150 



Febkeal Support of Social Sciences 



The committee also heard testimony about Federal support for the 

 social sciences. Senator Harris was interested in ascertaining the con- 

 sensus within the disciplines regarding increases in the level of Federal 

 funding and geographic distribution. Carl Pfaffmann, former chair- 

 man of the Divisional Behavioral Sciences, NAS, citing NSF study 

 figures, presented an overview of Federal support for various dis- 

 ciplines, gave a rundown of the differences between the physical and 

 natural sciences vis-a-vis the social sciences, and concluded that expan- 

 sion of "* * * the educational as well as research support programs 

 of the NSF, HEW, and others in the social sciences is clearly 

 indicated." 



The adequacy of trained manpower, if social scientists were to ex- 

 tend their services to Government as well as to teaching and research, 

 "was also considered. Dr. Henry Reining, dean of the School of Public 

 Administration, University of Southern Californifi, among others, 

 suggested that the Government needs might be met by direct contact: 

 "with universities as institutions, rather than by hiring teachers away 

 from them. Alex Inkeles, of Harvard, suggested that commercial orga- 

 nizations might be effectively equipped to conduct social science re- 

 search on a large scale. Dr. Brayfield proposed that teachers of social 

 science had an obligation to train their students in skills needed to 

 conduct research effectively for the Government, including instruction 

 on problems of overseas research and development of a code of social 

 science ethics. Dr. Gabriel Almond, of the American Political Science 

 Association, noted the ambiguous motivation of social scientists whose 

 personal preference might be for "autonomous" research but also might 

 need to consider the availability of sources of funds for sponsorship of 

 research — military sponsorship, sometimes without restrictive condi- 

 tions could be attractive.^^ 



Foreign Area Social Science Research 



Stephen T. Boggs, Executive Secretary of the American Anthro- 

 pological Association, identified the problems faced by social scientists 

 doing field work in the developing countries : ^* 



[Charges by foreign nations that social science research serves as a screen 

 or cover for collection of intelligence] ; 



[The widespread impression that social scientists were representatives of the 

 American Government trying to implement policies controversial in the develop- 

 ing world] ; 



[Charges of neocolonialism — that American social scientists conducted re- 

 search in various countries, obtained voluminous quantities of data and never 

 gave indigenous social scientists the chance to utilize their own researchers]. 



Most of the social scientists who testified about the need for proce- 

 dures to insure propriety of federally sponsored foreign area research 

 suggested that the State Department was not prepared to handle this 

 task. Dr. Almond said that while the State Department procedures for 

 review were an improvement, the State Department really did not 

 understand the nature and value of social science research. 



I think the Department of State has a record of on the whole being unduly 

 skeptical and unduly slow in stimulating and in carrying on social science 

 research that has a direct bearing on the foreign policy interests of the United 



w Ibid., pp. 124-127 ; 103, 190-191, 60 and 108-109, respectively. 

 e« Ibid., pp. 72-76. 



