Dr Chaitra Nagaraja

My research interests are primarily in measurement, particularly macroeconomic and socioeconomic indicators, time series, and the history of statistics. I managed to combine all three in my 2019 book, Measuring Society. The book is a history of US official statistics like unemployment, inflation, and poverty. Prior to joining Exeter, I was a faculty member at the Gabelli School of Business at Fordham University in New York City and a research mathematical statistician at the U.S Census Bureau, focusing on the American Community Survey. I completed my PhD at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. In 2020, I became an Elected Member of the International Statistical Institute.

In addition to my university research and teaching, I am currently the chair of the American Statistical Association’s Scientific and Public Affairs Advisory Committee, a member of the Royal Statistical Society’s History of Statistics Section, and the book review editor for the International Statistical Review. I am also co-editor of the history of statistics column, "History Chronicles," in CHANCE magazine.

For a gentle introduction to measurement, check out the following:

• "Statistics History Chronicles" interview on Stats+Stories podcast (2023) on the CHANCE history of statistics column and one of my articles for that column on race and ethnicity data collection in the US and England/Wales censuses.
• “Correlation is Not Causation” interview on The Round Table podcast by Next Generation Politics (2022)
• "Peanut butter, anyone?" invited post for the ISI series, Statisticians React to the News (2021)
• "Bias in Science: Strategies to Eliminate Gender and Race-Based Discrimination in Science and Public Policy" fireside chat with Clarence Ball III at Fordham University (2021)
• "Queues Instead of Parades" invited post for the ISI series, Statisticians React to the News (2020)
• “The Importance of Official Statistics” interview on Stats+Stories (2019)
• "Measuring Society: Who, What, When, Where, and How" edited excerpt of Measuring Society in Significance (2019).