News

Biden White House Resurrects Social and Behavioral Science Advisory Panel

April 13, 2022 2553

The White House announced last week that the Office of Science and Technology Policy’s National Science and Technology Council will re-commission the Social and Behavioral Sciences Subcommittee of the Committee on Science. The announcement came as part of the Biden administration’s “Year of Evidence for Action,” co-hosted by OSTP and Office of Management and Budget, and was one of a number of specific initiatives aimed at upgrading the creation and use of evidence in government. 

The OSTP advises the executive branch of the U.S. government on the scientific, engineering, and technological aspects of the economy, national security, homeland security, health, foreign relations, and the environment. It is currently headed by a social scientist, Alondra Nelson

The Social And Behavioral Sciences (SBS) subcommittee was created in President Obama’s second term, then eliminated in the beginning of the Trump administration as part of its broader structural changes on science policy. The subcommittee represented more than a dozen organizations across government, including the Departments of Defense, Agriculture, Health and Human Services. During its first incarnation the collaborative group completed more than 30 pilots with rigorous evaluations. Examples included highlighting an approach to home energy efficiency by focusing on the short-term and relatable benefits of saving money on their utility bills, rather than trying to sell the goal of making a dent in climate change. Other projects included helping Americans and servicemembers better plan for retirement

The revamped subcommittee will carry out short-term, high-priority tasks using SBS evidence in federal government practices and policies. The first short-term task, based on the subcommittee’s charter, is a federal government-wide overview of SBS research that can advance evidence-based policymaking. The delivery date for this review is April 30, 2023. The next goal will be to lay the groundwork for longer-term coordination of agency efforts related to these topics. This is part of a larger campaign by President Biden to signal that science matters under his watch. As SBS funding requests confirm, this definitively includes social and behvioral science among the physical, medical and engineering sciences that usually receive the spotlight. 

The Biden administration also announced partnerships with academic and nonprofit groups that “have demonstrated expertise in translating research evidence to practice and policy,” according to the White House. These partners include the Data Foundation; the Evidence-to-Impact Collaborative at the Pennsylvania State University; the Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy at the University of Illinois-Chicago and the Center for Tax and Budget AccountabilityPew Charitable Trusts; the Policy Lab at Brown UniversityResults for America; and the Urban Institute.   

Maxine Terry is a corporate communications specialist with SAGE Publishing. She previously covered judiciary and housing policy as a legislative assistant to U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan.

View all posts by Maxine Terry

Related Articles

Daniel Kahneman, 1934-2024: The Grandfather of Behavioral Economics
News
March 27, 2024

Daniel Kahneman, 1934-2024: The Grandfather of Behavioral Economics

Read Now
2024 Holberg Prize Goes to Political Theorist Achille Mbembe
News
March 14, 2024

2024 Holberg Prize Goes to Political Theorist Achille Mbembe

Read Now
New Funding Opportunity for Criminal and Juvenile Justice Doctoral Researchers
Infrastructure
March 7, 2024

New Funding Opportunity for Criminal and Juvenile Justice Doctoral Researchers

Read Now
NSF Looks Headed for a Half-Billion Dollar Haircut
Investment
March 6, 2024

NSF Looks Headed for a Half-Billion Dollar Haircut

Read Now
New Feminist Newsletter The Evidence Makes Research on Gender Inequality Widely Accessible

New Feminist Newsletter The Evidence Makes Research on Gender Inequality Widely Accessible

Gloria Media, with support from Sage, has launched The Evidence, a feminist newsletter that covers what you need to know about gender […]

Read Now
Economist Kaye Husbands Fealing to Lead NSF’s Social Science Directorate

Economist Kaye Husbands Fealing to Lead NSF’s Social Science Directorate

Kaye Husbands Fealing, an economist who has done pioneering work in the “science of broadening participation,” has been named the new leader of the U.S. National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences.

Read Now
Contemporary Politics Focus of March Webinar Series

Contemporary Politics Focus of March Webinar Series

This March, the Sage Politics team launches its first Politics Webinar Week. These webinars are free to access and will be delivered by contemporary politics experts —drawn from Sage’s team of authors and editors— who range from practitioners to instructors.

Read Now
5 2 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments