Neolithic revolution and the pre-modern demographic regime
• Stages of the demographic transition
• Health transition
• Reproductive transition
• Transition towards what?

Exam Programme by Degree Programme

Students are required to take the exam on different parts of the syllabus depending on their degree programme:

• SCIENZE DELL'AMMINISTRAZIONE E DELLA POLITICA 11161 (L-16) – GENOVA (8/9/10 CFU) and 9 ECTS credits Erasmus Students:
  Parts 1, 2, and 3 of the syllabus, plus one chapter of choice from those listed in the "Textbooks/Bibliography" section and one selected reading from the supplementary materials listed in the same section. Any additional readings to choose from will be posted on Aulaweb.

• SCIENZE INTERNAZIONALI E DIPLOMATICHE 8768 (L-36) – GENOVA (6 CFU), MEDIA, COMUNICAZIONE E SOCIETÀ 11417 (L-20) – SAVONA (6 CFU) and 6 ECTS credits Erasmus Students:
  Parts 1 and 2 of the syllabus.

• ECONOMIA E COMMERCIO 8699 (L-33) – GENOVA (6 CFU):
  Parts 2 and 3 of the syllabus.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Required and Recommended Readings

For Part I of the syllabus:

• Amaturo E., Aragona B., Grassia M.G., Lauro C.N., and Marino M. (2021). Statistica per le scienze sociali, UTET (Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7)

For Part II of the syllabus:

• Mazziotta M., Pareto A. (2020). Gli indici sintetici, Giappichelli Editore
• Additional materials will be provided via Aulaweb

For Part III of the syllabus (only for students with 9 CFU):

• Alaimo L.S., di Bella E., Maggino F., and Nanni G. (2019). Misurare l’uguaglianza di Genere, Genova University Press (https://gup.unige.it/node/297)
• De Rose A., Rosina A. (2022). Introduzione alla demografia, Egea (Chapters 1–8)
• Please check Aulaweb for any additional recommended readings suggested during the course

One optional chapter in demography (only for 9 CFU students – choose one of the following):

• Chapter 9: Generational change and transition to adulthood
• Chapter 10: Couple relationships and family structures
• Chapter 11: Age structure and ageing
• Chapter 12: Moving across territory: international migration
• Chapter 13: Demography and sustainable development

Supplementary readings (only for 9 CFU students – choose one of the following):

• Baldi S., Cagiano de Azevedo R. (2005). La popolazione Italiana – Storia demografica dal dopoguerra ad oggi, Il Mulino – Universale paperbacks
• Bonifazi C. (2013). L’Italia delle migrazioni, Il Mulino – Le vie della civiltà
• Dalla Zuanna G., Farina P., Strozza S. (2009). Nuovi Italiani – I giovani immigrati cambieranno il nostro paese?, Il Mulino – Universale paperbacks
• Dalla Zuanna G., Vignoli D. (2021). Piacere e fedeltà. I millennials italiani e il sesso, Il Mulino
• Del Boca D., Mencarini L., Pasqua S. (2012). Valorizzare le donne conviene, Il Mulino
• Giovannini E. (2014). Scegliere il futuro. Conoscenza e politica al tempo dei Big Data, Il Mulino
• Giovannini E. (2018). L’utopia sostenibile, Laterza
• Golini A. (Ed.) (2009). Il futuro della popolazione nel mondo, Il Mulino – Prismi
• Livi Bacci M. (2010). In cammino. Breve storia delle migrazioni, Il Mulino – Universale paperbacks
• Livi Bacci M. (2015). Il pianeta stretto, Il Mulino
• Pruna M.L. Donne al lavoro – una rivoluzione incompiuta, Il Mulino – Fasi un’Idea
• Salvini S., Vignoli D. (2014). Convivere o sposarsi?, Il Mulino – Universale paperbacks
• SIS – Associazione Italiana per gli Studi di Popolazione (2015). Rapporto sulla popolazione – L’Italia nella crisi economica, Il Mulino – Universale paperbacks
• SIS – Associazione Italiana per gli Studi di Popolazione (2017). Rapporto sulla popolazione – Le molte facce della presenza straniera in Italia, Il Mulino – Universale paperbacks
• SIS – Associazione Italiana per gli Studi di Popolazione (2019). Rapporto sulla popolazione – L’istruzione in Italia, Il Mulino UPM
• SIS – Associazione Italiana per gli Studi di Popolazione (2021). Rapporto sulla popolazione – L’Italia e le sfide della demografia, Il Mulino UPM
• SIS – Associazione Italiana per gli Studi di Popolazione (2023). Rapporto sulla popolazione – Le famiglie in Italia: Forme, ostacoli, sfide, Il Mulino UPM
• SIS – Associazione Italiana per gli Studi di Popolazione (2025). Rapporto sulla popolazione – Verso una demografia positiva, Il Mulino UPM

Please check Aulaweb for any additional readings that may be suggested during the course.

International students may contact the instructor to arrange alternative reference materials in English or another language.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

LESSONS

LESSONS START

2nd semester

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

he exam format differs slightly depending on the degree programme:

• For students enrolled in Scienze Internazionali e Diplomatiche and Media, Comunicazione e Società and Erasmus Students with 6 ECTS, the exam is written only. It covers Parts I and II of the syllabus and consists of theoretical questions and practical exercises. No oral examination is required. During the exercises related to Part I, students are allowed to consult the printed textbook, but personal notes are not permitted.

• For students enrolled in Economia e Commercio, the exam is written only and covers Parts II and III of the syllabus. It consists of theoretical questions and practical exercises. No oral examination is required.

• For students enrolled in Scienze Politiche e dell'Amministrazione and Erasmus Students with 9 ECTS, the exam includes a written component covering Parts I, II, and III of the syllabus, with theoretical questions and exercises. The use of the textbook is allowed during the exercises related to Part I. An oral examination is also required, following the written test. It focuses on one chapter of choice from the demography textbook (as listed in the syllabus) and one optional supplementary reading.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The written exam will assess, in its theoretical section, the student's knowledge of the topics covered, and in its practical section (exercises), the skills acquired in applying the techniques presented during the course. In the theoretical part, clarity of exposition and precision in the use of technical language will be particularly important for evaluation.

As for the practical part, which will be conducted in open book mode, assessment will focus on the ability to solve quantitative problems using the wide range of tools introduced during the course, as well as on the interpretation and commentary of the results obtained. The exercises will take the form of problem-solving tasks, requiring students to choose the most appropriate techniques and offering them broad discretion in how to extract relevant information from one or more datasets.

The oral exam will assess the student’s ability to independently read and interpret supplementary texts in social statistics and demography. In particular, the evaluation will focus on the presentation skills demonstrated in explaining the content of the selected chapter and book, the critical thinking applied to the techniques and methods discussed, and the quality of the statistical sources referenced.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Students with special educational needs, disabilities, or specific learning disorders (SLD) are invited to contact the Departmental Coordinator (Prof. Aristide Canepa) and the course instructor in order to agree on teaching and examination arrangements that take into account individual learning styles and provide appropriate compensatory tools.