Dr. Roderick Joseph Little is a distinguished academic and leading authority in the field of biostatistics and statistical methodology. He currently holds the prestigious Richard D. Remington Distinguished University Professorship in Biostatistics at the University of Michigan while also serving as Professor in the Department of Statistics and Research Professor at the Institute for Social Research. Educated at Cambridge University where he earned his BA in Mathematics in 1971, he continued his studies at London University, obtaining an MSc in Statistics and Operational Research in 1972 and a PhD in Statistics in 1974. His academic journey includes significant appointments at the University of California, Los Angeles as Professor in the Department of Biomathematics and earlier positions as Research Fellow at the U.S. Bureau of the Census and Research Associate at the University of Chicago.
Professor Little's pioneering research has fundamentally transformed the analysis of incomplete data sets, establishing rigorous frameworks for handling missing values that have become standard practice across numerous scientific disciplines. His seminal work with Donald Rubin on statistical analysis of missing data has provided the theoretical foundation for modern approaches to this pervasive problem in empirical research. With over 96,000 citations according to Google Scholar, his methodological contributions have demonstrated exceptional impact across biomedical, social, and environmental sciences. His development of model-based methods for analyzing complex survey data has enhanced the validity of population-level inferences while addressing challenges of stratification and clustering in sampling designs.
Beyond his technical contributions, Dr. Little has provided significant leadership to the statistical community through editorial roles as Coordinating and Applications Editor of the Journal of the American Statistical Association and co-editor of the Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology. He has been recognized with election to the National Academy of Medicine and as a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, reflecting the broad impact of his methodological innovations. His mentorship of generations of statisticians and biostatisticians has helped shape the field's future direction, with his theoretical insights continuing to inform contemporary research on Bayesian approaches to statistical inference. Currently focusing on advancing methodologies for incomplete data and complex survey analysis, Professor Little's work remains at the forefront of statistical science, bridging theoretical rigor with practical applications across diverse scientific domains.
