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- Rising threats to US Democracy – Roots and ResponsesBy Theda Skocpol, James Madison Lecture | American Political Science Association, September 6, 2024 I am greatly honored by receipt…Continue Reading Rising threats to US Democracy – Roots and Responses
- The Artificial StateBy Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, November 4, 2024 “Jacob Javits of New York is the first United States senator…Continue Reading The Artificial State
- Social Science faculty lend insight, analysis ahead of electionBy Christy DeSmith, Harvard Gazette, November 1, 2024 With another presidential election at America’s doorstep, Lawrence D. Bobo, the dean of…Continue Reading Social Science faculty lend insight, analysis ahead of election
- There Are Four Anti-Trump Pathways We Failed to Take. There Is a Fifth.By Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, New York Times, October 24, 2024 Democratic self-rule contains a paradox. It is a…Continue Reading There Are Four Anti-Trump Pathways We Failed to Take. There Is a Fifth.
- Why Harvard Faculty Should Reject a Faculty SenateBy Lawrence Bobo, Contributing Opinion Writer, Harvard Crimson, May 7, 2024. For many of us faculty members, these past few…Continue Reading Why Harvard Faculty Should Reject a Faculty Senate
Social science is the study of individuals, relationships, and institutions in human societies, past and present. Phenomena of interest include everything from the working of neurons in the brain to the behavior of socially situated individuals, from interactions within and among groups like families and communities as well as organizations and governments, to large-scale patterns of international trade, alliance, migration, and conflict. Social scientists engage vital normative questions—such as the relationship between freedom and morality, or the responsibilities of citizens in a democratic polity—by examining and debating classical and contemporary ideas in social thought and political philosophy, and they employ a wide variety of research methodologies, from laboratory studies and field experiments to interviews and ethnography, from surveys to the analysis of existing “big data” (e.g., from government or business records, social media or other online content).