Research outputs
Selected research outputs
- Impact of community asymptomatic rapid antigen testing on covid-19 related hospital admissions: synthetic control study (Journal article - 2022)
- A blueprint for synthetic control methodology: a causal inference tool for evaluating natural experiments in population health (Journal article - 2022)
- Analysing inter-provincial urban migration flows in China: A new multilevel gravity model approach (Journal article - 2018)
- Synthetic Control Methods - Introduction (Website content - 2025)
- Evaluating the impact of using mobile vaccination units to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake in Cheshire and Merseyside, UK: a synthetic control analysis (Journal article - 2023)
2026
What are the socioeconomic risk factors of depression among the elderly in China: a systematic review
Li, J., Pennington, A., Zhang, X., Dong, Z., & Barr, B. (2026). What are the socioeconomic risk factors of depression among the elderly in China: a systematic review. BMC Public Health, 26(1). doi:10.1186/s12889-026-26199-6
Impact of a community-led intervention on the uptake of childhood vaccines in Liverpool: a protocol for a synthetic control evaluation
Amin, M. S., Zhang, X., Green, M. A., Holford, D., Hemingway, C., Ismail, A., . . . Hungerford, D. (2026). Impact of a community-led intervention on the uptake of childhood vaccines in Liverpool: a protocol for a synthetic control evaluation. BMJ Open, 16(1), e111500. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2025-111500
Understanding the effects of reductions in local government expenditure on food safety services in England, 2009–10 to 2019–20: a longitudinal ecological study
Murrell, L., Clough, H. E., Zhang, X., Gibb, R., Chattaway, M. A., Green, M. A., . . . Hungerford, D. (2026). Understanding the effects of reductions in local government expenditure on food safety services in England, 2009–10 to 2019–20: a longitudinal ecological study. BMJ Open, 16(1), e107146. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2025-107146
2025
Understanding the impact of local authority resource allocation on gastrointestinal infections in England
Does an autism diagnosis help children and young people? Insights from doctors and lived experience
Zhang, X. (2025). Does an autism diagnosis help children and young people? Insights from doctors and lived experience. ADR UK. Retrieved from https://www.adruk.org/
Evaluating the Impact of Underdiagnosis for Children Receiving Special Educational Needs (SEN) support for Autism in 2016-2022: an analysis of Education and Child Health Insights from Linked Data (ECHILD)
Zhang, X. (2025). Evaluating the Impact of Underdiagnosis for Children Receiving Special Educational Needs (SEN) support for Autism in 2016-2022: an analysis of Education and Child Health Insights from Linked Data (ECHILD). International Journal of Population Data Science, 10(4). doi:10.23889/ijpds.v10i4.3137
Synthetic Control Methods - Introduction
Zhang, X. (2025). Synthetic Control Methods - Introduction. Retrieved from https://www.ncrm.ac.uk/resources/online/all/?id=20854
Mobilising UK Data and AI for All with a National Grid of Civic Learning Systems
Buchan, I., Ainsworth, J., Angione, C., Ardern, K., Atkinson, K., Ball, S., . . . Zhang, X. (2025). Mobilising UK Data and AI for All with a National Grid of Civic Learning Systems (2025/03). https://www.thenhsa.co.uk/about/publications/: Northern Health Science Alliance. Retrieved from https://www.thenhsa.co.uk/
Impact of tiered restrictions in December 2020 on COVID-19 hospitalisations in England: a synthetic control study
Zhang, X., Hungerford, D., Green, M., García-Fiñana, M., Buchan, I., & Barr, B. (2025). Impact of tiered restrictions in December 2020 on COVID-19 hospitalisations in England: a synthetic control study. BMJ Open, 15(1), e086802. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2024-086802
2024
Association between social engagement frequency and depression among the older people in China: evidence from the 2011–2018 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study
Li, J., Zhang, X., & Barr, B. (2024). Association between social engagement frequency and depression among the older people in China: evidence from the 2011–2018 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. BMJ Public Health, 2(2), e000601. doi:10.1136/bmjph-2023-000601
Inequalities in local government expenditure on environmental and regulatory services in England from 2009 to 2020: a longitudinal ecological study
Murrell, L., Fahy, K., Clough, H. E., Gibb, R., Zhang, X., Chattaway, M. A., . . . Hungerford, D. (2024). Inequalities in local government expenditure on environmental and regulatory services in England from 2009 to 2020: a longitudinal ecological study. BMJ Public Health, 2(2), e001144. doi:10.1136/bmjph-2024-001144
Can self-testing be enhanced to hasten safe return of healthcare workers in pandemics? Random order, open label trial using two manufacturers’ SARS-CoV-2 lateral flow devices concurrently and nested viral culture study
Zhang, X., Cheyne, C. P., Jones, C., Humann, M., Leeming, G., Smith, C., . . . Buchan, I. E. (2024). Can self-testing be enhanced to hasten safe return of healthcare workers in pandemics? Random order, open label trial using two manufacturers’ SARS-CoV-2 lateral flow devices concurrently and nested viral culture study. BMC Infectious Diseases, 24(1). doi:10.1186/s12879-024-10155-z
Inequalities in local funding cuts to environmental and regulatory service expenditure in England
Murrell, L., Fahy, K., Clough, H. E., Gibb, R., Zhang, X., Chattaway, M., . . . Hungerford, D. (2024). Inequalities in local funding cuts to environmental and regulatory service expenditure in England. European Journal of Public Health, 34(Supplement_3). doi:10.1093/eurpub/ckae144.1480
Social Class and Social Mobility Differences in Intergenerational Exchanges of Practical and Financial Support in the UK
Karagiannaki, E., Burchardt, T., & Zhang, X. (2024). Social Class and Social Mobility Differences in Intergenerational Exchanges of Practical and Financial Support in the UK. Retrieved from https://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/CASE/_NEW/PUBLICATIONS/abstract/?index=11182
P06 Inequalities in local funding cuts to environmental and regulatory service expenditure in England from 2009/10-2020/21
Murrell, L., Fahy, K., Clough, H., Gibb, R., Zhang, X., Chattaway, M., . . . Hungerfprd, D. (2024). P06 Inequalities in local funding cuts to environmental and regulatory service expenditure in England from 2009/10-2020/21. In SSM Annual Scientific Meeting (pp. A49.1-A49). BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. doi:10.1136/jech-2024-ssmabstracts.101
Can self-testing be enhanced to hasten safe return of healthcare workers in pandemics? Random order, open label trial using two manufacturers’ SARS-CoV-2 lateral flow devices concurrently
Can self-testing be enhanced to hasten safe return of healthcare workers in pandemics? Random order, open label trial using two manufacturers’ SARS-CoV-2 lateral flow devices concurrently
Internal Migration and Urban Development: Recent Experiences of China
Zhang, X. N. (2023). Internal Migration and Urban Development: Recent Experiences of China. In Urban Dynamics, Environment and Health (pp. 605-623). Springer Nature Singapore. doi:10.1007/978-981-99-5744-6_27
Understanding the impact funding cuts on Environmental and regulatory services and gastrointestinal infections: a longitudinal ecological study
Murrell, L., Clough, H., Gibb, R., Zhang, X., Green, M., Chattaway, M., . . . Hungerford, D. (2024). Understanding the impact funding cuts on Environmental and regulatory services and gastrointestinal infections: a longitudinal ecological study. NIHR Open Research, 3, 41. doi:10.3310/nihropenres.13426.2
2023
Evaluating the impact of using mobile vaccination units to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake in Cheshire and Merseyside, UK: a synthetic control analysis
Zhang, X., Tulloch, J. S. P., Knott, S., Allison, R., Parvulescu, P., Buchan, I. E., . . . Barr, B. (2023). Evaluating the impact of using mobile vaccination units to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake in Cheshire and Merseyside, UK: a synthetic control analysis. BMJ Open, 13(10), e071852. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2023-071852
Understanding the impact funding cuts on Environmental and regulatory services and gastrointestinal infections: a longitudinal ecological study.
Murrell, L., Clough, H., Gibb, R., Zhang, X., Green, M., Chattaway, M., . . . Hungerford, D. (2023). Understanding the impact funding cuts on Environmental and regulatory services and gastrointestinal infections: a longitudinal ecological study.. NIHR open research, 3, 41. doi:10.3310/nihropenres.13426.2
Understanding the impact of local funding cuts on environmental health and regulatory services and gastrointestinal infection outcomes: a longitudinal ecological study protocol
Murrell, L., Clough, H., Gibb, R., Zhang, X., Green, M., Chattaway, M., . . . Hungerford, D. (2023). Understanding the impact of local funding cuts on environmental health and regulatory services and gastrointestinal infection outcomes: a longitudinal ecological study protocol. NIHR Open Research, 3, 41. doi:10.3310/nihropenres.13426.1
2022
Effectiveness of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) and the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca) vaccines for reducing susceptibility to infection with the Delta variant (B.1.617.2) of SARS-CoV-2
Pattni, K., Hungerford, D., Adams, S., Buchan, I., Cheyne, C. P., García-Fiñana, M., . . . Sharkey, K. J. (2022). Effectiveness of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) and the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (Oxford-AstraZeneca) vaccines for reducing susceptibility to infection with the Delta variant (B.1.617.2) of SARS-CoV-2. BMC Infectious Diseases, 22(1). doi:10.1186/s12879-022-07239-z
Data Study Group Final Report: Morrisons
Zhang, X. (2022). Data Study Group Final Report: Morrisons. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6498139
The impact of community asymptomatic rapid antigen testing on COVID-19 hospital admissions: a synthetic control study
Evaluating the impacts of tiered restrictions introduced in England, during October and December 2020 on COVID-19 cases: a synthetic control study
Zhang, X., Owen, G., Green, M. A., Buchan, I., & Barr, B. (2022). Evaluating the impacts of tiered restrictions introduced in England, during October and December 2020 on COVID-19 cases: a synthetic control study. BMJ Open, 12(4), e054101. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2021-054101
A blueprint for synthetic control methodology: a causal inference tool for evaluating natural experiments in population health
Barr, B., Zhang, X., Green, M., & Buchan, I. (2022). A blueprint for synthetic control methodology: a causal inference tool for evaluating natural experiments in population health. BMJ, o2712. doi:10.1136/bmj.o2712
Impact of community asymptomatic rapid antigen testing on covid-19 related hospital admissions: synthetic control study
Zhang, X., Barr, B., Green, M., Hughes, D., Ashton, M., Charalampopoulos, D., . . . Buchan, I. (2022). Impact of community asymptomatic rapid antigen testing on covid-19 related hospital admissions: synthetic control study. BMJ, 379, e071374. doi:10.1136/bmj-2022-071374
2021
Evaluation of the impact of tiered restrictions introduced in England during October and December, 2020, on COVID-19 cases: a synthetic control study
Zhang, X., Owen, G., Green, M., Buchan, I., & Barr, B. (2021). Evaluation of the impact of tiered restrictions introduced in England during October and December, 2020, on COVID-19 cases: a synthetic control study. The Lancet, 398, S92. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(21)02635-0
Welfare within Families beyond Households: Intergenerational Exchanges of Practical and Financial Support in the UK
Burchardt, T., Steele, F., Grundy, E., Karagiannaki, E., Kuha, J., Moustaki, I., . . . Zhang, S. (2021). Welfare within Families beyond Households: Intergenerational Exchanges of Practical and Financial Support in the UK. LSE Public Policy Review, 2(1). doi:10.31389/lseppr.41
OP01 Evaluating the impacts of tiered restrictions introduced in England, during October and December 2020 on COVID-19 cases: a synthetic control study*
Zhang, X., Owen, G., Green, M., Buchan, I., & Barr, B. (2021). OP01 Evaluating the impacts of tiered restrictions introduced in England, during October and December 2020 on COVID-19 cases: a synthetic control study*. SSM Annual Scientific Meeting, A1.1-A1. doi:10.1136/jech-2021-ssmabstracts.1
Evaluating the impacts of tiered restrictions introduced in England, during October and December 2020 on COVID-19 cases: A synthetic control study
Zhang, X., Owen, G., Green, M., Buchan, I., & Barr, B. (2021). Evaluating the impacts of tiered restrictions introduced in England, during October and December 2020 on COVID-19 cases: A synthetic control study. doi:10.1101/2021.03.09.21253165
Evaluating the Impacts of Tiered Restrictions Introduced in England, During October and December 2020 on COVID-19 Cases: A Synthetic Control Study
Zhang, X., Owen, G., Green, M., Buchan, I., & Barr, B. (n.d.). Evaluating the Impacts of Tiered Restrictions Introduced in England, During October and December 2020 on COVID-19 Cases: A Synthetic Control Study. SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.3805859
2018
Analysing inter-provincial urban migration flows in China: A new multilevel gravity model approach
Zhang, X. N., Wang, W. W., Harris, R., & Leckie, G. (2018). Analysing inter-provincial urban migration flows in China: A new multilevel gravity model approach. Migration Studies. doi:10.1093/migration/mny026