Personal profile
Personal profile
Deborah Levison holds a doctorate in economics from the University of Michigan, where she also trained at the Population Studies Center. An applied microeconomist with training in international development economics, economic demography, and labor economics, Levison is a professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, with 10 teaching awards to her record.
Much of Levison’s research has focused on the work (both labor force and "chores") and schooling of children in low-income countries, typically via quantitative analysis of survey data; more recent projects also include qualitative approaches. While on sabbatical in Tanzania, Levison became interested in connections between environmental sustainability, livelihoods, and children’s time use. In 2011, she and collaborators piloted a study in Kondoa, Tanzania, examining connections between youth’s chores and schooling, on the one hand, and environmental degradation on the other hand.
Animating Children’s Views (ACV)is the current project of Levison and doctoral student collaborator Anna Bolgrien. It develops a methodology to implement Article 12 of the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child in the Global South, which states that children should be listened to on matters that concern them.
Levison is co-investigator on the IPUMS-International project, which is dedicated to collecting, preserving, harmonizing, and distributing census data from around the world to researchers, absolutely free, from www.ipums.org
Research interests
International development; child labor and education; survey research involving children; human rights of children; population studies
Research Interest Keywords
- child labor
- education in developing countries
- youth employment
- international development
- human rights of children
- survey research involving children
- population studies
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
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SDG 1 No Poverty -
SDG 2 Zero Hunger -
SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being -
SDG 4 Quality Education -
SDG 5 Gender Equality -
SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation -
SDG 7 Affordable and Clean Energy -
SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth -
SDG 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure -
SDG 10 Reduced Inequalities -
SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions -
SDG 17 Partnerships for the Goals
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Integrated Global Data on Child Health and Development
Boyle, E. H. (PI), Assaad, R. A. (CoI), Grace, K. L. (CoI), King, M. L. (CoI), Krafft, C. G. (CoI), Levison, D. (CoI) & Bolgrien, A. L. (Co-Principal Investigator)
NIH NATL INST OF CHILD HEALTH/HUMAN DEV
9/12/25 → 5/31/30
Project: Research project
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Integrated International Microdata Series
Ruggles, S. (PI), Boyle, E. H. (CoI), Grace, K. L. (CoI), King, M. L. (CoI), Lovaton Davila, R. (CoI), Sarkar, S. (CoI), Sobek, M. (CoI), Assaad, R. A. (Co-Principal Investigator), Cleveland, L. L. (Co-Principal Investigator), Levison, D. (Co-Principal Investigator) & Manson, S. M. (Co-Principal Investigator)
THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
9/1/24 → 8/31/29
Project: Research project
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Microdata for Research on Aging in the Global South
Ruggles, S. (PI), Assaad, R. A. (CoI), Boyle, E. H. (CoI), Flood, S. M. (CoI), Grace, K. L. (CoI), Levison, D. (CoI), Cleveland, L. L. (Co-Principal Investigator) & Sobek, M. (Co-Principal Investigator)
NIH NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING
8/1/24 → 7/31/29
Project: Research project
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Integrated Demographic and Health Survey Data for Population Health Research
Boyle, E. H. (PI), King, M. L. (CoI), Assaad, R. A. (Other Role), Dorelien, A. M. (Other Role), Grace, K. L. (Other Role), Levison, D. (Other Role), Sarkar, S. (Other Role) & Sobek, M. (Other Role)
NIH NATL INST OF CHILD HEALTH/HUMAN DEV
7/8/22 → 4/30/27
Project: Research project
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Integrated International Microdata for Population Dynamics and Health Research
Ruggles, S. (PI), Cleveland, L. L. (Co-Principal Investigator), Sobek, M. (Co-Principal Investigator), Assaad, R. A. (Other Role), Grace, K. L. (Other Role) & Levison, D. (Other Role)
NIH NATL INST OF CHILD HEALTH/HUMAN DEV
7/1/21 → 6/30/26
Project: Research project
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Leveraging Survey Research to Include Tanzanian Girls’ Perspectives in Policy Making: A Vignette Methodology
Bolgrien, A. & Levison, D., 2025, Gender, Development and Social Change. Palgrave Macmillan, p. 145-165 21 p. (Gender, Development and Social Change; vol. Part F4980).Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter
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The impact of conditional cash transfer programs on household work decisions in Brazil
Ferro, A. R., Lúcia Kassouf, A. & Levison, D., 2025, In: Research in Labor Economics. 75, p. 193-218 26 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › peer-review
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Tanzanian adolescents’ attitudes toward abortion: innovating video vignettes in survey research on health topics
Bolgrien, A. & Levison, D., Dec 2024, In: Reproductive Health. 21, 1, 66.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access3 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations -
Children’s work in environmental chores: ‘says who?’
DeGraff, D. S., Levison, D. & Dungumaro, E., 2023, In: Oxford Development Studies. 51, 1, p. 50-65 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
1 Link opens in a new tab Scopus citations -
Animating Children's Views: an innovative methodology for quantitative research
Levison, D. & Bolgrien, A. L., Mar 2 2021Research output: Non-textual form › Digital or Visual Products
Open Access