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Welcome to the University Center for Social & Urban Research

We are a University of Pittsburgh research center established in 1972 to serve as a resource for researchers and educators interested in the basic and applied social and behavioral sciences.  In response to faculty interests and current domestic policy issues, the center develops interdisciplinary research programs that address regional and national policy issues.


Current research programs & major projects include the Urban & Regional Analysis Program, the Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center (WPRDC), Geographic Information Systems (GIS), the Survey Research Program, and the Qualitative Data Analysis Program (QDAP).

News

Respiratory Medicine:  Modification of asthma treatment efficacy by healthcare access: A reanalysis of AsthmaNet Step-Up Yellow Zone Inhaled Corticosteroids to Prevent Exacerbations (STICS) clinical trial. "The importance of considering socio-environmental co-exposures in the context of asthma..." - Co-Author Ellen Kinnee

Middle States Geographer:  Buckwalter, Donald W. 2024. Small Area Classification in Urban Geography: A Review of Multidimensional Methods.

90.5 WESA:  Influx of corporate buyers in Allegheny County pose issues for code enforcement, would-be homebuyers. "Large outside investors acquiring single family homes - which have not had a lot of corporate investment in the past - really only started a few years ago. And if you haven´t been paying attention...you might look around and see a very different real estate market in your community than there was just a few years ago." -Chris Briem

Why the White House Cares About US Steel:  Chris Briem of UCSURs Urban and Regional Analysis Program was interviewed on City Cast Pittsburgh: Why the White House Cares About US Steel - March 25, 2024

Spotlights

The University Center for Social & Urban Research (UCSUR) was established in 1972 with the mandate to "bring together, in an organized and integrated fashion, the many research activities and some of the service activities of the University of Pittsburgh which focus on the urban phenomenon."  Brian Vargus and Clyde McDaniel served as the founding codirectors. Read More

State of Aging, Disability, & Family Caregiving in Westmorland County - Dec 2023 - By Scott Beach, PhD (UCSUR); Christopher Briem, MPA (UCSUR); Janet Schlarb, MS (UCSUR); Everette James, JD, MBA (HPI); & Meredith Hughes, JD, MBA (HPI) - Funded by the Richard King Mellon Foundation.