social sciences and the humanities data in the united states national science foundation division of...

Social Sciences and the Humanities Data in the United States

National Science Foundation

Division of Science Resources Statistics

Dr. Lynda T. Carlson

European Science Foundation/ International Social Science Council

September 14, 2010

National Science FoundationDivision of Science Resources Statistics

www.nsf.gov/statistics/

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Division of Science Resources Statistics


The Division of Science Resources Statistics (SRS) fulfills the legislative mandate of the National Science Foundation Act to . . .

provide a central clearinghouse for the collection, interpretation, and analysis of data on scientific and engineering resources, and to provide a source of information for policy formulation by other agencies of the Federal Government...

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Longstanding Government Support for the Social Sciences


“My emphasis has been on the physical and biological sciences… But the social sciences and related fields are at least as important in the present stage of human affairs. The social sciences offer us better ways of organizing our lives… [and] will enable us to escape from those habits and thoughts which have resulted in so much strife and tragedy.”

President Harry S. TrumanAddress to the AAAS – 1948

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SRS Surveys Including SSH R&D Data (1)


• No national estimates of SSH R&D Expenditures

•No national R&D estimates for any individual field

• Survey of Federal Government agencies’ R&D support – collects data on government research support (total and to universities only) by discipline (including for social sciences and psychology; not for humanities)

•Very little social science sub-discipline detail – most of the social science total is reported as social sciences, not elsewhere classified (nec)

•No Federal Government SSH R&D performance data collected

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SRS Surveys Including SSH R&D Data (2)


• New Business R&D and Innovation Survey added question on social sciences R&D performance (“the application of scientific methods to the study of human aspects of the world, including such disciplines as economics and psychology”)

•Intended to exclude market research expenditures

•Survey of R&D Expenditures at Universities and Colleges (redesigned Higher Education Survey Support) – historically collects social science and psychology R&D performance, by funding source

•Expanded to collect R&D data on humanities and other non-S&E fields, such as education, law and business

•FY 2010 collection will be fielded to all academic institutions – previously collected R&D only from institutions that performed science and engineering R&D

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2008 U.S. R&D Performance


Federal funding44.7%

Nonfederal funding55.3%

University SSH R&D $5.2 billion

University R&D$53.4 billion

Total U.S. R&D$400 billion

Industry72.3%

Life Sciences(including Ag, Med, Bio)

57.6%

Universities13.4%

Federal10.4%

Nonprofit3.9%

Social Sciences& Psychology

5.3%

Sciences, nec1.9%

Humanities,Education, other SSH

4.1%

Natural Sciences(excluding Bio)

16.3%Engineering

14.7%

Source: NSF/SRS, National Patterns of R&D Resources, adjusted to include university SSH

Notes: Data are R&D expenditures as reported by the R&D performers.Because of rounding, details may not sum to totals.

SRS Surveys Including SSH for Education and Workforce Data

• Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS)

• Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED)

• SESTAT (Scientists and Engineers Statistical Data System 3 component surveys)

• Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR)

• National Survey of College Graduates (NSCG)

• National Survey of Recent College Graduates (NSRCG)

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Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS)

• Annual census (conducted since 1966) of U.S. academic institutions awarding graduate degrees in science, engineering and health fields

• GSS data include:– Graduate enrollment: citizenship, race/ethnicity, sex, fields of study,

full-time status, first-time enrollments, primary source and mechanism of support

– Postdoctoral appointees: citizenship, sex, fields of study, primary source of support by mechanism, professional medical doctorates

– Non-faculty doctoral researchers: sex, professional medical doctorates


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GSS Graduate Enrollment for SSH

• Total of 631,489 graduate students enrolled in science, engineering and health (SEH) in 579 institutions, fall 2008

• Communication – 8,444 graduate students enrolled in fall 2008

• Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences – 3,549 graduate students enrolled in fall 2008

• Psychology – 58,991 graduate students enrolled in fall 2008– 3 sub-fields (Psychology, except clinical and general, is largest)

• Social Sciences– 103,384 graduate students enrolled in fall 2008– 10 sub-fields (Political science is the largest)


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Note: Total of 631,489 graduate students enrolled in SEH, GSS 2008.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering, 2008.

Graduate Students Enrolled in SSH, 2008 GSS

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GSS Postdoctoral Appointees (Postdocs) in SSH

• Total of 54,164 postdocs in SEH, fall 2008

• Communication – 32 in fall 2008

• Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences – 19 in fall 2008

• Psychology – 1,077 in fall 2008

• Social Sciences– 508 in fall 2008


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Note: Total of 54,164 postdocs in SEH, GSS 2008.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics, Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering, 2008.

Postdocs in SSH, 2008 GSS

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Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED)

• Annual census (conducted since 1957-1958) of all individuals receiving research doctorates from accredited U.S. institutions

• SED data include:– Educational history: degrees, fields of study, financial support,

debt, time-to-degree

– Post-graduation plans: employment vs. post-doc, employment sector, salary, location, primary/secondary work activity

– Background: race/ethnicity, gender, citizenship, marital status, dependents, parents’ education


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SED Research Doctorate Recipients in SSH

• Total of 49,562 research doctorate recipients in 21 institutions, 2009

• Psychology – 3,471 doctorates awarded in 2009– 17 sub-fields (clinical psychology is largest)

• Social Sciences– 4,365 doctorates awarded in 2009– 18 sub-fields (economics, political science, and sociology are 3 largest)

• Humanities– 4,899 doctorates awarded in 2009– Includes 4 groups of Humanities fields:

o Foreign languages & literature (10 sub-fields; French is largest)o History (9 sub-fields; American history is largest)o Letters (10 sub-fields; English literature is largest)o Other humanities (14 sub-fields; philosophy is largest)


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Note: Total of 49,562 research doctorate recipients , SED 2009.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics, Survey of Earned Doctorates, 2009.

SSH Research Doctorates Awarded, SED 2009

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Scientists and Engineers Statistical Data System (SESTAT)


• Three biennial sample surveys of individuals

- National Survey of College Graduates (NSCG)

- National Survey of Recent College Graduates (RCG)

- Survey of Doctorate Recipients (SDR)

• Data from all three surveys integrated into SESTAT, a comprehensive data base

• Data on education and employment, work activities, demographic characteristics

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S&E Degree Fields• Computer & math sciences• Biological, agricultural and

environmental life sciences• Physical sciences• Social sciences• Engineering

S&E-Related Degree Fields*• Health• Science and math teacher

education• Technology and technical fields• Other S&E-related fields

* Prior to 2003, all of these fields were considered ‘Non-S&E’, except health fields at the doctorate level

S&E Occupations• Computer & math scientists• Biological, agricultural and

environmental life scientists• Physical sciences• Social sciences• Postsecondary teachers in S&E

fields

S&E-Related Occupations*• Health• S&E managers• S&E Precollege teachers• Technologists and technicians

in S&E• Other S&E-related occupations

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Recent SEH graduates, by field of degree: 2006

All SEH bachelor's and masters

degrees Bachelor's degrees Master's degrees

Field of degree Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

All fields 1,982,400 100 1,565,500 100 416,900 100

Biological, agricultural, and environmental life sciences

259,500 13 230,100 15 29,400 7

Computer and information sciences

216,300 11 164,000 10 52,300 13

Mathematics and statistics 55,800 3 44,000 3 11,800 3Physical and related sciences

70,500 4 55,600 4 14,900 4

Psychology 303,300 15 252,700 16 50,600 12Social and related sciences 459,200 23 413,500 26 45,700 11Engineering 269,600 14 183,100 12 86,500 21Health 348,200 18 222,500 14 125,700 30

SEH = science, engineering, and health.

NOTES: Recent SEH graduates are those who earned bachelor’s or master’s degrees in science, engineering, or health fields between 1 July 2002 and 30 June 2005. Detail may not add to total because of rounding.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation/Division of Science Resources Statistics, National Survey of Recent College Graduates, 2006.

social sciences and the humanities data in the united states national science foundation division of...

Documents

social science total

ssh rd data

social sciences rd performance

engineering rd

engineering resources

psychology rd performance

humanities data

analysis of data