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The Life Project: The Extraordinary Story of Our Ordinary Lives
'Eye-opening, extraordinary insights into ordinary lives' Financial Times
'Superb' Literary Review
The remarkable story of a unique series of studies that have touched the lives of almost everyone in Britain today
In March 1946, scientists began to track thousands of children born in one cold week. No one imagined that this would become the longest-running study of human development in the world, growing to encompass five generations of children. Today, they are some of the best-studied people on the planet, and the simple act of observing human life has changed the way we are born, schooled, parent and die. This is the tale of these studies and the remarkable discoveries that have come from them. Touching almost every person in Britain today, they are one of our best-kept secrets.
'If you ever wondered whether the circumstances of your early life steered you along a particular path, look no further than this book ... highly readable ... a goldmine of social history' Eric Kaufmann, Literary Review
'Hugely engaging ... the scientists are an irresistibly eccentric, passionate bunch' Nick Curtis, Evening Standard
'Superb' Literary Review
The remarkable story of a unique series of studies that have touched the lives of almost everyone in Britain today
In March 1946, scientists began to track thousands of children born in one cold week. No one imagined that this would become the longest-running study of human development in the world, growing to encompass five generations of children. Today, they are some of the best-studied people on the planet, and the simple act of observing human life has changed the way we are born, schooled, parent and die. This is the tale of these studies and the remarkable discoveries that have come from them. Touching almost every person in Britain today, they are one of our best-kept secrets.
'If you ever wondered whether the circumstances of your early life steered you along a particular path, look no further than this book ... highly readable ... a goldmine of social history' Eric Kaufmann, Literary Review
'Hugely engaging ... the scientists are an irresistibly eccentric, passionate bunch' Nick Curtis, Evening Standard
399 pages, Paperback
Published January 26, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 5, 2018
I really enjoyed this. I saw this at the library and having a background in psychology, I'm not a total stranger to cohort longitudinal studies, so decided I'd try it. As I started reading though, I wasn't totally sure I would enjoy it as I tend to prefer more non-fictiony works than human story approaches and this book really aims to cover the British cohort studies from start to present (2015 when the book was written) from the perspective of both the researchers and some of the subjects. Or at least that was the impression I got from the first few pages and the back of the book. It's a difficult task to tackle such a huge area in such a small book and still make it an easy and pleasurable read for the layperson. I think Pearson has done a good job of that. I was won over by the various research outcomes being interwoven in the human side of events as well as the social and political histories of the times that they occurred.
The book isn't heavy on references, so it's not that type of work (however it does have references in the back!), but it gives a great understanding of how the British cohort studies came to be and the influence on society and government policies that the research coming from these studies has had (and continues to have). Pearson does a good job of explaining any technical language, which is really kept to a minimum and actually she does repeat some points a few times, which makes sense given it's not a specialist text and most readers won't read so carefully.
I'd recommend this to anyone who is interested in cohort longitudinal studies,human development research, or anyone who is interested in the history of childbirth and perinatal death prevention and effects of social disadvantage. I imagine it would be a good read for everyone, honestly.
The book isn't heavy on references, so it's not that type of work (however it does have references in the back!), but it gives a great understanding of how the British cohort studies came to be and the influence on society and government policies that the research coming from these studies has had (and continues to have). Pearson does a good job of explaining any technical language, which is really kept to a minimum and actually she does repeat some points a few times, which makes sense given it's not a specialist text and most readers won't read so carefully.
I'd recommend this to anyone who is interested in cohort longitudinal studies,human development research, or anyone who is interested in the history of childbirth and perinatal death prevention and effects of social disadvantage. I imagine it would be a good read for everyone, honestly.
June 18, 2017
This was a slightly odd book in that it had the feel on a social history mixed with political history and a lot of statistical issues as well. It tracks the first ever birth cohort - in a week in 1946, all children born that week, were tracked from then until now. They were questioned about every aspect of their life.
Subsequent studies of three other cohorts were also discussed. The lessons which came out of the cohorts were tied up in the political context of the day and their funding seemed to follow a similar pattern. It was a very interesting read, but quite in depth at times.
Subsequent studies of three other cohorts were also discussed. The lessons which came out of the cohorts were tied up in the political context of the day and their funding seemed to follow a similar pattern. It was a very interesting read, but quite in depth at times.
November 30, 2021
Insightful and captivating. Great story of the British cohort studies and their impact on science and policy making over the years.
Written in a lively style with lots of interesting gems along the way, Helen Pearson paints the picture of Britain's modern social history and its relationship with its scientific evidence. Inequality, social class and the role of education are discussed with the same attention to detail as are questions of what research gets funded, how media and politics deal with research-based evidence or how to store and make available research data over time.
Written in a lively style with lots of interesting gems along the way, Helen Pearson paints the picture of Britain's modern social history and its relationship with its scientific evidence. Inequality, social class and the role of education are discussed with the same attention to detail as are questions of what research gets funded, how media and politics deal with research-based evidence or how to store and make available research data over time.
May 18, 2017
Not my usual choice of book but I enjoyed exercising my brain and felt like I learned loads about cohort studies, the characters behind them and how useful they are. I definitely picked up the authors enthusiasm for these studies, and am actually interested to see we can learn as the clients begin to reach old age.
February 16, 2017
Beautiful celebration of scientific curiosity, with a profoundly human story at its heart: 70.000 lives examined as they are lived. Compassionately written and full of hope and love, with a sprinkle of anti-austerity critique. Loved it.
March 24, 2017
An outstanding account about the impact of the birth cohort projects that have taken place since 1946 and how it has shaped a vast array of policy since. An absolute must read for anyone with an interest in societal progression.
April 8, 2019
Excellent: fascinating and readable, informative about the process of social research and also about changes in UK post-war society.
November 28, 2023
Following people from birth until late stages of life, is a great tool on how to loot at the data and how to interpret the data for specific use
March 13, 2017
It's interesting to hear about some of the medical and social discoveries from the cohort studies carried out over individual's lifetimes. I know someone in one of the cohort studies and had heard about it from their point of view. This gave me a much wider view of what has been learnt and what will hopefully be discovered in the future.
April 1, 2019
I see how this book is relatively boring for general readers, but to be fair, the title and the back cover don't promise much. I however learned quite a bit about the UK birth cohort studies and was surprisingly well-entertained in the process.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews