Hi there. I am a multimedia specialist turned social scientist, holding a bachelor’s degree in Multimedia and Communication Technology (University College West-Flanders) and a master’s degree in Political Sciences (Ghent University). Currently I work as an Associate Professor in Social Work and Social Policy (professor in sociaal werk en sociaal beleid) affiliated with the Centre for Sociological Research (CESO) at the University of Leuven. From October till December 2017 I was a Visiting Fellow in the Centre for the Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE) at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). In 2023, I was elected member of the Young Academy of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts. I am ranked amongst Stanford University’s list of World’s Top 2% scientists.

The main focus of my research agenda is on the welfare state, in particular on the interaction between the design of, public attitudes towards, and outcomes of social policies and social work interventions. These are the three fundamental pillars constituting my own research agenda and the research conducted in my group. This ‘research triangle’ of outcomes, design and attitudes is considered both in a comparative fashion as well as by means of cases studies; drawing on a variety of methods, ranging from traditional qualitative inquiries over advanced regression methods to randomized controlled trials. In terms of outcomes, my main focus is on poverty, social inequalities, employment, care, and well-being, for children, adults and pensioners. Research activities cover recent and future challenges of modern welfare states such as climate change, migration, digitalization, ageing, and exogenous shocks such as the Covid-19 pandemic. Click here for a list of research projects I have been working on. I am also happy to supervise students on any of these topics or to collaborate with other scholars. Please let me know if you’re interested.

Journal articles have appeared in top-tier journals such as American Sociological Review, The Lancet: Public Health, Journal of European Social Policy, Work, Employment & Society, Journal of Social Policy, and Social Science Research, amongst others. Books and book chapters have appeared with Oxford University Press, Edward Elgar, Palgrave, and Routledge. Click here for my full publication list.

With Griet Roets (Ghent University), I organise the Permanente Vorming Armoede & Participate, an educational programme for professionals who want to deepen their knowledge of poverty and policy strategies to combat poverty.

With Rense Nieuwenhuis (Stockholm University), I edited the Palgrave Handbook of Family Policy, which is available open access.

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