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Expanding the domain of policy-relevant scholarship in the social sciences

Author

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  • Wilson, William Julius

Abstract

In this paper the author argues that social scientists need to do more to provide policy-relevant research. Rapid technological and economic change raise new issues about how policy should adjust that are not adequately addressed by older and narrower approaches. The author suggests two ways in which the domain of policy-relevant scholarship can be expanded. First, social scientists should be more flexible about the kinds of data they use and the ways they use them. Preliminary data can suggest new hypotheses, which can widen debate, and ethnographic and other qualitative methods can uncover patterns of behaviour invisible in quantitative sources. Second, social theories, concepts and ideas should play a greater role in the policy arena, shaping the way policy actors think about how the world works.

Suggested Citation

  • Wilson, William Julius, 2002. "Expanding the domain of policy-relevant scholarship in the social sciences," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 6397, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:6397
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    File URL: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/6397/
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    Cited by:

    1. Adam Reimer & Yicheol Han & Stephan Goetz & Scott Loveridge & Don Albrecht, 2016. "Word Networks in US Rural Policy Discourse," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 215-238.
    2. Cousins, Linwood H., 2013. "Deservingness, children in poverty, and collective well being," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 1252-1259.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    social science; policy debates; research approaches;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I00 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - General - - - General

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