Logan D. A. Williams
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Making Social Sciences More Relevant to Policy

10/9/2013

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Beth McMurtrie at The Chronicle of Higher Education has written an article entitled "Social Scientists Seek New Ways to Influence Public Policy." The following quote from McMurtie's article describes something that I have never heard of before, the International Summer Policy Institute at American University. 

"I'm trained to pitch a general argument on rape in wartime," says Ms. Cohen, an assistant professor at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. "But I would be asked very specific questions on what happened last month in the DRC, and how does my research speak to that? I find that a very difficult divide to bridge."

For guidance she turned to the International Policy Summer Institute, at American University. The institute is one of a growing number of projects designed to connect academics to policy makers and the public.

- See more at: http://chronicle.com/article/Social-Scientists-Seek-New/141305
So of course I googled this summer policy institute at American University. It turns out that it is for professors and postdocs in international affairs who want to learn how to write policy-relevant academic scholarship, including some information on how to more effectively reach target audiences. I think that this is a great resource. Especially in the current era of sequestration, where congress can rationalize shutting down scientific funding for a particular unit of science in a federal research funding agency (i.e. political science in the National Science Foundation).

A similar resource that was not mentioned by McMurtrie, is the To Think To Write To Publish project. It focuses on developing communication skills among scientists, science journalists, and social scientists who can make contributions to science and technology policy. One of the principal investigators is Lee Gutkind, the founder of the Creative Nonfiction Magazine. The second is David Guston, a prominent science and technology policy scholar and a past editor of Science and Public Policy.

Another network of scholars that McMurtrie mentions in The Chronicle  is the Scholars Strategy Network. This is directed by prominent sociologist, Theda Skocpol. Unlike the first two, it does not appear to provide training, however its staff actively pursues public venues for the affiliated scholars to share their research briefs.

I welcome further information about opportunities for training in how to make the social sciences more relevant to policy.
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My thoughts on the academic job search for recent PhD's in Science and Technology Studies

29/5/2012

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I just read chapter 3 of Kyle Siler's dissertation, entitled “Nascent Institutional Strategy in Dynamic Fields: The Diffusion of Social Studies of Science”. Apparently it has been accepted in the American Behavioral Scientist journal which is wonderful news for Siler, and thankfully he has been kind enough to put up an earlier draft on his personal webpage.

Regardless of some limitations (see my comments below), his quantitative data is interesting. It appears that, at the present time, more U.S. science and technology studies scholars are affiliated with (in the following order): (1) general academic/ interdisciplinary departments; (2) sociology departments; (3) science and technology studies departments; (4) history departments. 

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CFP: International Context of Science and Technology Policy applications due July 2012

25/8/2011

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Here is the flyer advertising the first Gordon Research Seminar on Science and Technology Policy that will occur in 2012 (and fingers crossed biannually after that).
grc_2012_flyer_final_opt.pdf
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The Gordon Research Seminar on Science & Technology Policy is a unique forum for graduate students, post-docs, and other scientists with comparable levels of experience and education to present and exchange new data and cutting edge ideas. We invite abstract submissions for presentations and posters by scholars and practitioners in: economics, science and engineering, science and technology policy, and science and technology studies.

The theme of the 2012 meeting is "The International Context of Science and Technology Policy". The keynote will discuss conflict, cooperation, collaboration and competition in science and technology policy. For more information or to submit your application, please go to the Gordon Research Seminar for Science and Technology Policy 2012 website
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    Logan primarily uses this blog to: reflect on policy and professionalization issues in STS (e.g. research funding, discipline formation, skill building, job-hunting, policy applications of STS theory) and to disseminate her own scholarship.


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