Institute for Quantitative Social Science
Encyclopedia
The Institute for Quantitative Social Science (IQSS) is a university-wide institute located physically within the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University
. It is an unusual hybrid organization, both a research center and also an integral part of the Harvard administration. IQSS directs large, interdisciplinary research projects; builds infrastructure that facilitates the research of students, faculty and others; houses research groups and technology centers; and administers professional staff and IT tools that increase the productivity of many others around the university. It also combines the roles, most obviously when it takes routine activities of the administration, turns them into research projects, automates their tasks, and greatly extends the reach, efficiency, creativity, and productivity of the effort. IQSS specializes in infrastructure that scales.
The organizational mission is: (1) to foster interdisciplinary, often large-scale, and highly collaborative projects that cannot be accomplished readily within the traditional setting of individual departments; and (2) to build a scientific culture where faculty, students, and staff work side by side, not only to solve problems within their own discipline, but also to seek out problems in unrelated or applied areas amenable to the same approach.
is the Albert J. Weatherhead III University Professor
at Harvard University—one of 22 with the title of University Professor, Harvard's most distinguished faculty position. He presently is based in the Department of Government (in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences
) and serves as Director of the IQSS. King develops and applies empirical methods in social science research, focusing on innovations that span the range from statistical theory to practical application.
King was elected Fellow of the American Statistical Association
(2009), Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2004), Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
(1998), Fellow of the Society for Political Methodology (2008), and Fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
(2004). He was President of the Society for Political Methodology (1997–1999) and Vice President of the American Political Science Association
(2003–2004). King has won numerous awards, including the Warren Miller Prize (2008), the McGraw-Hill Award (2006), the Durr Award (2005), the Pi Sigma Alpha
Award (2005, 1998, and 1993), and the APSA Research Software Award (2005, 1997, 1994, and 1992). His more than 120 journal articles, 15 open source software packages, and 8 books span most aspects of political methodology, many fields of political science, and several other scholarly disciplines.
and educational research within the Graduate School of Education
. What IQSS calls social science is called other things in other areas, but the category is much wider than the term. It includes what the law school faculty calls empirical research, and many aspects of research at the Medical
and Business
schools. What IQSS calls social science includes a large fraction of faculty from the School of Public Health
, although they have different names for these activities, such as epidemiology, demography, and outcomes research. IQSS also has increasingly rich connections with the Initiative for Innovative Computing, the Harvard Initiative for Global Health, and the Broad Institute
(along with many more substantively oriented centers), including joint grant proposals and collaborative research.
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. It is an unusual hybrid organization, both a research center and also an integral part of the Harvard administration. IQSS directs large, interdisciplinary research projects; builds infrastructure that facilitates the research of students, faculty and others; houses research groups and technology centers; and administers professional staff and IT tools that increase the productivity of many others around the university. It also combines the roles, most obviously when it takes routine activities of the administration, turns them into research projects, automates their tasks, and greatly extends the reach, efficiency, creativity, and productivity of the effort. IQSS specializes in infrastructure that scales.
History of IQSS
IQSS began operations in the late fall of 2004. Originally started as the Center for Basic Research in the Social Sciences (CBRSS) in 1998, the new institute was an integrated collection of centers and academic units that shared a goal to advance quantitative methods for social sciences research. Included were the Harvard-MIT Data Center (HMDC), the Henry A. Murray Archive, the Initiative on Geospatial Analysis (now known as the Center for Geographic Analysis, or CGA), the Robert Wood Johnson Scholars in Health Policy Program, and the Ph.D. Program in Political Economy and Government.IQSS Mission
The scientific mission of IQSS is: (1) to create, and make widely accessible, statistical and analytical tools for the social and health sciences; and (2) to use these tools for understanding and solving major problems that affect society and the well-being of human populations.The organizational mission is: (1) to foster interdisciplinary, often large-scale, and highly collaborative projects that cannot be accomplished readily within the traditional setting of individual departments; and (2) to build a scientific culture where faculty, students, and staff work side by side, not only to solve problems within their own discipline, but also to seek out problems in unrelated or applied areas amenable to the same approach.
Director of IQSS
Gary KingGary King (political scientist)
Gary King is a political scientist and quantitative methodologist. He is currently the Albert J. Weatherhead III University Professor and Director for the Institute for Quantitative Social Science at Harvard University.-Biography:...
is the Albert J. Weatherhead III University Professor
Harvard University Professor
At Harvard University, the title of University Professor is an honor bestowed upon a very small number of its tenured faculty members whose scholarship and other professional work have attained particular distinction and influence. This honor was created in 1935 by Harvard's President and Fellows...
at Harvard University—one of 22 with the title of University Professor, Harvard's most distinguished faculty position. He presently is based in the Department of Government (in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences
The Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences is the largest of the seven faculties that constitute Harvard University.Headquartered principally in Cambridge, Massachusetts and centered in the historic Harvard Yard, FAS is the only division of the university responsible for both undergraduate and...
) and serves as Director of the IQSS. King develops and applies empirical methods in social science research, focusing on innovations that span the range from statistical theory to practical application.
King was elected Fellow of the American Statistical Association
American Statistical Association
The American Statistical Association , is the main professional US organization for statisticians and related professions. It was founded in Boston, Massachusetts on November 27, 1839, and is the second oldest, continuously operating professional society in the United States...
(2009), Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2004), Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
(1998), Fellow of the Society for Political Methodology (2008), and Fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science
American Academy of Political and Social Science
The American Academy of Political and Social Science was founded in 1889 to promote progress in the social sciences. Sparked by Professor Edmund J. James and drawing from members of the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College, and Bryn Mawr College, the Academy sought to...
(2004). He was President of the Society for Political Methodology (1997–1999) and Vice President of the American Political Science Association
American Political Science Association
The American Political Science Association is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903, it publishes three academic journals...
(2003–2004). King has won numerous awards, including the Warren Miller Prize (2008), the McGraw-Hill Award (2006), the Durr Award (2005), the Pi Sigma Alpha
Pi sigma alpha
Pi Sigma Alpha , the National Political Science Honor Society, is the only honor society for college and university students of political science in the United States. Its purpose is to recognize and promote high academic achievement in the field of political science...
Award (2005, 1998, and 1993), and the APSA Research Software Award (2005, 1997, 1994, and 1992). His more than 120 journal articles, 15 open source software packages, and 8 books span most aspects of political methodology, many fields of political science, and several other scholarly disciplines.
What does Social Science mean at IQSS?
The IQSS uses the term social science to refer to areas of scholarship dedicated to understanding, or improving the well-being of, human populations. Social scientists typically conduct quantitative analysis using data observed at the level of the person or groups of persons, such as countries or areas. The term most commonly is applied to empirical and quantitative areas within academic disciplines in the Faculty of Arts and Science at Harvard University, such as Sociology, Political Science (called Government at Harvard), Economics, Psychology, and Anthropology. The term also is used for quantitative analyses of public policy at the Kennedy SchoolKennedy School
The Kennedy School is a former elementary school that has been converted to a hotel, movie theater and dining establishment in northeast Portland, Oregon. The facility is operated by the McMenamins chain.-External links:*...
and educational research within the Graduate School of Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education
The Harvard Graduate School of Education is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University, and is one of the top schools of education in the United States. It was founded in 1920, the same year it invented the Ed.D...
. What IQSS calls social science is called other things in other areas, but the category is much wider than the term. It includes what the law school faculty calls empirical research, and many aspects of research at the Medical
Harvard Medical School
Harvard Medical School is the graduate medical school of Harvard University. It is located in the Longwood Medical Area of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts....
and Business
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...
schools. What IQSS calls social science includes a large fraction of faculty from the School of Public Health
Harvard School of Public Health
The Harvard School of Public Health is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University, located in the Longwood Area of the Boston, Massachusetts neighborhood of Mission Hill, which is next to Harvard Medical School. HSPH is considered a significant school focusing on health in the...
, although they have different names for these activities, such as epidemiology, demography, and outcomes research. IQSS also has increasingly rich connections with the Initiative for Innovative Computing, the Harvard Initiative for Global Health, and the Broad Institute
Broad Institute
The Broad Institute is a genomic medicine research center located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Although it is independently governed and supported as a 501 nonprofit research organization, the institute is formally affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard...
(along with many more substantively oriented centers), including joint grant proposals and collaborative research.
Programs at IQSS
IQSS is home to a number of faculty-led research programs. Connecting investigators from across Harvard and beyond, these programs build collaborative research teams working toward the advancement of knowledge and the solution of human problems. IQSS is proud to offer administrative support, technical tools, and general infrastructure to help make these endeavors possible.- Program on Quantitative Methods - This program encompasses a wide variety of projects that actively develop innovative methods and software as a way of building and unifying the methodological subfields now existing separately within most social science disciplines.
- Program on Positive Political Economy - This program currently supports research exploring politics and demography; consumption and spending; behavioral economics; international political economy; game theory in negotiations; auctions and herding behavior; and college admissions mechanisms.
- Program on Survey Research - PSR serves as a resource for those interested in scientific survey methods and offers a university-wide clearing house for information and expertise in survey design, administration, and analysis.
- Bibliographic Knowledge Network - The Bibliographic Knowledge Network aims to address three fundamental problems of knowledge management: compartmentalization, navigation, and maintenance.
- Robert Wood Johnson Scholars in Health Policy Research - The RWJ Scholars in Health Policy Research Program is a two-year, post-doctoral fellowship program for eight recent Ph.D.s in political science, sociology, and economics.
- Undergraduate Research Scholars - Working side-by-side with faculty, students contribute to the discovery and development of new tools, methods and knowledge.
- ideas42 - Recent research in psychology and economics has uncovered important, and sometimes surprising, drivers of human behavior. ideas42 attempts to apply these insights to an understanding of the economic lives of people.
- Education Innovation Laboratory (EdLabs) - This innovative program led by Professor Roland Fryer applies an R&D model to education as a way to unearth root causes of performance gaps, effectively vet reform options, and replicate solutions that will improve public schools.
- Patent Collaboration Network - The Patent Collaboration Network database is a dataset generated by pulling together data on all patents granted by US Patent and Trademark Office since 1975 in order to represent and analyze social networks among inventors.
- Program on Text Research - This program works to foster interdisciplinary research and teaching as it relates to the utilization of textual data within social science research.
- A New Architecture for the U.S. National Accounts - Professor Dale Jorgenson’s research project implements a new conceptual framework for the U.S. national accounts by integrating the national income and product accounts, productivity statistics, and financial accounts.
- Boston Data Portal - The Center for Geographic Analysis with the Rappaport Institute for Greater Boston and the IQSS, is building a proof-of-concept system called the Boston Data Portal aimed at providing both government and academic datasets.
- Program on Qualitative Methods - A new initiative at IQSS, this program focuses on teaching resources in qualitative methods at Harvard. It will catalog relevant faculty and courses available at Harvard and at neighboring universities, host software tools for content analysis, and provide contact information for transcribers. Topics addressed will include content analysis, discourse analysis, the use of transcription software, in-depth interviewing, and more.
Centers at IQSS
IQSS serves as the administrative department for several FAS/University-wide centers. These centers are designated by the University as specific resources that provide technology support and data services to faculty, students, and staff. Each center at IQSS stands as an independent intellectual community, composed of faculty members, researchers, field specialists, and a unique steering committee to provide strategic guidance and help set overall direction.- Harvard-MIT Data Center - HMDC manages technology platforms for IQSS on informatics and data sharing, statistical computing, and information technology.
- Center for Geographic Analysis - As a designated university-wide technology platform, CGA catalogues and distributes geospatial data and provides training and consultation for researchers utilizing spatial analysis.
- Henry A. Murray Research Archive - The Henry A. Murray Research Archive is the permanent repository for quantitative and qualitative research data at IQSS, and provides physical storage for the IQSS Dataverse Network repository.
External links
- The IQSS web site
- The Harvard University web site
- Web site of Gary King, IQSS Director