Lila Rabinovich

Lila Rabinovich is Director of Qualitative Research at USC’s Center for Economic and Social Research. Her expertise is on health and financial decision-making, with work spanning aging, disability, household finances, medical treatment choices, and participation in social protection programs among others. Her recent work examines how people experience administrative burdens, and understand and navigate public programs and complex systems. Another strand of her research centers on the Understanding America Study panel, a nationally representative online panel managed by the Center for Economic and Social Research at the University of Southern California. In this work, she uses qualitative methods to improve survey recruitment, participation, data collection, and long-term panel retention. Her research has been supported by U.S. government agencies, foundations, and international organizations. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Warwick, UK. Before joining USC, she worked at the RAND Corporation and in international development.

• Ph.D. Sociology, University of Warwick, 2026
• M.Phil. International Development, University of Oxford, 2004
• B.Sc. Social Anthropology, London School of Economics, 2001