The Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy (ISERP) is the research arm of the

social sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, formerly known as the ''Paul F. Lazarsfeld Center for the Social Sciences''. ISERP works to produce pioneering social science research and to shape public policy by integrating knowledge and methods across the social scientific disciplines. ISERP organizes an active intellectual community at Columbia University through its Faculty Fellows program, research centers, projects, and training initiatives.

History

ISERP is the direct descendant of the

Bureau of Applied Social Research The Bureau of Applied Social Research was a social research institute at Columbia University which specialised in mass communications research. It grew out of the Radio Project, Radio Research Project at Princeton University, beginning in 1937. T ...

(BASR), established at

in 1944 by sociologist Paul F. Lazarsfeld. One of the first social science institutes in the nation, the Bureau made landmark contributions to communications research, public opinion polling, organizational studies, and social science methodology. BASR’s tradition was carried on by the Paul F. Lazarsfeld Center for the Social Sciences, established in 1976 after Lazarsfeld’s death and later renamed to honor him. Under directors Harold W. Watts, Jonathan Cole, and

Harrison White Harrison Colyar White (born March 21, 1930) is the emeritus Giddings Professor of Sociology at Columbia University. White played an influential role in the “Harvard Revolution” in social networks and the New York School of relational socio ...

, the Lazarsfeld Center expanded its interdisciplinary reach and established particular strengths in the sociology of science and network analysis. The Lazarsfeld Center for the Social Sciences was one of the centers incorporated into the Institute at its founding in 1999 as the Institute for Social and Economic Theory and Research (ISETR). Also joining ISETR were the Center for Urban Research and Policy, founded in 1992, and several new research centers. In January 2001, ISETR merged with the Office of Sponsored Research to become the Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy. The institute is currently led by professors Thomas DiPrete and

Matthew Connelly Matthew James Connelly (born November 25, 1967) is an American professor of international and global history at Columbia University. His areas of expertise include the global Cold War, official secrecy, population control, and decolonization. He ...

Fellowship

The fellowship of ISERP is drawn from faculty of the departments of Anthropology, Economics, History, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, and Statistics, as well as of

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

, the Earth Institute,

Teachers College A normal school or normal college is an institution created to train teachers by educating them in the norms of pedagogy and curriculum. In the 19th century in the United States, instruction in normal schools was at the high school level, turni ...

, the Mailman School of Public Health and the Schools of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Business, International and Public Affairs, Law, and Social Work.

Centers and Major Projects

The Institute contains fifteen research centers and major projects that conduct basic research, develop policy initiatives, and train graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. *American Institutions Project **The American Institutions Project focuses on

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

, regional issues, the

treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or i ...

, and the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

. *Applied Statistics Center **The Applied Statistics Center is a community of scholars at Columbia organized around research projects in the human, social, and engineering sciences, as well as basic statistical research. It is directed by

Andrew Gelman Andrew Eric Gelman (born February 11, 1965) is an American statistician and professor of statistics and political science at Columbia University. Gelman received bachelor of science degrees in mathematics and in physics from MIT, where he w ...

. *Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies **The Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies functions as a research entity and a site for intellectual dialogue and collaboration for academics who are committed to analyzing the dynamics of complex inequity and stratification, as well as to policy and legal advocacy. It is directed by Kimberlé Crenshaw. *Center for Research on Environmental Decisions (CRED) **CRED studies decision making under climate uncertainty and risk. Its objectives address the human responses to

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

and climate variability. *Center for the Study of Democracy, Toleration, and Religion (CDTR) **CDTR, opened in 2006, conducts research and training on the tensions between

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatur ...

toleration Toleration is the allowing, permitting, or acceptance of an action, idea, object, or person which one dislikes or disagrees with. Political scientist Andrew R. Murphy explains that "We can improve our understanding by defining "toleration" as ...

, and

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose g ...

. * Center for the Study of Wealth and Inequality (CWI) **CWI investigates the economic well-being of families and societal inequality. It interests encompass family welfare and

standard of living Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available, generally applied to a society or location, rather than to an individual. Standard of living is relevant because it is considered to contribute to an individual's quality ...

as well. * Center on Organizational Innovation (COI) **COI promotes research on organizational innovation as well as new forms of collaboration, communication, and coordination made possible with the advent of interactive technologies. *Columbia Center for the Study of Development Strategies **The Center for the Study of Development Strategies provides a forum at Columbia to support rigorous field based research on major questions in the political economy of development. *Columbia Program for Indian Economic Policies(PIEP) **PIEP is led by

Jagdish Bhagwati Jagdish Natwarlal Bhagwati (born July 26, 1934) is an Indian-born naturalized American economist and one of the most influential trade theorists of his generation. He is a University Professor of economics and law at Columbia University and a Sen ...

and Arvind Panagariya. The Program brings together scholars from Columbia and other universities and think tanks around the world. The program houses a data center on India’s economy and organizes lectures, seminars, and conferences in the U.S. and India. *

Initiative for Policy Dialogue The Initiative for Policy Dialogue (IPD) is a non-profit organization based at Columbia University in the United States. IPD was founded in July 2000 by Joseph E. Stiglitz, with support of the Ford, Rockefeller, McArthur, and Mott Foundations an ...

(IPD) **IPD, led by Nobel laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz, helps developing countries respond to

globalization Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...

. *Paul F. Lazarsfeld Center for the Social Sciences **The Lazarsfeld Center, the oldest of the ISERP centers, is the catalyst for new research through its sponsorship of workshops, seminars, and conferences. The center is well known for playing a central role in the development of

social network analysis Social network analysis (SNA) is the process of investigating social structures through the use of networks and graph theory. It characterizes networked structures in terms of ''nodes'' (individual actors, people, or things within the network) ...

and

relational sociology Relational sociology is a collection of sociological theories that emphasize relationalism over substantivalism in explanations and interpretations of social phenomena and is most directly connected to the work of Harrison White and Charles Tilly ...

. *Public Opinion Project (POP) **The Public Opinion Project (POP) examines trends in public opinion, public policy, and political leadership in the United States. *Roundtable on the Sexual Politics of Black Churches **This project convenes a team of sixteen African American scholars and religious leaders for a series of three convenings over a period of seventeen months. *The Global Health Research Center of Central Asia **Columbia University's Global Health Research Center of Central Asia brings together multidisciplinary expertise from Columbia, Central Asia and the surrounding region to address a range of global health challenges: HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted infections (STIs),hepatitis C, substance abuse, malnutrition, mental health and other threats to health. *Understanding Autism Project **Autism is a condition characterized by impairments in communication, social interaction, and stereotyped or repetitive behaviors. No one knows with certainty what has caused autism prevalence—which has increased roughly ten-fold in the past forty years—to increase so precipitously. This group looks explores this increase.

References

External links

* {{authority control Columbia University Think tanks based in the United States Social science institutes Research institutes in New York (state)