Introduction to the Social Sciences: Teacher's Manual.

Science.gov (United States)

Blum, Mark E.; Spangehl, Stephen D.

A competency-based, introductory social science course for college students is described. Objectives of the manual are twofold--first, to present the complete set of materials which have served as the basis of a one semester social sciences course at the University of Louisville over three years, and, second, to offer suggestions regarding…

International Conference "Social Sciences: Achievements and Prospects"

OpenAIRE

Open European Academy of Public Sciences

2018-01-01

The Organizing Committee of the International Scientific and Practical Conference of the Open European Academy of Social Sciences(Spain, Barcelona), in partnership with the Barcelona University (Spain, Barcelona), the Berlin University (Germany, Berlin) Conference sections: Anthropology, Demography and Ethnography, Journalism, Art History and Culturology History and archeology, Political science, Psychology, Pedagogy Regional studies and socio-economic geography, Relig...

Community centrality and social science research.

Science.gov (United States)

Allman, Dan

2015-12-01

Community centrality is a growing requirement of social science. The field's research practices are increasingly expected to conform to prescribed relationships with the people studied. Expectations about community centrality influence scholarly activities. These expectations can pressure social scientists to adhere to models of community involvement that are immediate and that include community-based co-investigators, advisory boards, and liaisons. In this context, disregarding community centrality can be interpreted as failure. This paper considers evolving norms about the centrality of community in social science. It problematises community inclusion and discusses concerns about the impact of community centrality on incremental theory development, academic integrity, freedom of speech, and the value of liberal versus communitarian knowledge. Through the application of a constructivist approach, this paper argues that social science in which community is omitted or on the periphery is not failed science, because not all social science requires a community base to make a genuine and valuable contribution. The utility of community centrality is not necessarily universal across all social science pursuits. The practices of knowing within social science disciplines may be difficult to transfer to a community. These practices of knowing require degrees of specialisation and interest that not all communities may want or have.

Social Media as a Learning Technology for University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Hussain, Irshad; Cakir, Ozlem; Candeger, Ümmügülsüm

2018-01-01

This paper demonstrates the role of social media as a learning technology for university students and highlights their problems associated with its use. The population of the study consisted of Masters' and Bachelor Studies students studying in their final semesters in the departments of Social Sciences at The Islamia University of Bahawalpur,…

[Information flow between medical and social sciences].

Science.gov (United States)

Schubert, András; Somogyi, Anikó

2014-12-28

In order to reveal impacts of natural and social sciences on each other, the authors examined connections between fields of medical and social sciences using a search for references and citations of scientific publication. 1. The largest affinity between the medical and social sciences was found between neurosciences and psychology, but there was a significant affinity between clinical sciences and general social sciences, as well. 2. The example of General & Internal Medicine papers in the topics of "diabetes" suggests that in the period 2001-2010 the share of references to social sciences was significantly increased. In the meantime, social science papers in the same topics contained references to Clinical Medicine papers in a constantly high percentage. 3. In the sample under study, the age distribution of social science papers in the references did not differ significantly from that of the other sources. 4. Share of references to social science papers was found to be extremely high among Hungarian General & Internal Medicine papers in the topics of "diabetes". This finding still requires clarification, nevertheless, since e.g. it was not supported by an institutional comparison including the largest Hungarian medical research university. 5. The intensity of the reference/citation mediated information flows between the Hungarian Medical Journal, Orvosi Hetilap and social sciences appears to be in accordance with the current international trends.

An emerging action science of social settings.

Science.gov (United States)

Seidman, Edward

2012-09-01

Seymour B. Sarason's innovative ideas have influenced much of my work. These same ideas-in particular, his concepts of social settings, behavioral and programmatic regularities, and the universe of alternatives-also serve as the foundation for an action science of social settings. Questions regarding theory, measurement, intervention, and research design and data analysis are central to the development of this action science, and there have been recent innovations in each of these areas. However, future challenges remain for the field. We must continue to move forward to advance an action science of social settings and make a real difference in people's lives.

Assessment of Entrepreneurial Skills and Its Association with Social Intelligence in Students of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences

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Yahya Safari

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Social intelligence and entrepreneurship are among features leading to the academic and career achievements. Due to the importance of this issue, the present study was performed to determine the level of entrepreneurial skills in students of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences and its association with social intelligence. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study by using systematic random sampling method, we selected 350 students at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences. Data were collected using entrepreneurial skills standard and social intelligence questionnaires. Reliability and validity of two questionnaires have been already assessed in previous studies. Results analyzed by descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation coefficient test. Results: Students’ entrepreneurial skill was totally 255.69 which is assessed at poor scores range. Research findings also indicated the presence of a statistically significantly positive association between social intelligence and risk-taking (r=0.14 P=0.035, locus of control (r=0.72, P=0.019, need to achievement (r=0.54, P=0.012, mental health (r=0.53, P=0.033, pragmatism (r=0.45, P=0.04, ambiguity toleration (r=0.58, P=0.029, positive thinking (r=0.72, P=0.019, and challenging (r=0.29, P=0.016. Conclusion: Given the students’ poor entrepreneurial skills and the correlation between social intelligence and entrepreneurial components, it is recommended to strengthen social intelligence and consequently promote entrepreneurial skills.

Study the Relationship between Internet-related Lifestyle and Loneliness and Social Support among Internet Users in Ilam University of Medical Sciences

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Morteza Mansoorian

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Background & Objective: Using internet have had a significant impact on the lifestyle changes of internet clients which can affect their health. The aim of this study was to survey the relationship between lifestyle related to internet with loneliness and social support of the internet clients in Ilam University of medical sciences. Methods: This study was a cross sectional study which was performed in 2014 on 400 university students and personnel of Ilam University of medical sciences using stratified random sampling method.Data collection instrument was a questionnaire comprising of four sections: demographic information, lifestyle related to internet questionnaire , loneliness and social supports questionnaires.All data were analyzed using SPSS software by Mann Withney and Kruscall- Wallis tests and linear regression test. Results: The linear regression results showed that there was a significant relationship between loneliness and lifestyle related to the internet, gender, marital status, occupational statues and age (P<0.01. There was also a significant relationship between social support and lifestyle related to the internet and age (P<0/05. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between loneliness and social support with marital status, educational degree and internet usage (P<0/01. Conclusion: According to the significant relation between loneliness and social support with the lifestyle related to the internet, and regarding the inevitability of Internet, it seems more supporting the students and implementing the educational programs for university clients about suitable using of internet is necessary.

Preparation of Social Studies Teachers at Major Research Universities.

Science.gov (United States)

Dumas, Wayne

1993-01-01

Reports on a study of the preparation of secondary social studies teachers at major state-supported research universities. Finds relatively few institutions have followed the Holmes Group recommendations and many continue to prepare broad field social studies teachers leaving them deficient in some social science fields. (CFR)

The research trends of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A bibliometric method was used to analyse the trends and challenges of Humanities and Social Sciences research by using research data reflecting on ongoing and completed Arts, Humanities and Social Science research publications submitted by staff and students from 1994 – 2008 to the university's Research Office.

Exploring the Composite Trace of Research Outputs of Humanities and Social Sciences Scholars: A Case Study of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences at National Taiwan University

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kuang-Hua Chen

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this study, we used the citation data from four databases (THCI, ACI, WOS and Scopus and one social media, Mendeley, to examine the composite traces of humanities and social sciences scholars’ research outputs. Using the researchers of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences in National Taiwan University as subjects, this study compared how the scholars’ publications were cited in Taiwan’s and international academic journals as well as used in the social Web. It found that most of the subjects’ publications were in Chinese, and the impact of the publications was domestic rather than international. Taiwan’s citation databases, unsurprisingly, saw more citations to their research outputs. However, when only the English publications were observed, it was found that the citation performances in international databases and Mendeley were highly correlated. This suggests that Mendeley is a valid altmetric citation source for observing the international impact of Taiwan’s scholars. [Article content in Chinese

A Comparative Study of the Quality of Teaching Learning Process at Post Graduate Level in the Faculty of Science and Social Science

Science.gov (United States)

Shahzadi, Uzma; Shaheen, Gulnaz; Shah, Ashfaque Ahmed

2012-01-01

The study was intended to compare the quality of teaching learning process in the faculty of social science and science at University of Sargodha. This study was descriptive and quantitative in nature. The objectives of the study were to compare the quality of teaching learning process in the faculty of social science and science at University of…

77 FR 24227 - Proposal Review Panel for Social and Economic Sciences; Notice of Meeting

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-23

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION Proposal Review Panel for Social and Economic Sciences; Notice of... Engineering Center (NSEC) at Arizona State University by the Division Social and Economic Sciences ( 10748... Kronz, Program Director; Science, Technology and Society Program; Division of Social and Economic...

Who's Who in the Social and Behavioral Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Norman, Colin

1983-01-01

Faculty members in social/behavioral science programs at the Universities of Chicago and California at Berkeley have been given the highest overall "grades" for quality by their academic peers in a survey published by the National Academy of Sciences. Includes scores for anthropology, geography, history, political science, psychology and sociology…

The Methodological Socialization of Social Science Doctoral Students in China and the USA

Science.gov (United States)

Rhoads, Robert A.; Zheng, Mi; Sun, Xiaoyang

2017-01-01

This qualitative study reports findings from a comparative analysis of the methodological socialization of doctoral students in the social sciences at two universities: one in China and one in the USA. Relying primarily on theories of organizational socialization, the study focuses on formal and informal processes students report as part of…

Regular Breakfast Consumption and its Predictors Based on the Social Cognitive Theory in Female Students of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences

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Nooshin Salimi

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Despite associating regular breakfast consumption habits with a range of health benefits, the rate of skipping the meal is high. The present study was conducted to determine the factors associated with breakfast consumption among female students of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences based on the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT. Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional study was carried out on 423 female students in different faculties of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences. Participants were selected through multistage random sampling. The frequency of breakfast consumption and SCT variables, including knowledge, hope, outcome expectancies, observational learning, social support and self-efficacy, was measured using a self-administered questionnaire. Data were analyzed in SPSS-16 using the chi-square test, the correlation test and the linear regression analysis. Results: 24% of the students stated that they always ate breakfast. 10% of the students skipped breakfast. On average, the students ate breakfast 4.2 times a week. Self-efficacy (p<0.001 and social support (p<0.001 were good predictors of breakfast consumption in the students. These two variables were able to predict 64% of the variance in breakfast habits. Conclusion: The results show that self-efficacy and social support should be targeted in the design of interventions intending to increase breakfast consumption among female university students.

The Study of Scientific Outputs Status of Faculty Members of Humanities, Art and Social Sciences Faculties of State Universities of Iran during 2000-2008

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fatemeh Jafari

2012-07-01

Full Text Available This research investigated scientific outputs status of faculty members of Humanities, Art and Social Sciences faculties of state universities of Iran that indexed in A&HCI and SSCI during 2000 to 2008. Descriptive and analytical method was used to conduct this research. Findings showed that Tehran University with 38/73% and then Shiraz University with 15.65% had the greatest value of scientific outputs, while in other universities the status of scientific outputs was not satisfying. Article with 76.42% was the most published format and then meeting abstract, book review, proceeding paper are next in rank . 65.65% of scientific outputs were collective and 34.34% individual. Scientific outputs development process in universities during the investigated period was ascending. Scientific outputs of Humanities, Art and Social Sciences faculties of state universities were published in167 titles and through these 135 titles (80.83% were indexed in Journal Citation Reports and among these the impact factor of 74 journals (54.81% range from 0 to 1 and the other 61 (45.18% journals’ impact factors value more than one.

Role of International Study Experiences in the Personal and Professional Development of University Lecturers in the Humanities and Social Sciences Fields in Thailand

Science.gov (United States)

Kaowiwattanakul, Sukanya

2016-01-01

This study investigates the role of international experience on personal and professional development of university academic staff in the Humanities and Social Sciences fields in Thailand. The participants were 23 lecturers from nine universities in Thailand. A semi-structured face-to-face interviewing method was employed. The findings reveal that…

Students of Tehran Universities of Medical Sciences

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Ghezelbash Sima

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Social anxiety is an important factor in peoples’ mental health. Good mental health while studying in university makes students able to deal effectively with numerous stressors that they experience. The purpose of this study was to determine and compare the social anxiety of nursing students in grades one to four of medical universities in Tehran. Methods: In this analytic cross-sectional study, 400 students from universities of medical sciences in Tehran were recruited by stratified sampling with proportional allocation. Data were collected during the first semester in 2010. Students completed a two-part questionnaire including the Liebowitz social anxiety questionnaire and a demographic information form. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics methods and an analytical test by SPSS statistical software. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in the total scores of social anxiety of first- to fourth-year students. The mean score of the avoidance of social interaction dimension in fourth-year students was significantly lower than in first year students (p<0.05. Conclusion: In regard to the relationship between social anxiety and interpersonal communication as an associated part of nursing care, decrease of social anxiety of students could play an important role in their mental health. According to the results of this study, it seems that the placement of students in the nursing education system does not produce any changes in their social anxiety.

Educacion y Ciencias Sociales en el Mundo Moderno. [Education and the Social Sciences in the Modern World].

Science.gov (United States)

Rimoldi, Horacio J. A.

The document, written in Spanish, discusses the relationship between research in the social sciences and the role of the university in social science education. The author considers the education of researchers, the application of research, the need for interdisciplinary research methods, and problems involved in cross-cultural studies. He states…

Social Networking among Library and Information Science Undergraduate Students

Science.gov (United States)

Alakpodia, Onome Norah

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine social networking use among Library and Information Science students of the Delta State University, Abraka. In this study, students completed a questionnaire which assessed their familiarity with social networking sites, the purpose for which they use social networking site and their most preferred sites to…

Washback Effect of University Entrance exams in Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez-Muñiz, Luis J; Díaz, Patricia; Mier, Verónica; Alonso, Pedro

2016-01-01

Curricular issues of subject Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences are studied in relation to university entrance exams performed in several Spanish regions between 2009-2014. By using quantitative and qualitative analyses, it has been studied how these exams align with curriculum and how they produce a washback on curriculum and teachers' work. Additionally, one questionnaire about teachers' practices has been performed, in order to find out how the exams are influencing teaching methodology development. Main results obtained show that evaluation is producing a bias on the official curriculum, substantially simplifying the specific orientation that should guide applied mathematics. Furthermore, teachers' practices are influenced by the exams, and they usually approach their teaching methodology to the frequent types of exams. Also, slight differences among the teachers lead to distinguish two behavioral subgroups. Results can also be useful in an international context, because of the importance of standardized exit exams in OECD countries.

76 FR 57762 - Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed New Collection-Social Science Assessment and...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-16

... Information Collection Activities: Proposed New Collection--Social Science Assessment and Geographic Analysis...: OMB Control Number: 1024-NEW. Title: Social Science Assessment and Geographic Analysis of Marine... for Coastal Science and Policy, Mail Stop 250, Flanagan, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC...

Informing Science (IS and Science and Technology Studies (STS: The University as Decision Center (DC for Teaching Interdisciplinary Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teresa Castelao-Lawless

2001-01-01

Full Text Available Students of history and philosophy of science courses at my University are either naïve robust realists or naïve relativists in relation to science and technology. The first group absorbs from culture stereotypical conceptions, such as the value-free character of the scientific method, that science and technology are impervious to history or ideology, and that science and religion are always at odds. The second believes science and technology were selected arbitrarily by ideologues to have privileged world views of reality to the detriment of other interpretations. These deterministic outlooks must be challenged to make students aware of the social importance of their future roles, be they as scientists and engineers or as science and technology policy decision makers. The University as Decision Center (DC not only reproduces the social by teaching standard solutions to well-defined problems but also provides information regarding conflict resolution and the epistemological, individual, historical, social, and political mechanisms that help create new science and technology. Interdisciplinary research prepares students for roles that require science and technology literacy, but raises methodological issues in the context of the classroom as it increases uncertainty with respect to apparently self-evident beliefs about scientific and technological practices.

Information-seeking behavior of social sciences scholars: A Nigerian ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article examines the information-seeking behavior of scholars in the social sciences, based on the premise that information-seeking behavior follows universally applicable stages and patterns worldwide. The study was conducted at the Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER). Fifty eight active ...

Washback Effect of University Entrance exams in Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Díaz, Patricia; Mier, Verónica; Alonso, Pedro

2016-01-01

Curricular issues of subject Applied Mathematics to Social Sciences are studied in relation to university entrance exams performed in several Spanish regions between 2009–2014. By using quantitative and qualitative analyses, it has been studied how these exams align with curriculum and how they produce a washback on curriculum and teachers’ work. Additionally, one questionnaire about teachers’ practices has been performed, in order to find out how the exams are influencing teaching methodology development. Main results obtained show that evaluation is producing a bias on the official curriculum, substantially simplifying the specific orientation that should guide applied mathematics. Furthermore, teachers’ practices are influenced by the exams, and they usually approach their teaching methodology to the frequent types of exams. Also, slight differences among the teachers lead to distinguish two behavioral subgroups. Results can also be useful in an international context, because of the importance of standardized exit exams in OECD countries. PMID:27936103

GLOBAL JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES VOL 8, NO

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ada

Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. O. O. Umoh, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Uyo, Akwa Ibom. State, Nigeria .... research may be lost through misunderstanding ..... advertisement, the media also should be used to ...

Students’ perception on teaching competences of teachers of the branch of social science and law of the University of Valencia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cruz PÉREZ PÉREZ

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This paper presents data from research conducted at the University of Valencia in order to analyse students' perception on teaching competences of teachers in the area of Social and legal Sciences. The study included a total of 389 university students from 10 different degrees of the University of Valencia. In general, the subjects in the sample rated the 32 competencies as very important in the teaching / learning process. Students assess personal skills as the most important competences, followed by scientific, methodological and social ones.Overall the two most valued competences refer to “the proper and respectful treatment of students”, as well as “creating a classroom atmosphere based on dialogue and communication”. This data is a constant that is repeated in all degrees tested, with minor variations. The competences which are less valued are "Maintaining a careful personal image" and "keep update on new information and communication technologies”.

The social value of Science Shops: a Cost-Benefit Analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Boere, E.J.M.; Heijman, W.J.M.

2012-01-01

We describe and apply a method to determine the net social benefits of science shops. University departments operating as science shops coordinate research projects for individuals or civil society organizations (CSO) lacking the financial means to turn to professional consultancy bureaus. Three

On the Governance of Social Science Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Linneberg, Mai Skjøtt; Nørreklit, Hanne; Schröder, Philipp J.H.

2009-01-01

The majority of social science research is conducted within public or semi-public institutions, such as universities. Over the past decades, these institutions have experienced substantial changes in governance structures and an increased focus on performance contracts. Obviously, the new...... structures do not enter into a governance vacuum but replace existing profession-based governance structures. The present paper has a two-fold purpose. First, we map the key features and problems of a profession-based governance system focussing on principal-agent issues and motivational drivers. Second, we...... study the implications of the current changes in the social science research landscape along with central aspects of mechanism design, validity, employee motivation as well as the ability to establish socially optimal resource allocations. We identify a number of potential problems that may come along...

The Relationship Between the Use of Virtual Social Networks with Academic Achievement and Students' Confidence in Interpersonal Relations at Birjand University of Medical Sciences

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aliakbar ajam

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Background and Objective: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the use of mobile based virtual social networks with academic achievement and trust in interpersonal relations of university students Of Medical Sciences was conducted. Materials and Methods: This study was descriptive correlational. The study population included college of Public Health students and students of medicine at Birjand University of Medical Sciences. Based on purposive sampling method, 150 students were selected. For data collection Scale of trust in interpersonal relations of Rempel & Holmes was used. The researchers made use of social networks and academic achievement. Data were analyzed by SPSS software version 20. Result: There was a significant negative relationship between the time allotted to the network and the number of virtual memberships in social groups and academic achievement of students(P <0.01. Academic achievement of students who used virtual social networks for scientific purposes was higher than those who used it for non-scientific purposes. There was a significant negative correlation between the time allocated to social networks and factors such as capability of trust, predictability and loyalty (P <0.05. Conclusion: It is recommended that workshops and training courses be held for practical learning of virtual networks.

E-Book Use and Attitudes in the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Education

Science.gov (United States)

Corlett-Rivera, Kelsey; Hackman, Timothy

2014-01-01

A survey of more than 1,300 faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students in the humanities and social sciences at the University of Maryland generated a wealth of data on use and opinions of e-books among those users. While the initial purpose of the survey was to gather data that would aid humanities and social sciences librarians in…

Social Thinking®: Science, Pseudoscience, or Antiscience?

Science.gov (United States)

Leaf, Justin B; Kassardjian, Alyne; Oppenheim-Leaf, Misty L; Cihon, Joseph H; Taubman, Mitchell; Leaf, Ronald; McEachin, John

2016-06-01

Today, there are several interventions that can be implemented with individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Most of these interventions have limited to no empirical evidence demonstrating their effectiveness, yet they are widely implemented in home, school, university, and community settings. In 1996, Green wrote a chapter in which she outlined three levels of science: evidence science, pseudoscience, and antiscience; professionals were encouraged to implement and recommend only those procedures that would be considered evidence science. Today, an intervention that is commonly implemented with individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder is Social Thinking®. This intervention has been utilized by behaviorists and non-behaviorists. This commentary will outline Social Thinking® and provide evidence that the procedure, at the current time, qualifies as a pseudoscience and, therefore, should not be implemented with individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, especially given the availability of alternatives which clearly meet the standard of evidence science.

Social Science, Equity and the Sustainable Development Goals

Science.gov (United States)

Liverman, D.

2015-12-01

The Sustainable Development Goals are underpinned by a committment to a world that is just, equitable, inclusive and environmentally sustainable and include goals of ending poverty and hunger; universal access to health, education, water, sanitation, energy and decent work; and reducing the risks and impacts of climate change, biodiversity loss, and marine, forest and land degradation. They seek to reduce inequality between and within countries and achieve gender equality. The SDGs build on the apparent success in meeting many of the Millenium Development Goals, including those of reducing poverty, hunger and debt and providing access to water. The science needed to achieve and monitor most of these goals is social science - an area of scholarship that is traditionally undervalued, underfunded, underepresented misunderstood and lacking in detailed data. This paper will provide an overview of the social science that is needed to support the Sustainable Development Goals, with a particular focus on the challenges of monitoring social data over time and within countries, the importance of research design, and of building capacity and credibility in the social sciences. As an example, the paper will discuss the social science that will be needed to achieve Goal 13: Take urgent actions to combat climate change and its impacts, and measuring targets such as strengthening resilience and adaptive capacity, and raising capacities of women, youth, and marginalized communities to manage and respond climate change.

Social Science Energy Review: a quarterly publication. Vol. 1, No. 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gould, L C [ed.

1978-01-01

The Yale University Institution for Social and Policy Studies Mapping Project on Energy and the Social Sciences brings together an interdisciplinary group of Yale and visiting faculty, ISPS staff, and Yale graduate students meeting weekly to discuss topics in energy and the social sciences and to study and evaluate the importance for social policy of existing and potential social science energy research projects. The primary purposes of the project are: (1) to encourage timely social science investigations into important energy-related social issues, (2) to explore the present and potential roles for academic social science research in energy decision-making, and (3) to advise DOE and other government personnel in the planning of social science energy research. In addition to an overview of the Mapping Project, this report contains the following: (1) Social Science Research on ''The Energy Boomtown,'' by Leroy C. Gould--contains literature survey (66 references) and conveys Mapping Project's suggestions as to priorities on future social science research on ''energy boomtowns.'' (2) Men and Coal in Appalachia: a Survey of the Academic Literature, by Peter B. Allison (bibliography cites 7 journals, 3 government documents, and 70 books and articles). (3) Energy Research in Psychology, by John Sweeney (reprint of review of current status of energy research in psychology that appeared in December, 1977 issue of APA Monitor under the title, ''Boosting Energy Research'').

Universities in social media – Recipients’ expectations and the published contents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agnieszka Chwiałkowska

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Research carried out by the author in 2013, which covered all 59 public universities listed by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education showed that Polish public universities are more and more eagerly resorting to social media as a channel for communication with the environment of students and they are currently active in social media and especially on Facebook, where 81% (48 units have their official profiles. Also other research projects show that the activities of a university in social media influences the image of the university especially among students – according to them student candidates admit that the presence of universities in social media and information published on their official Facebook profiles and the manner of interaction with users had an impact on their final decision on the choice of a university. At the same time it is possible to notice a research gap in the area of expectations of main target group for messages of universities published in social media, that is, students, with regard to the form and content of these messages from universities. It is also possible to notice a clear lack of qualitative analyses of activities taken up by Polish universities in social media. For this reason the author has decided to continue the above-mentioned research in order to learn more about the described phenomenon, that is, the presence of universities on social media platforms. The author has defined the following detailed goals for the research: identification of the expectations of students (who in Poland are the main recipient of universities’ messages in social media and employees with regard to the presence of the university in social media; identification of student’s preferred methods of communication with the university; Learning about the students’ assessment of the activities of universities conducted in social media; Qualitative analysis of contents published by universities in social media. The research

Philosophy of the social sciences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. A. Kimelyev

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Philosophy of social science is a branch of philosophy where relations between philosophy and social sciences are traced and investigated. The main functions of philosophy of social science are: to work out social ontology, methodology and metatheory of social science.

Social Anthropology and Social Science History

Science.gov (United States)

2015-01-01

In the 1970s, when the social science history movement emerged in the United States, leading to the founding of the Social Science History Association, a simultaneous movement arose in which historians looked to cultural anthropology for inspiration. Although both movements involved historians turning to social sciences for theory and method, they reflected very different views of the nature of the historical enterprise. Cultural anthropology, most notably as preached by Clifford Geertz, became a means by which historians could find a theoretical basis in the social sciences for rejecting a scientific paradigm. This article examines this development while also exploring the complex ways cultural anthropology has embraced—and shunned—history in recent years. PMID:26549914

Cultural Intelligence and Social Adaptability: A Comparison between Iranian and Non-Iranian Dormitory Students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Soltani, Batoul; Keyvanara, Mahmoud

2013-01-01

At the modern age, to acquire knowledge and experience, the individuals with their own specific culture have to enter contexts with cultural diversity, adapt to different cultures and have social interactions to be able to have effective inter-cultural relationships.To have such intercultural associations and satisfy individual needs in the society, cultural intelligence and social adaptability are deemed as inevitable requirements, in particular for those who enter a quite different culture. Hence, the present study tries to compare the cultural intelligence and its aspects and social adaptability in Iranian and non-Iranian dormitory students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2012. The study was of descriptiveanalytical nature. The research population consisted of Iranian and non-Iranian students resided in the dormitories of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences which are 2500, totally. For Iranian students, two-stage sampling method was adopted. At the first stage, classified sampling and at the second stage, systematic random sampling was conducted. In this way, 441 students were selected. To form non-Iranian students' sample, consensus sampling method was applied and a sample of 37 students were obtained. The research data was collected by using Earley & Ang's Cultural Intelligence Questionnaire with the Cronbach's coefficient α of 76% and California Social Adaptability Standard Questionnaire with the Cronbach's coefficient α of over 70%. Then, the data were put into SPSS software to be analyzed. Finally, the results were presented by descriptive and inferential statistics methods. The study findings revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between cultural intelligence and cognitive aspect of cultural intelligence in Iranian and non-Iranian students (P≥0/05). However, Iranian and non-Iranian students statistically differed in terms of the following aspects of cultural intelligence: meta-cognitive aspect (61.8% for

Social science that matters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Flyvbjerg, Bent

2006-01-01

Social science is headed down a dead end toward mere scientism, becoming a second-rate version of the hard sciences. We neeed to recognise and support a different kind of social science research - and so should those who demand accountability from researchers. This paper asks what kind of social...... science we - scholars, policy makers, administrators - should and should not promote in democratic societies, and how we may hold social scientists accountable to deliver what we ask them for....

Does Social Background Influence Political Science Grades?

Science.gov (United States)

Tiruneh, Gizachew

2013-01-01

This paper tests a hypothesized linear relationship between social background and final grades in several political science courses that I taught at the University of Central Arkansas. I employ a cross-sectional research design and ordinary least square (OLS) estimators to test the foregoing hypothesis. Relying on a sample of up to 204…

Complementary Social Science?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Blok, Anders; Pedersen, Morten Axel

2014-01-01

of measurement device deployed. At the same time, however, we also expect new interferences and polyphonies to arise at the intersection of Big and Small Data, provided that these are, so to speak, mixed with care. These questions, we stress, are important not only for the future of social science methods......The rise of Big Data in the social realm poses significant questions at the intersection of science, technology, and society, including in terms of how new large-scale social databases are currently changing the methods, epistemologies, and politics of social science. In this commentary, we address...

Michael Polanyi and his generation origins of the social construction of science

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Nye, Mary Jo

2011-01-01

In Michael Polanyi and His Generation, Mary Jo Nye investigates the role that Michael Polanyi and several of his contemporaries played in the emergence of the social turn in the philosophy of science. This turn involved seeing science as a socially based enterprise that does not rely on empiricism and reason alone but on social communities, behavioral norms, and personal commitments. Nye argues that the roots of the social turn are to be found in the scientific culture and political events of Europe in the 1930s, when scientific intellectuals struggled to defend the universal status of scientific knowledge and to justify public support for science in an era of economic catastrophe, Stalinism and Fascism, and increased demands for applications of science to industry and social welfare. At the center of this struggle was Polanyi, who Nye contends was one of the first advocates of this new conception of science. Nye reconstructs Polanyi’s scientific and political milieus in Budapest, Berlin, and Manchester f...

Teaching and Learning Psychology through an Analysis of Social Science Fiction

Science.gov (United States)

Herman, William E.

2009-01-01

This paper is designed to accompany an appearance by the author as a panelist during a session on science fiction and teaching methods at the I-CON 28 Science Fiction Convention held April 3-5, 2009, on Long Island (near New York City). The author describes how he employs social science fiction in an honors course at the university level to…

On art and science: an epistemic framework for integrating social science and clinical medicine.

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Wasserman, Jason Adam

2014-06-01

Calls for incorporating social science into patient care typically have accounted for neither the logistic constraints of medical training nor the methodological fallacies of utilizing aggregate "social facts" in clinical practice. By elucidating the different epistemic approaches of artistic and scientific practices, this paper illustrates an integrative artistic pedagogy that allows clinical practitioners to generate social scientific insights from actual patient encounters. Although there is no shortage of calls to bring social science into medicine, the more fundamental processes of thinking by which art and science proceed have not been addressed to this end. As such, the art of medical practice is conceptualized as an innate gift, and thus little is done to cultivate it. Yet doing so is more important than ever because uncertainty in diagnosing and treating chronic illnesses, the most significant contemporary mortality risks, suggests a re-expanding role for clinical judgment. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press, on behalf of the Journal of Medicine and Philosophy Inc. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Application of the basic constructs of social cognitive theory for predicting mental health in student of Bushehr University Medical Sciences 2012-13

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Makyea Jamali

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background: mental health is one of the health assessment topics in different communities which plays an important role in ensuring the dynamism and efficiency, especially in the students. Thus, the aim of this study is to application of basic constructs of social cognitive theory for predicting mental health in student of Bushehr University Medical Sciences. Materials and Methods: This cross– sectional study was conducted with using a systematic random sampling method in 428 students of Bushehr University Medical Sciences in 2012-13. Information was collected by using five standard questionnaires including academic self efficacy, academic stress, multidimensional social support, student outcome expectancy and Quality of life (SF-36 scales. After data collection, all data was analyzed by SPSS statistical software with using Pearson correlation coefficient test and multiple linear regressions. Results: In this study, mental health had a significant correlation with social support (P =0.000, r=0.37, academic stress (P= 0.000, r= -0.45 and academic self-efficacy (P =0.000 , r =0. 24. In the liner regression model, predictor factors of mental health were faculty type and curriculum counseling and noncurriculum counseling evaluation variables and self efficacy (P=0.031, B= 1.49, academic stress (P=0.000, B=- 4.35, and social support constructs (P=0.000, B =4.77. Also, gender, mother's education and father's job had indirect effects to mental health through social support and acceptance quota and curriculum counseling evaluation had indirect effects to mental health through self efficacy. Conclusion: Utilization of strategies to increase self- efficacy, creating social support environment and also stress reduction particularly with organization of curriculum and non-curriculum counseling sessions can promote mental health in students.

Mainstreaming the social sciences in conservation.

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Bennett, Nathan J; Roth, Robin; Klain, Sarah C; Chan, Kai M A; Clark, Douglas A; Cullman, Georgina; Epstein, Graham; Nelson, Michael Paul; Stedman, Richard; Teel, Tara L; Thomas, Rebecca E W; Wyborn, Carina; Curran, Deborah; Greenberg, Alison; Sandlos, John; Veríssimo, Diogo

2017-02-01

Despite broad recognition of the value of social sciences and increasingly vocal calls for better engagement with the human element of conservation, the conservation social sciences remain misunderstood and underutilized in practice. The conservation social sciences can provide unique and important contributions to society's understanding of the relationships between humans and nature and to improving conservation practice and outcomes. There are 4 barriers-ideological, institutional, knowledge, and capacity-to meaningful integration of the social sciences into conservation. We provide practical guidance on overcoming these barriers to mainstream the social sciences in conservation science, practice, and policy. Broadly, we recommend fostering knowledge on the scope and contributions of the social sciences to conservation, including social scientists from the inception of interdisciplinary research projects, incorporating social science research and insights during all stages of conservation planning and implementation, building social science capacity at all scales in conservation organizations and agencies, and promoting engagement with the social sciences in and through global conservation policy-influencing organizations. Conservation social scientists, too, need to be willing to engage with natural science knowledge and to communicate insights and recommendations clearly. We urge the conservation community to move beyond superficial engagement with the conservation social sciences. A more inclusive and integrative conservation science-one that includes the natural and social sciences-will enable more ecologically effective and socially just conservation. Better collaboration among social scientists, natural scientists, practitioners, and policy makers will facilitate a renewed and more robust conservation. Mainstreaming the conservation social sciences will facilitate the uptake of the full range of insights and contributions from these fields into

The effects of social capital and organizational commitment on the staff’s intellectual contribution in the central building of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences

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Leila Malek Makan

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Nowadays human capital is the main asset in organizations. Thus, the employees’ intellectual involvement is a key factor in the success of organizations. Hence organizations should seek for factors that affect and boost the employees’ intellectual involvement. Therefore, the present research aimed at discovering the relationship between organizational commitment and social capital with intellectual involvement among employees of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Method: The study population consisted of staff employees at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. A sample of 224 employees was selected using cluster sampling. Data were collected using three questionnaires including social capital, organizational commitment, and intellectual involvement. Data were analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficient. Results: It was found that the level of social capital, organizational commitment, and intellectual involvement was at an average level. There was a significant relationship between intellectual involvement and degree (p<0.01 and marital status (p<0.05. Other demographic variables had no significant relationship with research variables. Moreover, all research variables and their dimensions had a significant relationship with each other (p<0.01. Conclusion: According to the findings, it can be concluded that with improvement in each of the research variables, other variables will improve. For example, as a result of improvement in social capital or organization commitment, intellectual involvement will increase and the organization could use its competitive advantage

Psychometric Properties of Interpersonal Communication skills Questionnaire (ISAQ from the Viewpoint of Students at Tabriz University and Tabriz University of Medical Sciences

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Firoz Mahmoodi

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Background and Objective: One of the skills needed for social life is interpersonal communication skills. Assessing the Interpersonal communication skills due to the growth and development of social networks is very important. This study aimed to validate the Fetro's (2000 interpersonal communication skills questionnaire among students of Tabriz University and Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. Materials and Methods: In this descriptivestudy, 750 students of Tabriz University and Tabriz University of Medical Sciences were selected by simple random sampling. Data collected by Fetro (2000 interpersonal communication skills questionnaire. This questionnaire has 65 items with five degrees based on Likert scale. Data were analyzed using Exploratory Factor Analysis through SPSS 23. Results: In total 750 Students filled questionnaires. 423 from University of Tabriz and 327 from of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. Based on the results of exploratory factor analysis on original 65 items, 6 factors extracted and 54 items remained. Based on original questionnaire factors and literature extracted factors were labeled. So 45.26% of total variance were explained by these six factors (empathy and intimacy, communication skills, ability to maintain communication, assertiveness, listening and conflict resolution skills. Conclusion: According to the result of factor analysis, new validated questionnaire has less items and more components than the original questionnaire. So it is a suitable instrument for measuring interpersonal communication skills by researchers.

Social Media in Health Science Education: An International Survey.

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O'Sullivan, Elizabeth; Cutts, Emily; Kavikondala, Sushma; Salcedo, Alejandra; D'Souza, Karan; Hernandez-Torre, Martin; Anderson, Claire; Tiwari, Agnes; Ho, Kendall; Last, Jason

2017-01-04

Social media is an asset that higher education students can use for an array of purposes. Studies have shown the merits of social media use in educational settings; however, its adoption in health science education has been slow, and the contributing reasons remain unclear. This multidisciplinary study aimed to examine health science students' opinions on the use of social media in health science education and identify factors that may discourage its use. Data were collected from the Universitas 21 "Use of social media in health education" survey, distributed electronically among the health science staff and students from 8 universities in 7 countries. The 1640 student respondents were grouped as users or nonusers based on their reported frequency of social media use in their education. Of the 1640 respondents, 1343 (81.89%) use social media in their education. Only 462 of the 1320 (35.00%) respondents have received specific social media training, and of those who have not, the majority (64.9%, 608/936) would like the opportunity. Users and nonusers reported the same 3 factors as the top barriers to their use of social media: uncertainty on policies, concerns about professionalism, and lack of support from the department. Nonusers reported all the barriers more frequently and almost half of nonusers reported not knowing how to incorporate social media into their learning. Among users, more than one fifth (20.5%, 50/243) of students who use social media "almost always" reported sharing clinical images without explicit permission. Our global, interdisciplinary study demonstrates that a significant number of students across all health science disciplines self-reported sharing clinical images inappropriately, and thus request the need for policies and training specific to social media use in health science education. ©Elizabeth O'Sullivan, Emily Cutts, Sushma Kavikondala, Alejandra Salcedo, Karan D'Souza, Martin Hernandez-Torre, Claire Anderson, Agnes Tiwari, Kendall

Connecting university science experiences to middle school science teaching

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Johnson, Gordon; Laughran, Laura; Tamppari, Ray; Thomas, Perry

1991-06-01

Science teachers naturally rely on their university science experiences as a foundation for teaching middle school science. This foundation consists of knowledge far too complex for the middle level students to comprehend. In order for middle school science teachers to utilize their university science training they must search for ways to adapt their college experiences into appropriate middle school learning experience. The criteria set forth above provide broad-based guidelines for translating university science laboratory experiences into middle school activities. These guidelines are used by preservice teachers in our project as they identify, test, and organize a resource file of hands-on inquiry activities for use in their first year classrooms. It is anticipated that this file will provide a basis for future curriculum development as the teacher becomes more comfortable and more experienced in teaching hands-on science. The presentation of these guidelines is not meant to preclude any other criteria or considerations which a teacher or science department deems important. This is merely one example of how teachers may proceed to utilize their advanced science training as a basis for teaching middle school science.

Mathematical-statistical models and qualitative theories for economic and social sciences

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Maturo, Fabrizio; Kacprzyk, Janusz

2017-01-01

This book presents a broad spectrum of problems related to statistics, mathematics, teaching, social science, and economics as well as a range of tools and techniques that can be used to solve these problems. It is the result of a scientific collaboration between experts in the field of economic and social systems from the University of Defence in Brno (Czech Republic), G. d’Annunzio University of Chieti-Pescara (Italy), Pablo de Olavid eUniversity of Sevilla (Spain), and Ovidius University in Constanţa, (Romania). The studies included were selected using a peer-review process and reflect heterogeneity and complexity of economic and social phenomena. They and present interesting empirical research from around the globe and from several research fields, such as statistics, decision making, mathematics, complexity, psychology, sociology and economics. The volume is divided into two parts. The first part, “Recent trends in mathematical and statistical models for economic and social sciences”, collects pap...

Analysis of databases appropriation in the academic staffs of Iranian Universities of Medical Sciences according to the social appropriation approach.

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Keyvanara, Mahmoud; Sohrabi, Mozaffar Cheshmeh; Zare, Firoozeh; Hassnazadeh, Akbar; Malekahmadi, Parisa

2014-01-01

Numerous researches conducted on about the quality of perception of media messages shows that the people are not passive receivers but they have the ability of understanding, interpreting and accepting or rejecting messages. In order to make clear the relationship of information and communication technologies with social changes and to gain a broader vision from this scope, sociological theories about information and communication technologies' usage, especially appropriation approach can be very useful. So, keeping in mind the important role of Databases in the qualitative expansion of education, research, diagnosis, remedy and medical services presentation, this research was carried out with the aim of status determination of databases appropriation in the academic staffs of Iranian Universities of Medical Sciences according to the social appropriation approach in 2012. This is an applicative research of an analytical-descriptive type, which was carried out by measurement approach. The statistical society of this research was composed of the academic staffs of the Iranian Universities of Medical Sciences in 2012 and finally 390 academic staffs were selected according to the Cochran's formula were selected. The research tool are searcher's made questionnaire, which was composed of nine separate parts. Its validity was accepted by the specialists and its reliability was calculated and found to be 0.961 by Cronbakh's alpha. Database appropriation score in the academic staffs of Iranian Universities of Medical Sciences with 65.020% was in a good status and data bases dis appropriation score with 71.484 was in a high status. According to the findings of this research, Librarians and politicians in this scope-with determination of the academic staff's positive and negative points in usage and appropriation would be capable of accurately diagnozing and analyzing the chances and challenges of the academic staffs members in using databases and would also be capable of

Social Science Collaboration with Environmental Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoover, Elizabeth; Renauld, Mia; Edelstein, Michael R; Brown, Phil

2015-11-01

Social science research has been central in documenting and analyzing community discovery of environmental exposure and consequential processes. Collaboration with environmental health science through team projects has advanced and improved our understanding of environmental health and justice. We sought to identify diverse methods and topics in which social scientists have expanded environmental health understandings at multiple levels, to examine how transdisciplinary environmental health research fosters better science, and to learn how these partnerships have been able to flourish because of the support from National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). We analyzed various types of social science research to investigate how social science contributes to environmental health. We also examined NIEHS programs that foster social science. In addition, we developed a case study of a community-based participation research project in Akwesasne in order to demonstrate how social science has enhanced environmental health science. Social science has informed environmental health science through ethnographic studies of contaminated communities, analysis of spatial distribution of environmental injustice, psychological experience of contamination, social construction of risk and risk perception, and social impacts of disasters. Social science-environmental health team science has altered the way scientists traditionally explore exposure by pressing for cumulative exposure approaches and providing research data for policy applications. A transdisciplinary approach for environmental health practice has emerged that engages the social sciences to paint a full picture of the consequences of contamination so that policy makers, regulators, public health officials, and other stakeholders can better ameliorate impacts and prevent future exposure. Hoover E, Renauld M, Edelstein MR, Brown P. 2015. Social science collaboration with environmental health. Environ Health

Scientists Interacting With University Science Educators

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Spector, B. S.

2004-12-01

Scientists with limited time to devote to educating the public about their work will get the greatest multiplier effect for their investment of time by successfully interacting with university science educators. These university professors are the smallest and least publicized group of professionals in the chain of people working to create science literate citizens. They connect to all aspects of formal and informal education, influencing everything from what and how youngsters and adults learn science to legislative rulings. They commonly teach methods of teaching science to undergraduates aspiring to teach in K-12 settings and experienced teachers. They serve as agents for change to improve science education inside schools and at the state level K-16, including what science content courses are acceptable for teacher licensure. University science educators are most often housed in a College of Education or Department of Education. Significant differences in culture exist in the world in which marine scientists function and that in which university science educators function, even when they are in the same university. Subsequently, communication and building relationships between the groups is often difficult. Barriers stem from not understanding each other's roles and responsibilities; and different reward systems, assumptions about teaching and learning, use of language, approaches to research, etc. This presentation will provide suggestions to mitigate the barriers and enable scientists to leverage the multiplier effect saving much time and energy while ensuring the authenticity of their message is maintained. Likelihood that a scientist's message will retain its authenticity stems from criteria for a university science education position. These professors have undergraduate degrees in a natural science (e.g., biology, chemistry, physics, geology), and usually a master's degree in one of the sciences, a combination of natural sciences, or a master's including

Communicating science in social settings.

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Scheufele, Dietram A

2013-08-20

This essay examines the societal dynamics surrounding modern science. It first discusses a number of challenges facing any effort to communicate science in social environments: lay publics with varying levels of preparedness for fully understanding new scientific breakthroughs; the deterioration of traditional media infrastructures; and an increasingly complex set of emerging technologies that are surrounded by a host of ethical, legal, and social considerations. Based on this overview, I discuss four areas in which empirical social science helps clarify intuitive but sometimes faulty assumptions about the social-level mechanisms of science communication and outline an agenda for bench and social scientists--driven by current social-scientific research in the field of science communication--to guide more effective communication efforts at the societal level in the future.

Abandoning evolution. The forgotten history of antievolution activism and the transformation of American social science.

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Lienesch, Michael

2012-12-01

From its inception, antievolution activism has been aimed not only at the natural sciences but also, and almost as often, at the social sciences. Although almost entirely overlooked by scholars, this activism played a significant part in the development of American social science in the early twentieth century. Analyzing public writings and private papers of antievolution activists, academic social scientists, and university officials from the 1920s, this essay recalls this forgotten history, showing how antievolution activism contributed to the abandonment of evolutionary theory and the adoption of a set of secular, scientific, and professional characteristics that have come to define much of modern social science.

Social Networking Tools for Informal Scholarly Communication Prove Popular for Academics at Two Universities

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Aoife Lawton

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Objective – To investigate the adoption, use, perceived impact of, and barriers to using social networking tools for scholarly communication at two universities. Design – Cross-institutional quantitative study using an online survey. Setting – Academics working in the disciplines of the humanities and social sciences at two universities: one in Europe and one in the Middle East. Methods – An online survey was devised based on a previous survey (Al-Aufi, 2007 and informed by relevant research. The survey was piloted by 10 academics at the 2 participating universities. Post pilot it was revised and then circulated to all academics from similar faculties at two universities. Three follow up emails were sent to both sets of academics. The data was analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS software. Descriptive and inferential statistics were analyzed using ANOVA tests. Main Results – The survey achieved a 34% response rate (n=130. The majority of participants were from the university based in the Middle East and were male (70.8%. Most of the responses were from academics under 40 years of age. The use of notebooks was prevalent at both universities. “Notebooks” is used as a term to describe laptops, netbooks, or ultra-book computers. The majority reported use of social networking tools for informal scholarly communication (70.1%, valuing this type of use. 29.9% of respondents reported they do not use social networking tools for this purpose. Barriers were identified as lack of incentive, digital literacy, training, and concerns over Internet security. Among the non-users, barriers included low interest in their use and a perceived lack of relevancy of such tools for scholarly communication. The types of tools used the most were those with social connection functions, such as Facebook and Twitter. The tools used the least were social bookmarking tools. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA test indicated that

Communicating science in social settings

Science.gov (United States)

Scheufele, Dietram A.

2013-01-01

This essay examines the societal dynamics surrounding modern science. It first discusses a number of challenges facing any effort to communicate science in social environments: lay publics with varying levels of preparedness for fully understanding new scientific breakthroughs; the deterioration of traditional media infrastructures; and an increasingly complex set of emerging technologies that are surrounded by a host of ethical, legal, and social considerations. Based on this overview, I discuss four areas in which empirical social science helps clarify intuitive but sometimes faulty assumptions about the social-level mechanisms of science communication and outline an agenda for bench and social scientists—driven by current social-scientific research in the field of science communication—to guide more effective communication efforts at the societal level in the future. PMID:23940341

The effective factors on library anxiety of students in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and Shiraz University of Medical Sciences.

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Ashrafi-Rizi, Hasan; Sajad, Maryam Sadat; Rahmani, Sedigheh; Bahrami, Susan; Papi, Ahmad

2014-01-01

The efficient use of libraries can be an important factor in determining the educational quality of Universities. Therefore, investigation and identification of factors affecting library anxiety becomes increasingly necessary. The purpose of this research is to determine the factors effecting library anxiety of students in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. This was an applied survey research using Bostick's Library Anxiety questionnaire as data gathering tool. The statistical population consisted of all students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (15011 students) with the sample size of 375 using stratified random sampling. The validity of data gathering tool was confirmed by experts in the library and information science and its reliability was determined by Cronbach's alpha (r = 0.92). Descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (t-test and ANOVA) were used for data analysis using SPSS 18 software. Findings showed that the mean of library anxiety score was 2.68 and 2.66 for students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and Shiraz University of Medical Sciences respectively which is above average (2.5). Furthermore, age and gender had no meaningful effect on the library anxiety of students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, but gender had a meaningful effect on library anxiety of students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences while age had no such effect. The results showed that the mean of factors effecting library anxiety in students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences and students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences is higher than average and therefore not satisfactory and only factors relating to feeling comfortable in the library is lower than average and somewhat satisfactory.

Senator Fred Harris's National Social Science Foundation proposal: Reconsidering federal science policy, natural science-social science relations, and American liberalism during the 1960s.

Science.gov (United States)

Solovey, Mark

2012-03-01

During the 1960s, a growing contingent of left-leaning voices claimed that the social sciences suffered mistreatment and undue constraints within the natural science-dominated federal science establishment. According to these critics, the entrenched scientific pecking order in Washington had an unreasonable commitment to the unity of the sciences, which reinforced unacceptable inequalities between the social and the natural sciences. The most important political figure who advanced this critique, together with a substantial legislative proposal for reform, was the Oklahoma Democratic Senator Fred Harris. Yet histories of science and social science have told us surprisingly little about Harris. Moreover, existing accounts of his effort to create a National Social Science Foundation have misunderstood crucial features of this story. This essay argues that Harris's NSSF proposal developed into a robust, historically unique, and increasingly critical liberal challenge to the post-World War II federal science establishment's treatment of the social sciences as "second-class citizens."

Social Dynamics of Science

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Sun, Xiaoling; Kaur, Jasleen; Milojević, Staša; Flammini, Alessandro; Menczer, Filippo

2013-01-01

The birth and decline of disciplines are critical to science and society. How do scientific disciplines emerge? No quantitative model to date allows us to validate competing theories on the different roles of endogenous processes, such as social collaborations, and exogenous events, such as scientific discoveries. Here we propose an agent-based model in which the evolution of disciplines is guided mainly by social interactions among agents representing scientists. Disciplines emerge from splitting and merging of social communities in a collaboration network. We find that this social model can account for a number of stylized facts about the relationships between disciplines, scholars, and publications. These results provide strong quantitative support for the key role of social interactions in shaping the dynamics of science. While several ``science of science'' theories exist, this is the first account for the emergence of disciplines that is validated on the basis of empirical data.

Enacting the social relations of science

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nielsen, Kristian Hvidtfelt

2008-01-01

This article investigates the writings of Danish science journalist Børge Michelsen from 1939 to 1956. As part of the international social relations of science movement in the period, Michelsen transformed science journalism from mere reporting on issues pertaining to science into performing...... the social function of science journalism: advancing and enacting the social relations of science. Based on analyses of Michelsen's articles and other initiatives, this study suggests that the social function of science journalism practiced by Michelsen showed many new and conflicting aspects. From...... new links to reinforce mutual relations between scientists and policy-makers, between scientists and journalists, and between science and the public. Finally, in the concluding remarks, the contemporary significance of Michelsen's social function of science journalism is discussed....

[Marina de Vasconcellos and the social sciences in Rio de Janeiro: a study of the social circles].

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Ribeiro, Adelia Maria Miglievich

2008-06-01

An investigation of the career of one of the "founding mothers" of the social sciences in Rio de Janeiro, Marina de Vasconcellos, successor of Arthur Ramos, is one way of understanding how anthropology was established in Rio de Janeiro. Conflicts and alliances, continuities and discontinuities, lie behind the pioneering Brazilian Society of Anthropology and Ethnology and the Institute of Social Sciences, both at Faculdade Nacional de Filosofia. Marina de Vasconcellos' professional life bore the marks of the clash between different schools of thought regarding anthropology at a time when university courses were being introduced. As a professor, she was committed to educating new professionals, and in 1968, she was steadfast in the struggle for university autonomy. The study leads to a reflection upon the criteria for success in academia, countering the view that this depends entirely on the publication of books and articles.

Perceived social support among students of medical sciences.

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Zamani-Alavijeh, Freshteh; Dehkordi, Fatemeh Raeesi; Shahry, Parvin

2017-06-01

Social support is emotional and instrumental assistance from family, friends or neighbors, and has an important but different impact on individuals, mainly depending on contextual factors. To determine the status of perceived social support and related personal and family characteristics of medical sciences students in Ahvaz, Iran. In this cross-sectional study, the target population included the students of Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences in the second semester of 2013-2014, of whom 763 were selected by cluster random sampling method. The study tool was a two-part questionnaire containing 48 self-administered questions including 25 questions of measurements of personal and family characteristics and a Persian modified version of Vaux's social support scale (Cronbach's α=0.745). Data were analyzed with T test, ANOVA and chi-square and using SPSS version 16 and 0.05 was considered as the level of significance. The mean score of the perceived social support was 17.06±3.6 and 60.3% of them reported low social support. There was a significant relationship among the perceived social support and sex (p=0.02), faculty (psocial support and importance of social support in reducing stress and academic failure, the planners need to provide efficient supportive interventions for students.

Handbook of Research on Science Education and University Outreach as a Tool for Regional Development

Science.gov (United States)

Narasimharao, B. Pandu, Ed.; Wright, Elizabeth, Ed.; Prasad, Shashidhara, Ed.; Joshi, Meghana, Ed.

2017-01-01

Higher education institutions play a vital role in their surrounding communities. Besides providing a space for enhanced learning opportunities, universities can utilize their resources for social and economic interests. The "Handbook of Research on Science Education and University Outreach as a Tool for Regional Development" is a…

Social Work and Science

Science.gov (United States)

Gehlert, Sarah

2016-01-01

Interest has grown in the past few years about the place of social work in science. Questions remain, such as whether social work should be considered a science, and if so, where it fits into the constellation of sciences. This article attempts to shed light on these questions. After briefly considering past and present constructions of science…

A Forgotten Social Science?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Martin-Nielsen, Janet

2011-01-01

The post–World War II era was one of great triumph for American linguists—and yet linguistics is all but absent from the historical literature on postwar social science. This paper aims to illuminate this curious situation: to understand its provenance, evaluate its merits, and contextualize...... of linguistics has led to a parallel isolation in the historical literature. Ultimately, this paper poses a pivotal and timely question: How is the postwar social science space construed within the existing historiographic framework, and how should it be construed in order to maximize understanding? I propose...... it broadly. I argue that the historiographic lacuna results from two factors: (1) the opt-out of linguists from the wider American social science community, and (2) historical-developmental and -orientational factors that stand linguistics apart from the social science mainstream. The resultant isolation...

Perceptions of Pre-Service Social Sciences Teachers Regarding the Concept of "Geography" by Mind Mapping Technique

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Ozturk Demirbas, Cagri

2013-01-01

The objective of this study is to present the perceptions of preservice social sciences teachers regarding the concept of geography. In the study, the study group consists of 46 preservice social sciences teachers, who receive education at Ahi Evran University. The data were collected in December, 2010. Mind maps were used as data collection tools…

Social University Challenge: Constructing Pragmatic Graduate Competencies for Social Networking

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Vladlena; Morgan, Stephanie

2016-01-01

With the strong acceptance of social technologies by student users, the academic applications have swiftly followed, bringing a social dimension into every area of university life. However, there have been concerns raised about the impact of social media on students. Some Universities have started including social media skills training in the…

Behavioural sciences at university of health sciences: the way forward

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, J.S.; Mukhtar, O.; Tabasum, S.

2016-01-01

Background: The association of medical ethics with teaching and training and health profession has been informal, largely dependent on role modelling and the social contract of the physicians with the community that they abide by. This study was conducted to examine the effect, if any, of introducing the subject of Behavioural Sciences on students performance in the clinical years viva voce and patient interactions components of the examinations. Methods: A prospective study on four cohorts of students at UHS from 2007 to 2012 (8,155 candidates). Reliability was calculated through Cronbach Alpha. Linear Regression Analysis was applied to determine the relationship between the scores of Basic Medical Sciences, Behavioural Sciences and Forensic medicine with the viva voce and Structured Stations marks of the Clinical Sciences in OSCE. Gender and demographics analysis was also done. Results: Cronbach Alpha was 0.47, 0.63, 0.67 and 0.53 for the Papers of Behavioural Sciences from 2007 to 2010 respectively. Poor predictive value of Behavioural Sciences for performance in the clinical years viva voce and OSCE was identified. Basic Medical Sciences and Forensic Medicine were statistically significant predictors for the performance of female candidates in all four cohorts of the study (p<0.05). In Central Punjab, Behavioural Sciences statistically significantly predicted for better performance in all four cohorts of the study (p<0.05). Conclusion: It is premature to understand the results of Behavioural Sciences teaching at University of Health Sciences (UHS). We can still safely conclude that it can only have a positive sustained effect on the healthcare delivery systems and patient care in Pakistan if it is integrated within each subject and taught and learned not as a theoretical construct but rather an evaluation of one values within the code of conduct of medical professionalism in the larger context of the societal and cultural norms. (author)

Extended Technology Acceptance Model for SPSS Acceptance among Slovenian Students of Social Sciences

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Brezavšček Alenka

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Background and Purpose - IBM SPSS Statistics is among the most widely used programs for statistical analysis in social sciences. Due to many practical values it is frequently used as a tool for teaching statistical concepts in many social science university programs. In our opinion, motivation to learn and to use SPSS during the studying process plays a significant role in building a positive attitude towards SPSS which influences its usage at the professional level after finishing study.

Imaginative methodologies in the social sciences

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Imaginative Methodologies develops, expands and challenges conventional social scientific methodology and language by way of literary, poetic and other alternative sources of inspiration. Sociologists, social workers, anthropologists, criminologists and psychologists all try to rethink, provoke...... and reignite social scientific methodology. Imaginative Methodologies challenges the mainstream social science methodological orthodoxy closely guarding the boundaries between the social sciences and the arts and humanities, pointing out that authors and artists are often engaged in projects parallel to those...... of the social sciences and vice versa, and that artistic and cultural productions today do not constitute a specialist field, but are integral to our social reality. The book will be of interest to scholars and students in the social sciences and across the arts and humanities working with questions...

Bioethics of Universal Knowledge: How Space Science is Transforming Global Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Perkins, Kala

A new universal culture is championing the human race; never before has immersion in the cosmological environment been so clearly presented nor invited as revolutionary a sense of participatory identity to the human race. We are delving into the awareness of a complex relatedness with the expanse of spatial architectures and life that astrophysics and cosmology are revealing. History is marked by waves of interest and inquiry into the possibilities of the existence of other worlds. Since the Renaissance, building of telescopes has been pursued in their quest; now Kepler and other space missions are leading us into direct apprehension of these worlds, scattered across the cosmological landscape. This affords a unique repertoire of dimensionalities in which to re-construe our global cultural evolution and identity. Spatial education, with related social science and humanities, are facilitating the actualization of a universal culture, redefining the collective global heritage, with infinity as our home. The potential significance of space sciences to the human cognitive environment is yet to be fully ascertained. We now understand that the entire history of the universe informs each and every particle and spin of the fabric of existence. The implications of this knowledge have the power to facilitate our overcoming many social diseases such as racism, nationalism and the ideological delusions that tolerate such activities as warfare. Space sciences may help to purge the human cognitive atmosphere of those ills and ignorance that sap global resources, challenging global sustainability, from the economic to the psychosocial. Were the full implications of our united origins and destiny as a cosmic organism to be applied to how we live as a species on the Earth, there would be adequate funds for all manner of science and education such as to transform the global human and ecological landscape in ways as yet only dreamt or fictionalized. The bioethics of universal

Science under pressure: problematic behaviours and social harms

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Rita Faria

2014-09-01

Full Text Available This paper will suggest the use of the Social Harm Approach (Hillyard, Pantazis, Tobs & Gordon, 2004 to problematic behaviours occurring in scientific research and higher education teaching. By analyzing data collected through interviews to scholars, it is possible to state that fabrication, falsification and plagiarism are the most criticized deviant behaviours in science. It is less common for actors to consider other problematic behaviours arising from the pressure (to publish, to get grants felt by them and originated at the heart of the organizations devoted to science. Or problematic behaviours created on the intersection of universities, corporations and/or the state (ex. commissioned research. Also, those interviewed did not have a coherent view on the rules governing science and higher education. Thus, considering the scattering of (individual and organizational problematic behaviours and rules governing them, a new approach will be put forward, one by which processes of scientific production and dissemination must be considered according to the social harms (financial, economic, physical they may cause.

Social science in a stem cell laboratory: what happened when social and life sciences met.

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Stacey, Glyn; Stephens, Neil

2012-01-01

We describe the experience of conducting intensive social science research at the UK Stem Cell Bank from the viewpoint of both the person conducting the social science research and the Director of the Bank. We detail the initial misunderstandings and concerns held by both and the problems these caused. Then we describe how the relationship developed as the project progressed and shared benefits became apparent. Finally, while acknowledging potential areas of tension between the life and social sciences, we suggest further interaction between the disciplines would prove beneficial for both and speculate as to how this may be achieved. In the discussion we identify a set of learning points from our experience and definitions of social science terminology that may help to inform future engagements between life and social scientists.

Performative Social Science and Psychology

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Mary Gergen

2010-11-01

Full Text Available This article presents an overview of "Performative Social Science," which is defined as the deployment of different forms of artistic performance in the execution of a scientific project. Such forms may include art, theater, poetry, music, dance, photography, fiction writing, and multi-media applications. Performative research practices are in their developmental stage, with most of the major work appearing in the last two decades. Frequently based on a social constructionist metatheory, supporters reject a realist, or mapping view of representation, and explore varieties of expressive forms for constructing worlds relevant to the social sciences. The performative orientation often relies on a dramaturgical approach that encompasses value-laden, emotionally charged topics and presentations. Social scientists invested in social justice issues and political perspectives have been especially drawn to this approach. Performative social science invites productive collaborations among various disciplinary fields and between the sciences and arts. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs1101119

University-Community Engagement: Case Study of University Social Responsibility

Science.gov (United States)

Chile, Love M.; Black, Xavier M.

2015-01-01

Corporatisation of universities has drawn parallels between contemporary universities and business corporations, and extended analysis of corporate social responsibility to universities. This article reports on a case study of university-community engagement with schools and school communities through youth engagement programmes to enhance…

Research methods from social science can contribute much to the health sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Wensing, Michel

2008-06-01

Research methods from social science, such as social network analysis, random coefficient modeling, and advanced measurement techniques, can contribute much to the health sciences. There is, however, a slow rate of transmission of social science methodology into the health sciences. This paper identifies some of the barriers for adoption and proposes ideas for the future. Commentary. Contributions of social science to the health sciences are not always recognized as such. It may help if the professional profile of social science in the health sciences would be higher and if its focus would be more on making useful predictions. Clinical epidemiologists may assume that their discipline includes all relevant methods and that social science is largely based on qualitative research. These perceptions need to be challenged in order to widen the scope of clinical epidemiology and include relevant methods from other sciences. New methods help to ask new research questions and to provide better to old questions. This paper has sketched challenges for both social science researchers and clinical epidemiologists.

Response: Social Work, Science, Social Impact--Crafting an Integrative Conversation

Science.gov (United States)

Nurius, Paula S.; Kemp, Susan P.

2012-01-01

Shifts in the ways that science is being undertaken and marshaled toward social change argue for a new kind of professional competence. Taking the view that the science of social work is centrally about the relationship of research to social impact, the authors extend Fong's focus on transdisciplinary and translational approaches to science,…

Factors Affecting Academic Dishonesty in the Space of Social Science Education (A Case Study of Public Universities in Tehran

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Masoumeh Qarakhani

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Academic Dishonesty is one of the important issues in the higher education system of Iran, and reducing or preventing it requires identifying the factors which have an impact on it. The present study has analyzed the perceptions and understandings of PhD students in social science fields, who have a wider experience of scientific socialization in the process of education, with the aim of identifying the factors influencing academic dishonesty in the space of social science in Iran. The findings of this research show that the factors influencing academic dishonesty in the space of social science education can be detected at two individual and structural levels. At the structural level, sources and rules, and at the individual level, academic dishonesty among three groups of actors in educational space, i.e. professors, students and managers (heads of departments and faculties, with reference to their individual and personality characteristics, have paved the way for academic dishonesty, or have resulted in its occurrence. In the framework of a combination of actor/structure in explaining social phenomena, the factors influencing academic dishonesty and non-conformity to the norms of the ethics of science in the educational space can be reduced neither to the role of the structure nor that of the actor. Dishonesty in the ethics of science in social science education and the factors affecting them can be explained in the light of a combination of structure and actor.

The Dissemination of Science and Science Journalism in Brazilian Universities: Analyzing Strategies that Facilitate Access to Science & Technology

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Giuliana Batista Rodrigues de Queiroz

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This article is a mapping of Brazilian universities that maintain a structured work for Science Journalism and / or the dissemination of science. It analyses the strategies used by the top 50 Brazilian universities for including dissemination of science in their communication activities. In order to do this each institution’s website was examined for the purpose of collecting a large sample size of universities that organize and prioritize the dissemination of science and science journalism, and make their studies and projects available to the public. The dissemination of science is a priority for only 15 universities; ones that have structured science journalism programs. 11 of these universities are among the top 25 in the country which indicates that there is a direct relationship between academic quality and dissemination of science. Thus, this study lends to a deeper understanding of the field of science journalism.

The joy of stats a short guide to introductory statistics in the social sciences

CERN Document Server

Garner, Roberta

2010-01-01

"This is a great book for social science students. Clearly written, with many examples, Garner certainly makes learning and teaching introductory statistics a joy!" - Nikolaos Liodakis, Wilfrid Laurier University.

The Graduate School of Climate Sciences, University of Bern

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, L.

2012-04-01

The Graduate School of Climate Sciences, University of Bern, offers a specialised M.Sc. and a Ph.D. study programme in climate sciences. The graduate school has a highly interdisciplinary profile involving not only natural sciences, but also humanities/history, economics and law. The ten participating institutes with a total of 45 academics provide expertise in long-term climate variability, climate modelling, climate reconstruction, predictability of the future climate and extreme events, the impact of climate change on ecosystems and climate risks for society and economy. The graduate school is fully compliant with the Bologna Accords and collaborates closely with the sister institution C2SM at ETH Zurich by, e.g., jointly organised lectures. There are currently 23 master and 37 doctoral students in the programme. These originate from the University of Bern (28 %), from other Swiss universities (30 %) and from foreign universities (42 %). Comprehensive information about the Graduate School of Climate Sciences is available at http://www.climatestudies.unibe.ch . The M.Sc. in Climate Sciences programme (120 ECTS credits) is designed to attract students from all disciplines in natural sciences and offers them a tailor-made curriculum to reach their career aspirations. The students make their own course selection according to their profile envisaged (specialised versus broad education) and ideally already guided by a job perspective. Selecting the courses and the topic of the master thesis they specialise in one of five fields: climate and earth system science; atmospheric science; economics; economic, social and environmental history; statistics. Several courses are organised jointly with public authorities and the private industry, e.g. from experts working in the insurance business, in weather forecasting or in environmental pollution control. This provides the students hands-on experience and contacts to future employers. The master thesis (60 ECTS) involves the

SOCIAL SCIENCE CONTRIBUTIONS TO DISCUSSIONS AFFECT THE SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

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Renato Santiago Quintal

2015-04-01

Full Text Available In its origins, the social sciences have focused on technological issues. Social scientists have devoted much attention to the subject affects the action of technological progress on the conformation of human life in General, as well as keeping an eye on more concreteness about the aspects related to the way the technique is acquired, the ways employed to protect her and the tools used to Exchange and protection. In this context, the article aims to identify the contributions of social sciences-notably of the applied social sciences-to discussions involving science, technology and innovation. The survey used the inductive method, applied to the literature review. The findings point to multidisciplinarity of significant thematic affects to science, technology and innovation. Keywords: Scientific knowledge; Social Sciences; Technology and society.

Supporting new science teachers in pursuing socially just science education

Science.gov (United States)

Ruggirello, Rachel; Flohr, Linda

2017-10-01

This forum explores contradictions that arose within the partnership between Teach for America (TFA) and a university teacher education program. TFA is an alternate route teacher preparation program that places individuals into K-12 classrooms in low-income school districts after participating in an intense summer training program and provides them with ongoing support. This forum is a conversation about the challenges we faced as new science teachers in the TFA program and in the Peace Corps program. We both entered the teaching field with science degrees and very little formal education in science education. In these programs we worked in a community very different from the one we had experienced as students. These experiences allow us to address many of the issues that were discussed in the original paper, namely teaching in an unfamiliar community amid challenges that many teachers face in the first few years of teaching. We consider how these challenges may be amplified for teachers who come to teaching through an alternate route and may not have as much pedagogical training as a more traditional teacher education program provides. The forum expands on the ideas presented in the original paper to consider the importance of perspectives on socially just science education. There is often a disconnect between what is taught in teacher education programs and what teachers actually experience in urban classrooms and this can be amplified when the training received through alternate route provides a different framework as well. This forum urges universities and alternate route programs to continue to find ways to authentically partner using practical strategies that bring together the philosophies and goals of all stakeholders in order to better prepare teachers to partner with their students to achieve their science learning goals.

Go Ask Alice: Uncovering the Role of a University Partner in an Informal Science Curriculum Support Network

Science.gov (United States)

Baker-Doyle, Kira J.

2013-01-01

This article describes a study from the Linking Instructors Networks of Knowledge in Science Education project, which aims to examine the informal science curriculum support networks of teachers in a school-university curriculum reform partnership. We used social network analysis and qualitative methods to reveal characteristics of the informal…

Neoliberal Universities and the Education of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences in Bangladesh

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Anwaruddin, Rdar M.

2013-01-01

In this article, the author explores the neoliberal impacts on higher education in Bangladesh, how market-driven policies might limit the education of arts, humanities and social sciences, and whether or not this phenomenon may have consequences for the future of democracy in the country. First, the author focuses on the privatisation of higher…

Social and ethical dimensions of nanoscale science and engineering research.

Science.gov (United States)

Sweeney, Aldrin E

2006-07-01

Continuing advances in human ability to manipulate matter at the atomic and molecular levels (i.e. nanoscale science and engineering) offer many previously unimagined possibilities for scientific discovery and technological development. Paralleling these advances in the various science and engineering sub-disciplines is the increasing realization that a number of associated social, ethical, environmental, economic and legal dimensions also need to be explored. An important component of such exploration entails the identification and analysis of the ways in which current and prospective researchers in these fields conceptualize these dimensions of their work. Within the context of a National Science Foundation funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program in nanomaterials processing and characterization at the University of Central Florida (2002-2004), here I present for discussion (i) details of a "nanotechnology ethics" seminar series developed specifically for students participating in the program, and (ii) an analysis of students' and participating research faculty's perspectives concerning social and ethical issues associated with nanotechnology research. I conclude with a brief discussion of implications presented by these issues for general scientific literacy and public science education policy.

Contextualizing Social Science in Nepal

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Dev Raj Dahal

2008-10-01

Full Text Available Social science informs about the ideals and trains experts to deal with the complex social realities. It has a public purpose rooted in what we call dharma (professional and institutional responsibility as opposed to the arrogance of reason, self-will and self-rationalization intrinsic to contemporary rational choice and modernity. Learning has a synergy - establishing connection between the world of social science theories and the drama of social life. A lack of mutual learning between Nepal's traditional faith intellectuals and modern reason-based social scientists has created a big hiatus and contradiction. The academic life of social scientists in Nepal is completely outside of spiritual, moral and ethical influence experienced by ordinary public. The spiritual blindness of modern social scientists has thus opened multiple gaps between their worldview and those of the citizens on various frontiers--theoretical knowledge and practical experience, technical understanding and composite knowledge and secularity of social science and the vitality of the Hindu-Buddhist scriptures in the popular mind, culture, behavior and practices. This has reinforced a division between the system of knowledge of social scientists and the life-world of people. The proponents of new social movements in Nepal, such as women, Dalits, Janajatis, Madhesis, youths and marginalized population are seeking a structural shift in reason-based knowledge to both reason and feeling in social science knowledge discovery. This movement can open the "captive mind" to social learning of contextual knowledge, conduct research with the citizens, provide inputs to the policy makers and reverse their linear, structure-bound, rationalist and disciplinary thinking into the one that represents what the Nepal mandala, the Nepali space, is really like and how to improve it for the better. The renewal and indigenization of qualitative social science research is important to overcome the

128 THE SOCIAL SCIENCES AND THE SOCIALLY OPPRESSED IN ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ike Odimegwu

subject to a series of rigorous testing, self-scrutiny and the verification of facts as ... the social sciences cannot be subject to such tests and verification. The social sciences ... until such a time when that hypothesis or theory is scrutinized and.

University Science and Mathematics Education in Transition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skovsmose, Ole; Valero, Paola; Christensen, Ole Ravn

configuration poses to scientific knowledge, to universities and especially to education in mathematics and science. Traditionally, educational studies in mathematics and science education have looked at change in education from within the scientific disciplines and in the closed context of the classroom....... Although educational change is ultimately implemented in everyday teaching and learning situations, other parallel dimensions influencing these situations cannot be forgotten. An understanding of the actual potentialities and limitations of educational transformations are highly dependent on the network...... of educational, cultural, administrative and ideological views and practices that permeate and constitute science and mathematics education in universities today. University Science and Mathematics Education in Transition contributes to an understanding of the multiple aspects and dimensions of the transition...

The impact of science shops on university research and education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hende, Merete; Jørgensen, Michael Søgaard

This report discusses the impact from university-based science shops on curricula and research. Experience from science shops show that besides assisting citizen groups, science shops can also contribute to the development of university curricula and research. This impact has been investigated...... through the SCIPAS questionnaire sent out to science shops and through follow-up interviews with employees from nine different university-based science shops and one university researcher. Not all the cases call themselves science shops, but in the report the term 'science shop' will be used most...... way or the other has had impact on university curricula and/or research. The analysis and the case studies have theoretically been based on literature on universities and education and research as institutions and a few articles about the impact of science shops on education and research. The analysis...

Social science in the Cold War.

Science.gov (United States)

Engerman, David C

2010-06-01

This essay examines ways in which American social science in the late twentieth century was--and was not--a creature of the Cold War. It identifies important work by historians that calls into question the assumption that all social science during the Cold War amounts to "Cold War social science." These historians attribute significant agency to social scientists, showing how they were enmeshed in both long-running disciplinary discussions and new institutional environments. Key trends in this scholarship include a broadening historical perspective to see social scientists in the Cold War as responding to the ideas of their scholarly predecessors; identifying the institutional legacies of World War II; and examining in close detail the products of extramural--especially governmental--funding. The result is a view of social science in the Cold War in which national security concerns are relevant, but with varied and often unexpected impacts on intellectual life.

Spatial abilities, Earth science conceptual understanding, and psychological gender of university non-science majors

Science.gov (United States)

Black, Alice A. (Jill)

Research has shown the presence of many Earth science misconceptions and conceptual difficulties that may impede concept understanding, and has also identified a number of categories of spatial ability. Although spatial ability has been linked to high performance in science, some researchers believe it has been overlooked in traditional education. Evidence exists that spatial ability can be improved. This correlational study investigated the relationship among Earth science conceptual understanding, three types of spatial ability, and psychological gender, a self-classification that reflects socially-accepted personality and gender traits. A test of Earth science concept understanding, the Earth Science Concepts (ESC) test, was developed and field tested from 2001 to 2003 in 15 sections of university classes. Criterion validity was .60, significant at the .01 level. Spearman/Brown reliability was .74 and Kuder/Richardson reliability was .63. The Purdue Visualization of Rotations (PVOR) (mental rotation), the Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) (spatial perception), the Differential Aptitude Test: Space Relations (DAT) (spatial visualization), and the Bem Inventory (BI) (psychological gender) were administered to 97 non-major university students enrolled in undergraduate science classes. Spearman correlations revealed moderately significant correlations at the .01 level between ESC scores and each of the three spatial ability test scores. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that PVOR scores were the best predictor of ESC scores, and showed that spatial ability scores accounted for 27% of the total variation in ESC scores. Spatial test scores were moderately or weakly correlated with each other. No significant correlations were found among BI scores and other test scores. Scantron difficulty analysis of ESC items produced difficulty ratings ranging from 33.04 to 96.43, indicating the percentage of students who answered incorrectly. Mean score on the ESC was 34

Global Social Challenges: insights from the physical sciences and their relevance to the evolution of social science

CERN Multimedia

CERN. Geneva

2014-01-01

The complex challenges confronting humanity today point to the need for new thinking and new theory in the social sciences which overcomes the limitations of compartmentalized, sectoral concepts, strategies and policies and mechanistic approaches to living social systems. The World Academy of Art & Science is convening a consortium of leading institutions and thinkers from different sectors to contribute ideas for formulation of a cohesive framework capable of addressing global social challenges in their totality and complex interrelationships. The objective of my presentation will be to explore the potential for collaboration between the physical and social sciences to arrive at a more cohesive and effective framework by exploring a series of questions, including - - Is an integrated science of society possible that transcends disciplinary boundaries based on common underlying principles as we find in the natural sciences? - To what extent can principles of natural science serve as valid models and a...

The Science of Social Work and Its Relationship to Social Work Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Anastas, Jeane W.

2014-01-01

As John Brekke has observed, social work does not use the word "science" to define itself, suggesting a need to articulate a science of social work. This article discusses the science of social work and its relationship to social work practice in the United States, arguing that a "rapprochement" between practice and science…

Social Science Boot Camp: Development and Assessment of a Foundational Course on Academic Literacy in the Social Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Eaton, Judy; Long, Jennifer; Morris, David

2018-01-01

We developed a course, as part of our institution's core program, which provides students with a foundation in academic literacy in the social sciences: how to find, read, critically assess, and communicate about social science research. It is not a research methods course; rather, it is intended to introduce students to the social sciences and be…

The influences and experiences of African American undergraduate science majors at predominately White universities

Science.gov (United States)

Blockus, Linda Helen

The purpose of this study is to describe and explore some of the social and academic experiences of successful African American undergraduate science majors at predominately White universities with the expectation of conceptualizing emerging patterns for future study. The study surveyed 80 upperclass African Americans at 11 public research universities about their perceptions of the influences that affect their educational experiences and career interests in science. The mailed survey included the Persistence/ voluntary Dropout Decision Scale, the Cultural Congruity Scale and the University Environment Scale. A variety of potential influences were considered including family background, career goals, psychosocial development, academic and social connections with the university, faculty relationships, environmental fit, retention factors, validation, participation in mentored research projects and other experiences. The students' sources of influences, opportunities for connection, and cultural values were considered in the context of a research university environment and investigated for emerging themes and direction for future research. Results indicate that performance in coursework appears to be the most salient factor in African American students' experience as science majors. The mean college gpa was 3.01 for students in this study. Challenging content, time demands, study habits and concern with poor grades all serve to discourage students; however, for most of the students in this study, it has not dissuaded them from their educational and career plans. Positive course performance provided encouragement. Science faculty provide less influence than family members, and more students find faculty members discouraging than supportive. Measures of faculty relations were not associated with academic success. No evidence was provided to confirm the disadvantages of being female in a scientific discipline. Students were concerned with lack of minority role models

Vision of Management in the Management of University Social Responsibility

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Juan Carlos Pernía

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The administrative and managerial sciences generate spaces for research on the contribution of universities in the training of socially responsible professionals. The purpose of this essay is to generate a reflection on the management view of the University Social Responsibility (RSU. The methodical process used to collect the information is supported by the documentary review of some theoretical sketches related to the constructs of the RSU, such as care, management, use of goods and services in pursuit of the benefit of the common good of all the citizens; which should be oriented towards new managerial alternatives that are more efficient to adapt to the complex dynamics of society's growth. Hence, higher education organizations have the responsibility to take measures to protect the environment, in addition to contributing to the welfare of society, as a whole that must respond to organizational interests but also the sustainable development of the country. It was concluded that university social responsibility should focus on promoting a critical and reflective approach by academic managers to go beyond their training jobs, without disciplinary barriers that assume an unstructured attitude of complexity, creating new spaces of present management and future of the academic organization aimed at graduating professionals with relevant knowledge to the demands of contemporary society, people committed to improving the quality of collective life from a planetary view.

Perceptions of preparedness of LBS I teachers in the state of Illinois and graduates of Illinois State University's LBS I program to collaborate in teaching grade 7--12 math, science, and social science

Science.gov (United States)

Caldwell, Janet E.

The expectations for no child to be left behind are leading to increased emphasis on teaching math, science, and social science effectively to students with disabilities. This study utilized information collected from online surveys to examine how current LBS I teachers and individuals graduating from the Illinois State University teacher certification program in LBS I perceive their preparedness to teach these subjects. Participants provided information about coursework and life experiences, and they made suggestions about teacher preparation and professional development programs. Six key items forming the composite variable focused on level of preparation in (a) best practices, (b) selecting materials, (c) selecting objectives, (d) adapting instructional strategies, (e) planning lessons, and (f) and evaluating outcomes. Only 30 LBS I teachers of the 282 contacted by e-mail completed surveys. Of 115 graduates contacted, 71 participated in the original survey and 23 participated in a follow-up survey. Data were analyzed to learn more about the teachers' self-perceptions regarding preparedness to teach math, science, or social science. There was a correlation between perceived level of knowledge and the composite preparation variable for all subjects, but no correlation with length of teaching. Both groups indicated high school content courses were important in preparation to teach. Teachers also indicated collaboration and graduates indicated grade school learning. The most frequent recommendation for both teacher preparation and professional development was additional methods courses. A survey distributed to math, science, and social science teachers of Grades 7--12 asked about their perceptions of the preparedness of LBS I teachers to teach their area of content. Few surveys were completed for each subject so they were examined qualitatively. There was variability among participants, but generally the content area teachers rated themselves as more prepared than

Absenteeism among medical and health science undergraduate students at Hawassa University, Ethiopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Desalegn, Anteneh Assefa; Berhan, Asres; Berhan, Yifru

2014-04-14

Student absenteeism is a major concern for university education worldwide. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence and causes of absenteeism among undergraduate medical and health sciences students at Hawassa University. We conducted a cross-sectional study using a pretested self-administered structured questionnaire from May-June 2013. The primary outcome indicator was self-reported absenteeism from lectures in the semester preceding the study period. The study included all regular undergraduate students who were enrolled in the University for at least one semester. The data was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20. The association between class absenteeism and socio-demographic and behavioral correlates of absenteeism was determined by bivariate and multivariate analyses. Results were reported as crude odds ratios (COR), adjusted odds ratios (AOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). 1200 students consented and filled the questionnaire. Of these students, 43.7% had missed three or more lectures and 14.1% (95% CI = 12.2-16.2) missed more than 8 lectures in the preceding semester. There was a significant association between missing more than 8 lectures and age of students, chosen discipline (medicine), and social drug use. The main reasons reported for missing lectures were preparing for another examination, lack of interest, lecturer's teaching style, and availability of lecture material. At Hawassa University College of Medicine and Health Science student habits and teacher performance play a role in absenteeism from lectures. A university culture that promotes discipline and integrity especially among medical and older students discourages social drug use will likely improve motivation and attendance. Training in teaching methodologies to improve the quality and delivery of lectures should also help increase attendance.

Social movements and science

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jamison, Andrew

2006-01-01

The article examines the role of social movements in the development of scientific knowledge. Interactions between social movements and science in broad, historical terms are discussed. The relations between the new social movements of the 1960s and 1970s and changes in the contemporary scientific...

Scientific production of medical sciences universities in north of iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Siamian, Hasan; Firooz, Mousa Yamin; Vahedi, Mohammad; Aligolbandi, Kobra

2013-01-01

NONE DECLARED. The study of the scientific evidence citation production by famous databases of the world is one of the important indicators to evaluate and rank the universities. The study at investigating the scientific production of Northern Iran Medical Sciences Universities in Scopus from 2005 through 2010. This survey used scientometrics technique. The samples under studies were the scientific products of four northern Iran Medical universities. Viewpoints quantity of the Scientific Products Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences stands first and of Babol University of Medical Sciences ranks the end, but from the viewpoints of quality of scientific products of considering the H-Index and the number of cited papers the Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences is a head from the other universities under study. From the viewpoints of subject of the papers, the highest scientific products belonged to the faculty of Pharmacy affiliated to Mazandaran University of Medial Sciences, but the three other universities for the genetics and biochemistry. Results showed that the Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences as compared to the other understudies universities ranks higher for the number of articles, cited articles, number of hard work authors and H-Index of Scopus database from 2005 through 2010.

Science, Technology and University in the XIXth Century. The Free-Faculty of Sciences of the University of Salamanca (1875-1902

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Joaquín PÉREZ MELERO

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The Free-Faculty of Sciences of the University of Salamanca was established in 1875 as the only way to continue Science studies in the University. Poorly financed, with little resources and academic acceptance, it survives helped by financial support from the City Hall and the Provincial Deputation, and to the Rector Esperabé5 s will, against the High Education centralization trend which concentres the studies at the Central University of Madrid. That economic and technical poverty provides just only an approach to the physico-chemical sciences in the framework of a provincial University, but helps it to stay alive until its recongnition as «official» faculty in 1902.

Social science. Publication bias in the social sciences: unlocking the file drawer.

Science.gov (United States)

Franco, Annie; Malhotra, Neil; Simonovits, Gabor

2014-09-19

We studied publication bias in the social sciences by analyzing a known population of conducted studies--221 in total--in which there is a full accounting of what is published and unpublished. We leveraged Time-sharing Experiments in the Social Sciences (TESS), a National Science Foundation-sponsored program in which researchers propose survey-based experiments to be run on representative samples of American adults. Because TESS proposals undergo rigorous peer review, the studies in the sample all exceed a substantial quality threshold. Strong results are 40 percentage points more likely to be published than are null results and 60 percentage points more likely to be written up. We provide direct evidence of publication bias and identify the stage of research production at which publication bias occurs: Authors do not write up and submit null findings. Copyright © 2014, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

International Conference on Data Science & Social Research

CERN Document Server

Amaturo, Enrica; Grassia, Maria; Aragona, Biagio; Marino, Marina

2017-01-01

This edited volume lays the groundwork for Social Data Science, addressing epistemological issues, methods, technologies, software and applications of data science in the social sciences. It presents data science techniques for the collection, analysis and use of both online and offline new (big) data in social research and related applications. Among others, the individual contributions cover topics like social media, learning analytics, clustering, statistical literacy, recurrence analysis and network analysis. Data science is a multidisciplinary approach based mainly on the methods of statistics and computer science, and its aim is to develop appropriate methodologies for forecasting and decision-making in response to an increasingly complex reality often characterized by large amounts of data (big data) of various types (numeric, ordinal and nominal variables, symbolic data, texts, images, data streams, multi-way data, social networks etc.) and from diverse sources. This book presents selected papers from...

Determining Knowledge of Students in Tehran University and Tehran University of Medical Sciences About ECSTASY Tablets

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G. Khoshe Mehri

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Objective: Nowadays, addiction is considered one of the greatest social and economical and health problems. Undoubtedly, The Ecstasy have between some juveniles and youths. This study was performed to understand the knowledge about the Ecstasy tablets. Methods: In this descriptive-analytical study 200 students from Tehran universities and universities of medical sciences. Data collecting tool was a structured questionnaire containing 14 questions. Data was analyzed using chi square. Results: It was revealed that only 44 students had high, 55 student had moderate and 101 students had weak knowledge about Ecstasy. There was no significant relationship between knowledge score and variable such as gender, place of residence. Also, there was a significant correlations between age, marriage position , occupation and college about the Ecstasy . Conclusion: That in order to increase the knowledge leveling the students about Ecstasy, mass medias like television, newspapers, radio and university sittings.

Editorial: Challenges of Social Science Literacy

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Birgit Weber

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Since international tests compare the performance of students in different subjects, the issue of literacy in the social science subject is becoming more pressing. The successes and failures in international tests influence the national education policies considerably. First, the inclusion of subjects in international comparisons has consequences for their importance. Second, the race in the Olympics of education leads to an increasing focus on the output of educational processes, also measured in the central exams. Social Sciences can refuse to take part in the national comparison studies with the price of losing much more importance; they can participate with the danger of undermining their goals. This raises a lot of questions: What competences students need in this social world to reason about it und to act responsibly? What is the foundation of concepts from social science students need for guidance and understanding their place and role as an individual in society? The social science disciplines, as sociology, political science and economics in a narrow sense, history, law and geography in a broader sense, supported by philosophy, pedagogy and psychology are able to select them for educational purposes or determine such educational aims. This Journal wants to resume und discuss competences and core con¬cepts for political and economic teaching and learning as Social Science Literacy”. Contributions in this issue do not only discuss and recommend competences and core concepts from a domain specific political or economic point of view, but also from an interdisciplinary or psychological point of view. They analyse preconditions and interdependencies as well as obstacles und problems of development and diagnosis core concepts and competences of Social Science Literacy.

Social Relations of Science and Technology: perceptions of teachers of technical training, PARFOR course participants

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Manuella Candéo

2014-12-01

Full Text Available We present in this paper a study on the perceptions of teachers of technical training, course participants (PARFOR National Plan for Training Teachers of Basic Education , offered by the Federal Technological University of Paraná, Campus Ponta Grossa (PG - UTFPR on the social relations of science and technology. The study conducted with 15 teachers from various disciplines. The methodological approach was quantitative research , the instrument of data collection was based questionnaire with open questions . The main results show that the vast majority of teachers had a very narrow view about science and technology , consider that the scientific and technological development always bring benefits to its own population of traditional / classic , positivist view. The need to promote reflection on social issues of science and technology in education technology in order to train professionals aware of their responsibilities as citizens in a highly technological age was observed. It is emphasized that these are recorded in the master's thesis entitled Scientific and Technological Literacy (ACT by Focus Science, Technology and Society (STS from commercial films of the University Program Graduate School of Science and Technology Tecnológica Federal do Paraná ( UTFPR Campus Ponta Grossa, Brazil.

The Relationship of Social Problem-Solving Skills and Dysfunctional Attitudes with Risk of Drug Abuse among Dormitory Students at Isfahan University of Medical Sciences.

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Nasrazadani, Ehteram; Maghsoudi, Jahangir; Mahrabi, Tayebeh

2017-01-01

Dormitory students encounter multiple social factors which cause pressure, such as new social relationships, fear of the future, and separation from family, which could cause serious problems such as tendency toward drug abuse. This research was conducted with the goal to determine social problem-solving skills, dysfunctional attitudes, and risk of drug abuse among dormitory students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. This was a descriptive-analytical, correlational, and cross-sectional research. The research sample consisted of 211 students living in dormitories. The participants were selected using randomized quota sampling method. The data collection tools included the Social Problem-Solving Inventory (SPSI), Dysfunctional Attitude Scale (DAS), and Identifying People at Risk of Addiction Questionnaire. The results indicated an inverse relationship between social problem-solving skills and risk of drug abuse ( P = 0.0002), a direct relationship between dysfunctional attitude and risk of drug abuse ( P = 0.030), and an inverse relationship between social problem-solving skills and dysfunctional attitude among students ( P = 0.0004). Social problem-solving skills have a correlation with dysfunctional attitudes. As a result, teaching these skills and the way to create efficient attitudes should be considered in dormitory students.

Demonstrating the facticity of facts: university lectures and chemistry as a science in Germany around 1800.

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Frercks, Jan

2010-03-01

In this article, I argue that chemical lectures at universities played a crucial role in the establishment of chemistry as a well-defined science in Germany around 1800. In particular, lecture demonstrations served to secure the facticity of facts. This was important, because the concept of the chemical fact was at the centre of the prevailing epistemology, which itself partly reflected the social order of chemistry as a science in Germany, and partly served to foster it. In the dialectic constellation of research and teaching, professor-chemists took the lead in the social and epistemological definition of chemistry.

Complementary social science? Quali-quantitative experiments in a Big Data world

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Anders Blok

2014-08-01

Full Text Available The rise of Big Data in the social realm poses significant questions at the intersection of science, technology, and society, including in terms of how new large-scale social databases are currently changing the methods, epistemologies, and politics of social science. In this commentary, we address such epochal (“large-scale” questions by way of a (situated experiment: at the Danish Technical University in Copenhagen, an interdisciplinary group of computer scientists, physicists, economists, sociologists, and anthropologists (including the authors is setting up a large-scale data infrastructure, meant to continually record the digital traces of social relations among an entire freshman class of students ( N  > 1000. At the same time, fieldwork is carried out on friendship (and other relations amongst the same group of students. On this basis, the question we pose is the following: what kind of knowledge is obtained on this social micro-cosmos via the Big (computational, quantitative and Small (embodied, qualitative Data, respectively? How do the two relate? Invoking Bohr’s principle of complementarity as analogy, we hypothesize that social relations, as objects of knowledge, depend crucially on the type of measurement device deployed. At the same time, however, we also expect new interferences and polyphonies to arise at the intersection of Big and Small Data, provided that these are, so to speak, mixed with care. These questions, we stress, are important not only for the future of social science methods but also for the type of societal (self-knowledge that may be expected from new large-scale social databases.

The Relationship between Academic Procrastination Behaviors of Preservice Science Teachers and Their Attitudes toward Social Media

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Aslan Efe, Hülya; Efe, Rifat

2018-01-01

In this study, the relationship between study preservice science teachers' academic procrastination and their attitudes toward social media was investigated. The study was carried out with the participation of 511 preservice science teachers (F: 346, M:165) on teacher education course at Dicle University during 2014-2015 academic year. The date…

Constructing "Authentic" Science: Results from a University/High School Collaboration Integrating Digital Storytelling and Social Networking

Science.gov (United States)

Olitsky, Stacy; Becker, Elizabeth A.; Jayo, Ignacio; Vinogradov, Philip; Montcalmo, Joseph

2018-02-01

This study explores the implications of a redesign of a college course that entailed a new partnership between a college neuroscience classroom and a high school. In this course, the college students engaged in original research projects which included conducting brain surgery and behavioural tests on rats. They used digital storytelling and social networking to communicate with high school students and were visited by the students during the semester. The aims of the redesign were to align the course with science conducted in the field and to provide opportunities to disseminate scientific knowledge through emerging technologies. This study investigates the impact of these innovations on the college and high school students' perceptions of authentic science, including their relationship with science-centred communities. We found that these collaborative tools increased college students' perceptions that authentic science entailed communication with the general public, in addition to supporting prior perceptions of the importance of conducting experiments and presenting results to experts. In addition, the view of science as high-status knowledge was attenuated as students integrated non-formal communication practices into presentations, showing the backstage process of learning, incorporating music and youth discourse styles, and displaying emotional engagement. An impact of these hybrid presentation approaches was an increase in the high school students' perceptions of the accessibility of laboratory science. We discuss how the use of technologies that are familiar to youth, such as iPads, social networking sites, and multimedia presentations, has the potential to prioritize students' voices and promote a more inclusive view of science.

Interaction between NGOs and science through science shops

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Michael Søgaard

and institutions have more resources themselves and easier access to and influence on the research facilities than NGO’s like consumer organisations, environmental organisations, trade unions, social organisations etc. Science shops are organisations that offer NGO’s free or very low-cost access to scientific...... knowledge and research in order to help them achieve social and environmental improvement. Originally developed at Dutch universities during the 1970’s, science shops now also exist in Austria, Denmark, Germany, Romania and the U.K., as well as in a number of non-European countries including Australia......, Canada, Malaysia, South Korea and the USA. Some science shops are independent not-for-profit research centres and some are affiliated to a university acting as the intermediary between NGO’s and university researchers, teachers and students, who conduct research in response. Most university based science...

A Diagnosis of the Levels of Information Literacy Competency among Social Sciences Undergraduates

Science.gov (United States)

Pinto, María; Fernández-Pascual, Rosaura

2017-01-01

Restricted to five Spanish public universities, this paper examines knowledge about information literacy competencies--that is, the objective dimension--among a population of social sciences students, as well as two subjective dimensions: students' belief in the importance of information literacy, hereafter called "belief-in-importance",…

Australian National University Science Extension Day

Science.gov (United States)

Fletcher, Sarah

2016-01-01

The first Australian National University (ANU) Science Extension Day was held on September 8, 2015. The ANU Science Extension Day is a project that was initiated by Theodore Primary School (ACT) and developed by Theodore Primary, Calwell High School, Science Educators Association of the ACT (SEA*ACT), and the ANU. The project was developed with a…

Biomedical Science Technologists in Lagos Universities: Meeting ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Biomedical Science Technologists in Lagos Universities: Meeting Modern Standards ... like to see in biomedical science in Nigeria; 5) their knowledge of ten state-of-the-arts ... KEY WORDS: biomedical science, state-of-the-arts, technical staff ...

Time representations in social science.

Science.gov (United States)

Schulz, Yvan

2012-12-01

Time has long been a major topic of study in social science, as in other sciences or in philosophy. Social scientists have tended to focus on collective representations of time, and on the ways in which these representations shape our everyday experiences. This contribution addresses work from such disciplines as anthropology, sociology and history. It focuses on several of the main theories that have preoccupied specialists in social science, such as the alleged "acceleration" of life and overgrowth of the present in contemporary Western societies, or the distinction between so-called linear and circular conceptions of time. The presentation of these theories is accompanied by some of the critiques they have provoked, in order to enable the reader to form her or his own opinion of them.

Mapping "Social Responsibility" in Science

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Horst, Maja; Glerup, Cecilie

The paper investigates the discourse on social responsibility in science as it appears in academic journals. Through database searches a collection of more than 300 papers have been analysed in order to map their answers to the following three questions: - What is the central problem that threatens...... responsibility in science? - What are the central aspects of science or its relation to society that need to be regulated or changed? - What kinds of solutions are imagined and how are these solutions supposed to be put into place? On this basis the paper explores how different interpretations of the notion...... of social responsibility of science imply different forms of governance of and within science. The paper employs a Foucaldian discourse analysis to understand how a particular conceptualisation of responsibility implies a political rationality, i.e. a particular form of governance of science. The analysis...

Thermodynamics: The Unique Universal Science

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Wassim M. Haddad

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Thermodynamics is a physical branch of science that governs the thermal behavior of dynamical systems from those as simple as refrigerators to those as complex as our expanding universe. The laws of thermodynamics involving conservation of energy and nonconservation of entropy are, without a doubt, two of the most useful and general laws in all sciences. The first law of thermodynamics, according to which energy cannot be created or destroyed, merely transformed from one form to another, and the second law of thermodynamics, according to which the usable energy in an adiabatically isolated dynamical system is always diminishing in spite of the fact that energy is conserved, have had an impact far beyond science and engineering. In this paper, we trace the history of thermodynamics from its classical to its postmodern forms, and present a tutorial and didactic exposition of thermodynamics as it pertains to some of the deepest secrets of the universe.

Investigation of science production in Iran’s type I universities of medical sciences, a 6-year assessment

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M Yadollahi

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Science production is one of the main dimensions of sustainable development in any country. Thus, universities as the major centers for science production play a key role in development. The present study aimed to assess the trend of science production in Iran’s type I universities of medical sciences from 2007 to 2012. Method: In this study, the universities’ scores of empowering, governance and leadership, science production, student researches, and number of published articles were computed based on the evaluations of universities of medical sciences by the Ministry of Health, Treatment, and Medical Education from 2007 to 2012. Then, the data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the figures were drawn by Excel software. Results: This study assessed science production in Iran’s type I universities of medical sciences and analyzed each university’s proportion in publication of articles. According to the results, most of the published articles were affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences. However, considering the role of number of faculty members, different results were obtained. With respect to the evaluation raw scores, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences showed a considerable reduction of scores in 2012, while other universities had a constant or ascending trend. Besides, indexed articles followed an ascending trend in all the universities and most of the articles had been published in index 1. Conclusion: Similar to other studies, the findings of this study revealed an increase in science productions in Iran through the recent years. Yet, the highest scores of the studied indexes, except for student researches, were related to Tehran University of Medical Sciences. This great difference between this university and other universities might be due to accumulation of specific potentials and forces in this region. Overall, science productions followed an ascending trend in all type I universities of

The social ties that bind: social anxiety and academic achievement across the university years.

Science.gov (United States)

Brook, Christina A; Willoughby, Teena

2015-05-01

Given that engagement and integration in university/college are considered key to successful academic achievement, the identifying features of social anxiety, including fear of negative evaluation and distress and avoidance of new or all social situations, may be particularly disadvantageous in the social and evaluative contexts that are integral to university/college life. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the direct effects of social anxiety on academic achievement, as well as investigate an indirect mechanism through which social anxiety might impact on academic achievement, namely, the formation of new social ties in university. The participants were 942 (71.7 % female; M = 19 years at Time 1) students enrolled in a mid-sized university in Southern Ontario, Canada. Students completed annual assessments of social anxiety, social ties, and academic achievement for three consecutive years. The results from an autoregressive cross-lag path analysis indicated that social anxiety had a significant and negative direct relationship with academic achievement. Moreover, the negative indirect effect of social anxiety on academic achievement through social ties was significant, as was the opposing direction of effects (i.e., the indirect effect of academic achievement on social anxiety through social ties). These findings highlight the critical role that social ties appear to play in successful academic outcomes and in alleviating the effects of social anxiety during university/college.

Social Media, Open Science, and Data Science Are Inextricably Linked.

Science.gov (United States)

Voytek, Bradley

2017-12-20

Should scientists use social media? Why practice open science? What is data science? Ten years ago, these phrases hardly existed. Now they are ubiquitous. Here I argue that these phenomena are inextricably linked and reflect similar underlying social and technological transformations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social and Economic Analysis Branch: integrating policy, social, economic, and natural science

Science.gov (United States)

Schuster, Rudy; Walters, Katie D.

2015-01-01

The Fort Collins Science Center's Social and Economic Analysis Branch provides unique capabilities in the U.S. Geological Survey by leading projects that integrate social, behavioral, economic, and natural science in the context of human–natural resource interactions. Our research provides scientific understanding and support for the management and conservation of our natural resources in support of multiple agency missions. We focus on meeting the scientific needs of the Department of the Interior natural resource management bureaus in addition to fostering partnerships with other Federal and State managers to protect, restore, and enhance our environment. The Social and Economic Analysis Branch has an interdisciplinary group of scientists whose primary functions are to conduct both theoretical and applied social science research, provide technical assistance, and offer training to support the development of skills in natural resource management activities. Management and research issues associated with human-resource interactions typically occur in a unique context and require knowledge of both natural and social sciences, along with the skill to integrate multiple science disciplines. In response to these challenging contexts, Social and Economic Analysis Branch researchers apply a wide variety of social science concepts and methods which complement our rangeland/agricultural, wildlife, ecology, and biology capabilities. The goal of the Social and Economic Analysis Branch's research is to enhance natural-resource management, agency functions, policies, and decisionmaking.

Universities as Intermediaries: Impact Investing and Social Entrepreneurship

Science.gov (United States)

Tekula, Rebecca; Shah, Archana; Jhamb, Jordan

2015-01-01

Metropolitan universities are well poised in communities to be intermediaries among various actors involved in social innovation. Pace University established one of the first institutes on social entrepreneurship. Its unique position at the university level allows programming to transcend certain institutional challenges. The emerging field of…

Social Work in the Engaged University

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Elisa M.; Pyles, Loretta

2013-01-01

This article identifies the importance of educating social work students and enlisting social work faculty to embrace the university-community engagement arena as a critical subfield of community practice. Through the lens of social work knowledge, values, and skills, the authors present three case studies of social workers who are working in the…

Improving Interaction between NGO's, Science Shops and Universities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Michael Søgaard

2005-01-01

An overview of the results from the INTERACTS research project: Improving Interaction between NGOs, Universities and Science Shops: Experiences and Expectations, running 2002-2004......An overview of the results from the INTERACTS research project: Improving Interaction between NGOs, Universities and Science Shops: Experiences and Expectations, running 2002-2004...

Stranger that fiction parallel universes beguile science

CERN Document Server

2007-01-01

Is the universe -- correction: 'our' universe -- no more than a speck of cosmic dust amid an infinite number of parallel worlds? A staple of mind-bending science fiction, the possibility of multiple universes has long intrigued hard-nosed physicists, mathematicians and cosmologists too.

Stranger than fiction: parallel universes beguile science

CERN Document Server

Hautefeuille, Annie

2007-01-01

Is the universe-correction: 'our' universe-no more than a speck of cosmic dust amid an infinite number of parallel worlds? A staple of mind-bending science fiction, the possibility of multiple universes has long intrigued hard-nosed physicists, mathematicians and cosmologists too.

Operationalizing Social Work Science through Research-Practice Partnerships: Lessons from Implementation Science

Science.gov (United States)

Palinkas, Lawrence A.; He, Amy S.; Choy-Brown, Mimi; Hertel, Amy Locklear

2017-01-01

Recent efforts to identify and promote a distinct science for the discipline of social work have led to an ongoing debate regarding the nature and function of such a science. Central to this debate is a lack of consensus as to how to operationalize a social work science. Drawing from the field of implementation science and its application in…

Applied Computational Mathematics in Social Sciences

CERN Document Server

Damaceanu, Romulus-Catalin

2010-01-01

Applied Computational Mathematics in Social Sciences adopts a modern scientific approach that combines knowledge from mathematical modeling with various aspects of social science. Special algorithms can be created to simulate an artificial society and a detailed analysis can subsequently be used to project social realities. This Ebook specifically deals with computations using the NetLogo platform, and is intended for researchers interested in advanced human geography and mathematical modeling studies.

Education in the nuclear sciences at Japanese universities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takashima, Y.

1990-01-01

Though there are 430 government and private universities in Japan, only a limited number of them have the department associated with nuclear science education. And the education is one-sided to government universities because mainly of financial problem. Nuclear engineering departments are installed at only 7 big universities. In addition, there are 3 institutes associated with a nuclear reactor. In these facilities, education on reactor physics, radiation measurement, electromagnetics and material sciences are conducted. For education on safety handling of radioactive materials, 10 radioisotope centers and 7 radiochemistry laboratories attached to big government universities act an important role. Almost all of the financial support for the above nuclear education come from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture. However, some other funds are introduced by the private connection of professors

Perception of academic stress among Health Science Preparatory Program students in two Saudi universities.

Science.gov (United States)

Alsulami, Saleh; Al Omar, Zaid; Binnwejim, Mohammed S; Alhamdan, Fahad; Aldrees, Amr; Al-Bawardi, Abdulkarim; Alsohim, Meshary; Alhabeeb, Mohammed

2018-01-01

The Health Science Preparatory Program (HSPP) is a special program that aims to enhance the educational preparedness of students for participation in a health sciences career. Students spend their first university year in a combined extensive teaching program before they can be assigned to a particular health science specialty. It is thought that students enrolled in a highly competitive environment such as HSPP with a long list of potential stressors, including developmental, academic overload, language barriers and competition, are more disposed to stress and stress-related complications. This study aims to measure the level of academic stress and to determine its risk factors in students enrolled in HSPP-adapted local universities in Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted at two Saudi universities, King Saud University (KSU) and Imam Mohammad ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSU) with competition-based and non-competition-based HSPP learning models, respectively. Both universities adopt the HSPP system. The scale for assessing academic stress (SAAS) was used to assess students' perceived stress. A total of 290 students successfully completed the questionnaire (N=290), with a mean age of 18.66 years. Mean SAAS scores for KSU and IMSU students were 8.37 (SD = 4.641) and 7.97 (SD = 5.104), P =0.480, respectively. Only "satisfaction" and "associated social and health problems" have shown statistically significant correlation with university ( P =0.000 and P =0.049, respectively). This study has found mean SAAS score for two local universities with competition-based versus non-competition-based HSPP learning models. Academic stress correlation with age, gender and universities was discussed, and valuable future work guidance was recommended.

The impact of science shops on university research and education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Michael Søgaard

2000-01-01

Science shops are mediating agencies at universities that give citizens and citizen groups access to the resources of the university through co-operation with students and researchers. Science shops have three aims: to support citizens and citizen groups in their efforts getting influence...... to the impact of science shops on universities and on society are discussed. A typology for the different types of knowledge requested by citizens and citizen groups through science shops is presented (documentation, knowledge building, development of new perspectives). As important aspects of the potentials......, prerequisites and limits to the impact of science shops are discussed the networking between the science shop and the researchers and teachers and with the citizens and other external actors, and the content and the structure of the curricula at the university....

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review (EASSRR) is a bi-annual journal published by the Organization for Social Science Research in Eastern Africa (OSSREA). Since the publication of its maiden ... Emerging regions in Ethiopia: are they catching up with the rest of Ethiopia? EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL ...

Quantum social science

CERN Document Server

Haven, Emmanuel

2013-01-01

Written by world experts in the foundations of quantum mechanics and its applications to social science, this book shows how elementary quantum mechanical principles can be applied to decision-making paradoxes in psychology and used in modelling information in finance and economics. The book starts with a thorough overview of some of the salient differences between classical, statistical and quantum mechanics. It presents arguments on why quantum mechanics can be applied outside of physics and defines quantum social science. The issue of the existence of quantum probabilistic effects in psychology, economics and finance is addressed and basic questions and answers are provided. Aimed at researchers in economics and psychology, as well as physics, basic mathematical preliminaries and elementary concepts from quantum mechanics are defined in a self-contained way.

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: Contact

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: Contact. Journal Home > About the Journal > Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: Contact. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

Pre-Service Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Teaching Science and Their Science Learning at Indonesia Open University

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nadi SUPRAPTO

2017-10-01

Full Text Available This study focuses on attitudes toward (teaching science and the learning of science for primary school among pre-service teachers at the Open University of Indonesia. A three-year longitudinal survey was conducted, involving 379 students as pre-service teachers (PSTs from the Open University in Surabaya regional office. Attitudes toward (teaching science’ (ATS instrument was used to portray PSTs’ preparation for becoming primary school teachers. Data analyses were used, including descriptive analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. The model fit of the attitudes toward (teaching science can be described from seven dimensions: self-efficacy for teaching science, the relevance of teaching science, gender-stereotypical beliefs, anxiety in teaching science, the difficulty of teaching science, perceived dependency on contextual factors, and enjoyment in teaching science. The results of the research also described science learning at the Open University of Indonesia looks like. Implications for primary teacher education are discussed.

Temporalité, temporalités : philosophie et sciences sociales Temporality, temporalities: Philosophy and the Social sciences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claude Dubar

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Le passage de la philosophie du temps aux approches scientifiques des temporalités a résulté de l’épuisement des apories du temps qui, d’Aristote et Saint Augustin à Kant et Husserl, ont jalonné les efforts de philosophes pour produire in abstracto une théorie unifiée du temps. Le constat par Heidegger d’une irréductible pluralité des modes de temporalisation a mis fin à cette aporétique de la temporalité et permis le déploiement d’approches plurielles des temporalités par les sciences socio-historiques. Depuis la thèse de la pluralité des régimes d’historicité par les historiens jusqu’à l’analyse des temporalités sociales par les sociologues, toutes les sciences sociales ont multiplié les distinctions internes au temps et les typologies de temporalités pertinentes. Cela n’exclut pas les réflexions citoyennes sur l’émergence d’un temps démocratique et universel réconciliant le temps paramètre englobant et le temps compagnon vécu.The passage from the philosophy of time to the scientific approach to temporality is the result of the double bind in which, from Aristotle to Saint Augustine, Kant and Husserl, has marked the efforts of philosophers trying to produce in abstracto a unified theory of time. Heidegger’s conclusion concerning the irreducible plurality of the modes of temporality put an end to that uncertainty and allowed many various approaches to temporality to blossom in the socio-historical sciences. From the historians’ theory of the plurality of historical regimes to the sociologists’ analysis of social temporalities, several pertinent distinctions internal to time and typologies of temporalities have been forthcoming. That does not preclude citizens from rethinking the emergence of a democratic and universal time that would reconcile Time as the all-encompassing parameter with Time as the lifetime companion.

Exploring Marine Science through the University of Delaware's TIDE camp

Science.gov (United States)

Veron, D. E.; Newton, F. A.; Veron, F.; Trembanis, A. C.; Miller, D. C.

2012-12-01

For the past five years, the University of Delaware has offered a two-week, residential, summer camp to rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors who are interested in marine science. The camp, named TIDE (Taking an Interest in Delaware's Estuary) camp, is designed to introduce students to the breadth of marine science while providing them with a college experience. Campers participate in a variety of academic activities which include classroom, laboratory, and field experiences, as well as numerous social activities. Two unique features of this small, focused camp is the large number of university faculty that are involved, and the ability of students to participate in ongoing research projects. At various times students have participated in fish and dolphin counts, AUV deployment, wind-wave tank experiments, coastal water and beach studies, and ROV activities. In addition, each year campers have participated in a local service project. Through communication with former TIDE participants, it is clear that this two-week, formative experience plays a large role in students choice of major when entering college.2012 Tide Camp - Salt marsh in southern Delaware 2012 Tide Camp - Field trip on a small boat

The Normative Dimension in Transdisciplinarity, Transition Management, and Transformation Sciences: New Roles of Science and Universities in Sustainable Transitioning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roland W. Scholz

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses the role normative aspects play in different approaches of science–practice collaboration, in particular as action research, (Mode 2 Transdisciplinarity (Td, Transition Management (TM, and Transformative Science (TSc. We elaborate on the different roles that scientists in these processes play. They work as facilitators (or contribute to a facilitated Td process, as activists (i.e., activist researchers in TM projects, and as catalysts in TSc. Td processes develop socially robust solutions for sustainable transitioning and impacts on the science system through mutual learning and by integrating epistemics (i.e., ways of knowing from science and practice and focusing on the empowerment of stakeholders. Science is viewed as a public good aiming to serve all key stakeholders. Researchers involved in TM projects strive to influence ongoing transition processes by actively engaging and participating in them, including lobbying for and empowering transformative changes toward sustainability based upon the researchers’ own analyses and world views. The TSc approach takes a catalyst perspective of the scientist’s role in inducing processes of strategic (societal transition when including certain stakeholder groups. The paper focuses on what roles normative aspects play in the different approaches and new societal demands imposed on science and universities. Based on this, we conclude that a new order of universities, public knowledge institutions, and boundary institutions is forthcoming.

Cloud Pedagogy: Utilizing Web-Based Technologies for the Promotion of Social Constructivist Learning in Science Teacher Preparation Courses

Science.gov (United States)

Barak, Miri

2017-10-01

The new guidelines for science education emphasize the need to introduce computers and digital technologies as a means of enabling visualization and data collection and analysis. This requires science teachers to bring advanced technologies into the classroom and use them wisely. Hence, the goal of this study was twofold: to examine the application of web-based technologies in science teacher preparation courses and to examine pre-service teachers' perceptions of "cloud pedagogy"—an instructional framework that applies technologies for the promotion of social constructivist learning. The study included university teachers ( N = 48) and pre-service science teachers ( N = 73). Data were collected from an online survey, written reflections, and interviews. The findings indicated that university teachers use technologies mainly for information management and the distribution of learning materials and less for applying social constructivist pedagogy. University teachers expect their students (i.e., pre-service science teachers) to use digital tools in their future classroom to a greater extent than they themselves do. The findings also indicated that the "cloud pedagogy" was perceived as an appropriate instructional framework for contemporary science education. The application of the cloud pedagogy fosters four attributes: the ability to adapt to frequent changes and uncertain situations, the ability to collaborate and communicate in decentralized environments, the ability to generate data and manage it, and the ability to explore new venous.

Education in the nuclear sciences in Japanese universities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takashima, Y.

1993-01-01

Although there are 430 governmental and private universities in Japan, only a limited number of them have departments associated with nuclear science education. Moreover, mainly because of financial pressures, this association is often limited to government universities. Nuclear engineering departments are incorporated with only seven of larger universities, and there are three institutes with nuclear reactors. In these facilities, education in reactor physics, radiation measurements, electromagnetic and material sciences, are conducted. In terms of radiation safety and radiological health physics, ten radioisotope centers and seven radiochemistry laboratories in universities play an important role. (author) 8 figs.; 5 tabs

Researching Undergraduate Social Science Research

Science.gov (United States)

Rand, Jane

2016-01-01

The experience(s) of undergraduate research students in the social sciences is under-represented in the literature in comparison to the natural sciences or science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). The strength of STEM undergraduate research learning environments is understood to be related to an apprenticeship-mode of learning supported…

Increased number of papers co-authored by professor and his students in humanities and social sciences journals published in Korea

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rae Seong Hong

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Humanities and social sciences studies in Korea have remarkably low rates of co-authorship between professors and students. We chose a bibliometrics-based approach to characterize changes in the ratio of joint authorship between professors and students. Articles classified in the humanities and social sciences sectors that were published in journals registered in the Korean Citation Index during 2 phases over a 10-year period—2004 to 2006 (phase 1 and 2011 to 2013 (phase 2—were used as the main source for the analysis. The study results can be summarized as follows: first, the overall number of co-authored articles drastically increased from phase 1 to phase 2; the percentage of co-authorship articles increased from 34.8% to 47.7%, and the percentage of co-authorship between students and professors rose from 9.9% to 20.7%. This trend was particularly noticeable in the social sciences, such as accounting, social welfare, and economics/business administration. Second, papers written by scholars from Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Korea University were often published in high-impact factor journals. Among those articles, the rate of professor-student co-authorship increased by 21.6% for 7 years. Third, the increase in professor-student co-authored articles published in high- impact factor journals was even sharper. These findings indicate that perceptions of professor-student co-authorship have changed in the humanities and social sciences. In the near future, positive perceptions toward joint research and joint authorship between professors and students are expected to become more widespread.

Differences in basic digital competences between male and female university students of Social Sciences in Spain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esteban Vázquez-Cano

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract This article analyses the differences in basic digital competences of male and female university students on Social Education, Social Work and Pedagogy courses. The study of gender differences in university students’ acquisition of digital competence has considerable didactic and strategic consequences for the development of these skills. The study was carried out at two public universities in Spain (UNED – the National Distance-Learning University, and the Universidad Pablo de Olavide on a sample of 923 students, who responded to a questionnaire entitled “University Students’ Basic Digital Competences 2.0” (COBADI – registered at the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office. The research applied a quantitative methodology based on a Bayesian approach using multinomial joint distribution as prior distribution. The use of Bayes factors also offers advantages with respect to the use of frequentist p-values, like the generation of information on the alternative hypothesis, that the evidence is not dependent on the sample size used. The results show that men have greater perceived competence in digital cartography and online presentations, whereas women prefer to request personal tutorials to resolve doubts about technology and have greater perceived competence in corporate emailing. There is also evidence that the men have greater perceived competence in developing “online presentations” than women do. Regarding to, “Interpersonal competences in the use of ICT at university”, we observed that the female students opted for personal sessions with tutors in greater numbers than the male students did.

The Interrelations between Diagrammatic Representations and Verbal Explanations in Learning from Social Science Texts.

Science.gov (United States)

Guri-Rozenblit, Sarah

1988-01-01

Describes study that examined the instructional effectiveness of abstract diagrams and verbal explanations in learning from social science texts. The control and treatment groups of adult learners at Everyman's University (Israel) are described, verbal and visual aptitude tests are explained, and results are analyzed. (25 references) (Author/LRW)

Directory of Research in Social Studies/Social Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Barret, Anna R.; Carnett, George S.

Described are current trends in the social and behavioral sciences intended to meet the needs of the educational community. The projects listed include studies in anthropology, sociology, political science, history, geography, foreign area studies, economics, international relations, and environmental education. Part I of the directory lists…

Fort Collins Science Center- Policy Analysis and Science Assistance Branch : Integrating social, behavioral, economic and biological sciences

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

The Fort Collins Science Center's Policy Analysis and Science Assistance (PASA) Branch is a team of approximately 22 scientists, technicians, and graduate student researchers. PASA provides unique capabilities in the U.S. Geological Survey by leading projects that integrate social, behavioral, economic, and biological analyses in the context of human-natural resource interactions. Resource planners, managers, and policymakers in the U.S. Departments of the Interior (DOI) and Agriculture (USDA), State and local agencies, as well as international agencies use information from PASA studies to make informed natural resource management and policy decisions. PASA scientists' primary functions are to conduct both theoretical and applied social science research, provide technical assistance, and offer training to advance performance in policy relevant research areas. Management and research issues associated with human-resource interactions typically occur in a unique context, involve difficult to access populations, require knowledge of both natural/biological science in addition to social science, and require the skill to integrate multiple science disciplines. In response to these difficult contexts, PASA researchers apply traditional and state-of-the-art social science methods drawing from the fields of sociology, demography, economics, political science, communications, social-psychology, and applied industrial organization psychology. Social science methods work in concert with our rangeland/agricultural management, wildlife, ecology, and biology capabilities. The goal of PASA's research is to enhance natural resource management, agency functions, policies, and decision-making. Our research is organized into four broad areas of study.

Study the relationship between medical sciences students’ self-esteem and academic achievement of Guilan university of medical sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Jirdehi, Maryam Mirzaee; Asgari, Fariba; Tabari, Rasool; Leyli, Ehsan Kazemnejad

2018-01-01

BACKGROUND: Achievement of productivity and improvement of quality in the educational system is the effective, influential factors for countries development. Academic achievement is the main objective of the training program and the most important concerns of teachers, education officials, and university Student's families. Self-esteem is one of the factors affecting student academic achievement. This study is aimed to investigate the relationship between self-esteem and academic achievement in Medical Sciences students of in 2014–2015. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This is a descriptive–correlational study. In this study, 537 university students were selected using random stratified sampling method from Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2014–2015. Data were collected using the standard self-esteem questionnaire of Cooper Smith consisting of four elements (general, social, familial, and educational) and a demographic questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 21 and descriptive statistics such as Spearman correlation and Logistic Regression. RESULTS: The results indicated a significant relationship between grade point average and educational self-esteem (P = 0.002, r = 0.135) and global self-esteem (P = 0.02, r = 0.102). There was also a significant relationship between composite Index educational status and general self-esteem (P = 0.019, r = 0.102) and academic achievement (P = 0.007, r = 0.116) and global self-esteem (P = 0.020, r = 0.102). CONCLUSIONS: According to the results, the highest mean score of self-esteem was related to the familial element, and the lowest average was in terms of social self-esteem, therefore, given the importance and necessity of self-esteem in academic achievement, strengthening of all aspects of self-esteem is suggested. PMID:29693033

Study the relationship between medical sciences students' self-esteem and academic achievement of Guilan university of medical sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Jirdehi, Maryam Mirzaee; Asgari, Fariba; Tabari, Rasool; Leyli, Ehsan Kazemnejad

2018-01-01

Achievement of productivity and improvement of quality in the educational system is the effective, influential factors for countries development. Academic achievement is the main objective of the training program and the most important concerns of teachers, education officials, and university Student's families. Self-esteem is one of the factors affecting student academic achievement. This study is aimed to investigate the relationship between self-esteem and academic achievement in Medical Sciences students of in 2014-2015. This is a descriptive-correlational study. In this study, 537 university students were selected using random stratified sampling method from Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2014-2015. Data were collected using the standard self-esteem questionnaire of Cooper Smith consisting of four elements (general, social, familial, and educational) and a demographic questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 21 and descriptive statistics such as Spearman correlation and Logistic Regression. The results indicated a significant relationship between grade point average and educational self-esteem ( P = 0.002, r = 0.135) and global self-esteem ( P = 0.02, r = 0.102). There was also a significant relationship between composite Index educational status and general self-esteem ( P = 0.019, r = 0.102) and academic achievement ( P = 0.007, r = 0.116) and global self-esteem ( P = 0.020, r = 0.102). According to the results, the highest mean score of self-esteem was related to the familial element, and the lowest average was in terms of social self-esteem, therefore, given the importance and necessity of self-esteem in academic achievement, strengthening of all aspects of self-esteem is suggested.

Developing E-science and Research Services and Support at the University of Minnesota Health Sciences Libraries

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Layne M.; Butler, John T.; Johnston, Lisa R.

2013-01-01

This paper describes the development and implementation of e-science and research support services in the Health Sciences Libraries (HSL) within the Academic Health Center (AHC) at the University of Minnesota (UMN). A review of the broader e-science initiatives within the UMN demonstrates the needs and opportunities that the University Libraries face while building knowledge, skills, and capacity to support e-research. These experiences are being used by the University Libraries administration and HSL to apply support for the growing needs of researchers in the health sciences. Several research areas that would benefit from enhanced e-science support are described. Plans to address the growing e-research needs of health sciences researchers are also discussed. PMID:23585706

Developing E-science and Research Services and Support at the University of Minnesota Health Sciences Libraries.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Layne M; Butler, John T; Johnston, Lisa R

2012-01-01

This paper describes the development and implementation of e-science and research support services in the Health Sciences Libraries (HSL) within the Academic Health Center (AHC) at the University of Minnesota (UMN). A review of the broader e-science initiatives within the UMN demonstrates the needs and opportunities that the University Libraries face while building knowledge, skills, and capacity to support e-research. These experiences are being used by the University Libraries administration and HSL to apply support for the growing needs of researchers in the health sciences. Several research areas that would benefit from enhanced e-science support are described. Plans to address the growing e-research needs of health sciences researchers are also discussed.

Environmental Empowerment - the role of Co-operation between Civil Society, Universities and Science Shops

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brodersen, Søsser; Jørgensen, Michael Søgaard; Hansen, Anne Grethe

2006-01-01

The University based Science Shops were established in the 1970s in the Netherlands, and in Denmark and other countries in the 1980s and 1990s. The aim was to give civil society organisations access to scientific knowledge and to empower citizen participation regarding environmental and social...... improvements. It has recently been suggested that the role of Science Shops should change as a consequence of the stated increasing professionalisation of the Non Governmental Organisations and Civil Society Organisations, and of industry’s increasing interest in introducing environmental management measures....... Increasing internationalisation of the environmental agenda has contributed to this as well as a general acceptance of environmental considerations in industry policy and strategy. However, with departure point in three different Science Shop projects, the article proposes that Science Shops are still...

Facebook Usage Pattern of the Students of Mawlana Bhasani Science and Technology University

OpenAIRE

N. N., Afroz; R. P., Lima

2017-01-01

Abstract Facebook is one of the popular social networking sites. This study investigates Facebook usage pattern of the students" of Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University. This research has been conducted over the Bachelor and Master"s degree students from the MBSTU. Frequency distribution, cross tabulation and chi-square test has been applied for data analysis. A self-administered structured close-ended questionnaire used to collect data from 250 students. This research found ...

Parallel universes beguile science

CERN Multimedia

2007-01-01

A staple of mind-bending science fiction, the possibility of multiple universes has long intrigued hard-nosed physicists, mathematicians and cosmologists too. We may not be able -- as least not yet -- to prove they exist, many serious scientists say, but there are plenty of reasons to think that parallel dimensions are more than figments of eggheaded imagination.

University Social Responsibility and Brand Image of Private Universities in Bangkok

Science.gov (United States)

Plungpongpan, Jirawan; Tiangsoongnern, Leela; Speece, Mark

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of university social responsibility (USR) on the brand image of private universities in Thailand. Brand image is important for entry into the consideration set as prospective students evaluate options for university study. USR activities may be implicit or explicit, i.e., actively…

Editors' overview perspectives on teaching social responsibility to students in science and engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Zandvoort, Henk; Børsen, Tom; Deneke, Michael; Bird, Stephanie J

2013-12-01

Global society is facing formidable current and future problems that threaten the prospects for justice and peace, sustainability, and the well-being of humanity both now and in the future. Many of these problems are related to science and technology and to how they function in the world. If the social responsibility of scientists and engineers implies a duty to safeguard or promote a peaceful, just and sustainable world society, then science and engineering education should empower students to fulfil this responsibility. The contributions to this special issue present European examples of teaching social responsibility to students in science and engineering, and provide examples and discussion of how this teaching can be promoted, and of obstacles that are encountered. Speaking generally, education aimed at preparing future scientists and engineers for social responsibility is presently very limited and seemingly insufficient in view of the enormous ethical and social problems that are associated with current science and technology. Although many social, political and professional organisations have expressed the need for the provision of teaching for social responsibility, important and persistent barriers stand in the way of its sustained development. What is needed are both bottom-up teaching initiatives from individuals or groups of academic teachers, and top-down support to secure appropriate embedding in the university. Often the latter is lacking or inadequate. Educational policies at the national or international level, such as the Bologna agreements in Europe, can be an opportunity for introducing teaching for social responsibility. However, frequently no or only limited positive effect of such policies can be discerned. Existing accreditation and evaluation mechanisms do not guarantee appropriate attention to teaching for social responsibility, because, in their current form, they provide no guarantee that the curricula pay sufficient attention to

"Solidarity and Support": Feminist Memory Work Focus Groups with Working-Class Women Studying Social Science Degrees in Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Michell, Dee; Beddoe, Liz; Fraser, Heather; Jarldorn, Michele

2017-01-01

This paper reports on our use of a two-phased, feminist memory work in a project conducted with 11 women, social science students at an Australian university. We begin by describing government-led attempts to widen participation in Australian universities because 10 of the 11 women who participated in our project were from…

University’s social responsibility at Spanish universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marta RUIZ-CORBELLA

2016-06-01

Full Text Available A review of the University’s Social Responsibility is introduced, an implementation of corporate social responsibility to the specifics of the institutions of higher education. Once the advisability and content of this concept is defined, 4 key areas in higher education are reviewed: training, research, management and social participation, based on performance indicators. With a descriptive study, the inclusion of USR in the training offering of Spanish universities is analyzed, its scientific output in this field, and its integration to university management. The conclusion is that, despite the relevance and initial interest from the government teams of these institutions, this is yet a not consolidated topic, although a constant improvement maintained over the years is perceived, with significant differences between the areas of the USR. Implementing it in our universities, along with an evaluation model, will become a key factor for the universities, as a sign of its capacity to respond to society. 

Using Social Media to Communicate Science

Science.gov (United States)

Bohon, W.

2017-12-01

Social media (SM) is a popular and ubiquitous communication method and as such offers scientists an opportunity to directly interface with the public, improve public perception of science and scientists, and combat the growing tide of scientific misunderstanding and misinformation. It's become increasingly critical for scientists to use their voice and influence to communicate science and address misinformation. More than 60% of US adults get news from SM (1) but studies find that scientists infrequently post about science (2), missing a rich opportunity to combat scientific disinformation. While it may seem like a futile exercise to educate over SM, even passive exposure to new information can change public perceptions and behavior (3). Additionally, scientists, especially early career scientists, have social networks populated largely by non-scientists (2), allowing them an opportunity to speak to an audience that already trusts and values their scientific judgment. Importantly, these networks are often ideologically and politically diverse (4). However, science communication isn't as simple as a presentation of facts, and effective science communication via SM requires both SM competence and science communication proficiency. Thus, a discussion of best practices for both topics would benefit the scientific community. The range of potential topics for discussion is broad and could include scientific storytelling, empathetic communication, crafting a message, using SM to "humanize science", tips and tricks for broad SM information dissemination and how to run an effective SM campaign. (1) Gottfried J, Shearer E. New use across social media platforms: Pew Research Center; 2016. Available from: http://www.journalism.org/2016/05/26/news-use-across-social-media-platforms-2016/. (2) McClain, Craig R., Practices and promises of Facebook for science outreach:Becoming a "Nerd of Trust". PLOS Biology 15(6). 2017; https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.2002020(3) Messing S

The Social Science Curriculum of the Two-Year College.

Science.gov (United States)

Friedlander, Jack

1980-01-01

Describes a nationwide study to identify: (1) the representation of different areas within the social sciences (i.e. anthropology, economics, history, political science, psychology, social/ethnic studies, sociology, and interdisciplinary social sciences) in the two-year college curriculum, and (2) which courses were offered for transfer,…

Big Data and historical social science

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Bearman

2015-11-01

Full Text Available “Big Data” can revolutionize historical social science if it arises from substantively important contexts and is oriented towards answering substantively important questions. Such data may be especially important for answering previously largely intractable questions about the timing and sequencing of events, and of event boundaries. That said, “Big Data” makes no difference for social scientists and historians whose accounts rest on narrative sentences. Since such accounts are the norm, the effects of Big Data on the practice of historical social science may be more limited than one might wish.

The Behavioral and Social Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Simon, Herbert A.

1980-01-01

This article reviews some recent technical progress in the social sciences and three frontier areas including evolutionary theory as related to sociobiology, the theory of human rational choice, and cognitive science. These areas offer explanations for broad areas of human behavior. (Author/SA)

Applied Statistics for the Social and Health Sciences

CERN Document Server

Gordon, Rachel A A

2012-01-01

Applied Statistics for the Social and Health Sciences provides graduate students in the social and health sciences with the basic skills that they need to estimate, interpret, present, and publish statistical models using contemporary standards. The book targets the social and health science branches such as human development, public health, sociology, psychology, education, and social work in which students bring a wide range of mathematical skills and have a wide range of methodological affinities. For these students, a successful course in statistics will not only offer statistical content

SOCIAL SECURITY IN MODERN ERA

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2018-03-28

Mar 28, 2018 ... Lecturer, Department of Social Work, Bindura University of Science Education; Email. ... Lecturer, School of Social Work, University of Zimbabwe, Mount ... There are two types of informal social security: traditional or family ...

Science during crisis: the application of social science during major environmental crises

Science.gov (United States)

Machlis, Gary; Ludwig, Kris; Manfredo, Michael J.; Vaske, Jerry J.; Rechkemmer, Andreas; Duke, Esther

2014-01-01

Historical and contemporary experience suggests that science plays an increasingly critical role in governmental and institutional responses to major environmental crises. Recent examples include major western wildfires (2009), the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (2010), the Fukushima nuclear accident (2011), and Hurricane Sandy (2012). The application of science during such crises has several distinctive characteristics, as well as essential requirements if it is to be useful to decision makers. these include scope conditions that include coupled natural/human systems, clear statement of uncertainties and limitations, description of cascading consequences, accurate sense of place, estimates of magnitude of impacts, identification of beneficiaries and those adversely affected, clarity and conciseness, compelling visualization and presentation, capacity to speak "truth to power", and direct access to decision makers. In this chapter, we explore the role and significance of science – including all relevant disciplines and focusing attention on the social sciences – in responding to major environmental crises. We explore several important questions: How is science during crisis distinctive? What social science is most useful during crises? What distinctive characteristics are necessary for social science to make meaningful contributions to emergency response and recovery? How might the social sciences be integrated into the strategic science needed to respond to future crises? The authors, both members of the Department of the Interior's innovative Strategic Sciences Group, describe broad principles of engagement as well as specific examples drawn from history, contemporary efforts (such as during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill), and predictions of environmental crises still to be confronted.

Applied modelling and computing in social science

CERN Document Server

Povh, Janez

2015-01-01

In social science outstanding results are yielded by advanced simulation methods, based on state of the art software technologies and an appropriate combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. This book presents examples of successful applications of modelling and computing in social science: business and logistic process simulation and optimization, deeper knowledge extractions from big data, better understanding and predicting of social behaviour and modelling health and environment changes.

The Usage of Social Areas in University Campus Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Begüm ERÇEVİK

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Universities aim to help students gain occupational skills through academic training and practice; to produce knowledge by carrying out applications and investigations which have scientific, social and economic bases, to prepare young people for com munity life by giving them duties and responsibilities; and finally, to make contributions to the social and educational level of the community. Moreover social and cultural activity areas in uni versities in which, apart from lecture halls, students spend most of their time during their educational, lives, are of great impor tance for social interaction. Social spaces, whose educational and awareness-raising role of preparing the youth for community life, are taken into account and of these areas, about their use of student assessment analysis is aimed. During this analysis, student views were investigated and compared at different university campus locations. Bahçeşehir University Beşiktaş Campus as a town university, Yıldız Teknik University Yıldız Merkez Campus as an in-town campus, Koç University Sarıyer Campus as a out-oftown campus were chosen as locations for the study. Statistical analysis is applied to the data obtained from the questionaries completed by students in the chosen universities. Following such investigations, findings relating to the sufficiency of social and cultural activity areas in campuses, their occupancy and reachability; and the user profile of the activity areas and town usage as a cultural area are obtained and evaluated.

Social Support and Stress among University Students in Jordan

Science.gov (United States)

Hamdan-Mansour, Ayman M.; Dawani, Hania A.

2008-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between perception of social support and perceived stress among university students in Jordan. A sample of 241 university students from private and government universities in Jordan answered self-report questionnaires including the perceived social support scale and perceived stress scale.…

Examining of social skill levels of university students in terms of certain Variables

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sevim GÜLLÜ

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Aim: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between certain demographic variables and social skill levels of university students. Material and Methods: There were 100 participants (n=51 female, n=49 male in the study group who were the students at the department of Sport Sciences Faculty of Istanbul University in the 2015-2016 academic year. Of the study group 28 participants were between 18-20 years old, 27 participants were between 21-23 years old, 23 participants were between 24-26 years old and 22 participants were above 27 years old. After the demographic information of the participants was formed, the Social Skill Scale was applied which was developed by Matson, Rotarory and Hessel (1983 and adopted to Turkish. In order to measure their social skill levels, the reliability analysis of that scale was done. Cronbach Alpha value is 0.777; about the subscales, the results were found as such; positive social behaviour subscale 0.924, negative social behaviour subscale 0.904. Significance level was accepted as p<0.05. Results: Gender, age, class, whether or not to play sports with a licence, education level of parents, how many years they have been doing sports, and the level of social skills and subscales of their students were not significantly different. Conclusion: As a result; the demographic variables examined within our study did not make a difference in the level of social skills of the participants.

When do scientists become entrepreneurs? The social structural antecedents of commercial activity in the academic life sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Stuart, Toby E; Ding, Waverly W

2006-07-01

The authors examine the conditions prompting university-employed life scientists to become entrepreneurs, defined to occur when a scientist (1) founds a biotechnology company, or (2) joins the scientific advisory board of a new biotechnology firm. This study draws on theories of social influence, socialization, and status dynamics to examine how proximity to colleagues in commercial science influences individuals' propensity to transition to entrepreneurship. To expose the mechanisms at work, this study also assesses how proximity effects change over time as for-profit science diffuses through the academy. Using adjusted proportional hazards models to analyze case-cohort data, the authors find evidence that the orientation toward commercial science of individuals' colleagues and coauthors, as well as a number of other workplace attributes, significantly influences scientists' hazards of transitioning to for-profit science.

Perception of academic stress among Health Science Preparatory Program students in two Saudi universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alsulami S

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Saleh Alsulami, Zaid Al Omar, Mohammed S Binnwejim, Fahad Alhamdan, Amr Aldrees, Abdulkarim Al-bawardi, Meshary Alsohim, Mohammed Alhabeeb Departments of Family Medicine and Medical Education, College of Medicine, Imam Mohammad ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Abstract: The Health Science Preparatory Program (HSPP is a special program that aims to enhance the educational preparedness of students for participation in a health sciences career. Students spend their first university year in a combined extensive teaching program before they can be assigned to a particular health science specialty. It is thought that students enrolled in a highly competitive environment such as HSPP with a long list of potential stressors, including developmental, academic overload, language barriers and competition, are more disposed to stress and stress-related complications. This study aims to measure the level of academic stress and to determine its risk factors in students enrolled in HSPP-adapted local universities in Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted at two Saudi universities, King Saud University (KSU and Imam Mohammad ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSU with competition-based and non-competition-based HSPP learning models, respectively. Both universities adopt the HSPP system. The scale for assessing academic stress (SAAS was used to assess students’ perceived stress. A total of 290 students successfully completed the questionnaire (N=290, with a mean age of 18.66 years. Mean SAAS scores for KSU and IMSU students were 8.37 (SD = 4.641 and 7.97 (SD = 5.104, P=0.480, respectively. Only “satisfaction” and “associated social and health problems” have shown statistically significant correlation with university (P=0.000 and P=0.049, respectively. This study has found mean SAAS score for two local universities with competition-based versus non-competition-based HSPP learning models. Academic stress correlation with age, gender and

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: Site Map

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: Site Map. Journal Home > About the Journal > Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: Site Map. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

Assessing Prinary School; Second Cycle Social Science Textbooks ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Assessing Prinary School; Second Cycle Social Science Textbooks in ... second cycle primary level social science textbooks vis-à-vis the principles of multiculturalism. ... Biases were disclosed in gender, economic and occupational roles.

Scientific Output of Croatian Universities: Comparison with Neighbouring Countries

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Boris Podobnik

2008-06-01

Full Text Available We compared the Croatian research output with the neighboring countries and the Croatian universities with the largest Slovenian, Hungarian, and Serbian universities. As far as papers listed by Social Science Citation Index are concerned, since 2000 the University of Zagreb exhibits best results in social sciences compared to the competing universities, that is not the case in “hard” sciences. For the last 12 years, only the University of Ljubljana has shown better results in total research output than the University of Zagreb. The difference in research output between the University of Zagreb and the rest of the Croatian universities has been constantly decreasing. As a case study we compare research output at Faculty of Civil Engeenering on different Croatian universities. By analyzing European countries, we show a functional dependence between the gross domestic product (GDP and the research output. From this fit we conclude that the Croatian science exhibits research output as expected for the given level of GDP.

University Programme Preferences of High School Science Students in Singapore and Reasons that Matter in their Preferences: A Rasch analysis

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Oon, Pey-Tee; Subramaniam, R.

2015-01-01

This study explored an under-researched area in science education-the university programmes preferred by high school students who take physical science subjects and the reasons that matter in their preferences. A total of 1,071 upper secondary and pre-university students in Singapore, who take physical science subjects among their range of subjects, participated in this study. A survey method was adopted and the Rasch model was used to analyse the data. Overall, Business Studies was ranked as the predominant choice; nonetheless, scientific programmes such as Science, Engineering, and Mathematics are generally still well liked by the students. When gender differences were examined, we found that students largely followed gender-typical programme preferences, in which males tend to incline towards Engineering while females tend to incline towards Arts and Social Sciences. Students prefer a university programme based on their individual interest and ability, with career aspiration and remuneration coming next. Interestingly, females place greater emphasis on career aspiration than males. Some implications of the study are discussed.

Poster "Maladies rares & sciences sociales"

OpenAIRE

Duysens, Fanny

2018-01-01

Le poster "Maladies rares & sciences sociales" visait à présenter la recherche doctorale de l'auteure au grand public dans le cadre de la Journée des Maladies Rares du Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Liège dont le thème était "la recherche sur les maladies rares". Réalisé spécialement pour l'occasion, le poster explicitait de manière synthétique le sujet de recherche, la méthodologie, certains résultats, ainsi que les apports possibles des échanges entre chercheurs en sciences et sociales...

The Cooperation between Savonia University of Applied Sciences and West Anhui University

OpenAIRE

Tang, Guangjing; Xie, Jiajuan

2016-01-01

The aim of this thesis was to find out how to renew the double degree of Savonia University of Ap-plied Sciences and West Anhui University and listed some advantages and disadvantages of a cooperation project. Also the relevant responsible people were interviewed to get the reasons for the termination of this cooperation. The two universities signed the agreement of university cooperation projects in 2005 and the first group students went to Savonia in 2008. The contents of cooperation were a...

A data discovery index for the social sciences.

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Krämer, Thomas; Klas, Claus-Peter; Hausstein, Brigitte

2018-04-10

This paper describes a novel search index for social and economic research data, one that enables users to search up-to-date references for data holdings in these disciplines. The index can be used for comparative analysis of publication of datasets in different areas of social science. The core of the index is the da|ra registration agency's database for social and economic data, which contains high-quality searchable metadata from registered data publishers. Research data's metadata records are harvested from data providers around the world and included in the index. In this paper, we describe the currently available indices on social science datasets and their shortcomings. Next, we describe the motivation behind and the purpose for the data discovery index as a dedicated and curated platform for finding social science research data and gesisDataSearch, its user interface. Further, we explain the harvesting, filtering and indexing procedure and give usage instructions for the dataset index. Lastly, we show that the index is currently the most comprehensive and most accessible collection of social science data descriptions available.

Social sciences research in neglected tropical diseases 3: Investment in social science research in neglected diseases of poverty: a case study of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

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Reidpath Daniel

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The level of funding provides a good proxy for the level of commitment or prioritisation given to a particular issue. While the need for research relevant to social, economic, cultural and behavioural aspects of neglected tropical diseases (NTD control has been acknowledged, there is limited data on the level of funding that supports NTD social science research. Method A case study was carried out in which the spending of a major independent funder, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF - was analysed. A total of 67 projects funded between October 1998 and November 2008 were identified from the BMGF database. With the help of keywords within the titles of 67 grantees, they were categorised as social science or non-social science research based on available definition of social science. A descriptive analysis was conducted. Results Of 67 projects analysed, 26 projects (39% were social science related while 41 projects (61% were basic science or other translational research including drug development. A total of US$ 697 million was spent to fund the projects, of which 35% ((US$ 241 million went to social science research. Although the level of funding for social science research has generally been lower than that for non-social science research over 10 year period, social science research attracted more funding in 2004 and 2008. Conclusion The evidence presented in this case study indicates that funding on NTD social science research compared to basic and translational research is not as low as it is perceived to be. However, as there is the acute need for improved delivery and utilisation of current NTD drugs/technologies, informed by research from social science approaches, funding priorities need to reflect the need to invest significantly more in NTD social science research.

Social sciences research in neglected tropical diseases 3: Investment in social science research in neglected diseases of poverty: a case study of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Science.gov (United States)

Pokhrel, Subhash; Reidpath, Daniel; Allotey, Pascale

2011-01-06

The level of funding provides a good proxy for the level of commitment or prioritisation given to a particular issue. While the need for research relevant to social, economic, cultural and behavioural aspects of neglected tropical diseases (NTD) control has been acknowledged, there is limited data on the level of funding that supports NTD social science research. A case study was carried out in which the spending of a major independent funder, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) - was analysed. A total of 67 projects funded between October 1998 and November 2008 were identified from the BMGF database. With the help of keywords within the titles of 67 grantees, they were categorised as social science or non-social science research based on available definition of social science. A descriptive analysis was conducted. Of 67 projects analysed, 26 projects (39%) were social science related while 41 projects (61%) were basic science or other translational research including drug development. A total of US$ 697 million was spent to fund the projects, of which 35% ((US$ 241 million) went to social science research. Although the level of funding for social science research has generally been lower than that for non-social science research over 10 year period, social science research attracted more funding in 2004 and 2008. The evidence presented in this case study indicates that funding on NTD social science research compared to basic and translational research is not as low as it is perceived to be. However, as there is the acute need for improved delivery and utilisation of current NTD drugs/technologies, informed by research from social science approaches, funding priorities need to reflect the need to invest significantly more in NTD social science research.

Citing Journal Articles in Social Sciences Blogs

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Hamid Reza Jamali

2015-05-01

Full Text Available This article aims to analyze motivations behind social sciences blog posts citing journal articles in order to find out whether blog citations of scholarly journal articles are good indicators for the societal impact of research. A random sample of 300 social sciences blog posts (out of 1,233 blog posts from ResearchBlogging published between 01/01/2012 to 18/06/2014 were subjected to content analysis. An existing categorization scheme was used and modified inductively. The 300 blog posts had 472 references including 424 journal articles from 269 different journals. Sixty-one (22.68% of all journals cited were from the category of social sciences and most of the journals with high frequency were highly cited general science journals such as PNAS and Science. Seventy-five percent of all journals were referenced only once. The average age of articles cited was 5.8 years. The most frequent (38, 12.67% motivation was to ‘neutrally presenting details of a study’. Overall, social science blogs were rather subject-oriented than article oriented. This means a considerable number of blog posts were not driven simply by writing about an article, instead bloggers tend to write about their subject of interest and use references to support their argument. The study shows the potential of blog citations as an altmetric measure and as a proxy for assessing the research impact.

Prospects and challenges for social media data in conservation science

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Enrico eDi Minin

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Social media data have been extensively used in numerous fields of science, but examples of their use in conservation science are still very limited. In this paper, we propose a framework on how social media data could be useful for conservation science and practice. We present the commonly used social media platforms and discuss how their content could be providing new data and information for conservation science. Based on this, we discuss how future work in conservation science and practice would benefit from social media data.

The Courts, Social Science, and School Desegregation.

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Levin, Betsy, Ed.; Hawley, Willis D., Ed.

A conference on the courts, social science, and school desegregation attempted to clarify how social science research has been used and possibly misused in school desegregation litigation. The symposium issue addressed in this book is a product of that conference. First, the judicial evolution of the law of school desegregation from Brown V. the…

Impacting university physics students through participation in informal science

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Hinko, Kathleen; Finkelstein, Noah D.

2013-01-01

Informal education programs organized by university physics departments are a popular means of reaching out to communities and satisfying grant requirements. The outcomes of these programs are often described in terms of broader impacts on the community. Comparatively little attention, however, has been paid to the influence of such programs on those students facilitating the informal science programs. Through Partnerships for Informal Science Education in the Community (PISEC) at the University of Colorado Boulder, undergraduate and graduate physics students coach elementary and middle school children during an inquiry-based science afterschool program. As part of their participation in PISEC, university students complete preparation in pedagogy, communication and diversity, engage with children on a weekly basis and provide regular feedback about the program. We present findings that indicate these experiences improve the ability of university students to communicate in everyday language and positively influence their perspectives on teaching and learning.

Space Sciences Education and Outreach Project of Moscow State University

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Krasotkin, S.

2006-11-01

sergekras@mail.ru The space sciences education and outreach project was initiated at Moscow State University in order to incorporate modern space research into the curriculum popularize the basics of space physics, and enhance public interest in space exploration. On 20 January 2005 the first Russian University Satellite “Universitetskiy-Tatyana” was launched into circular polar orbit (inclination 83 deg., altitude 940-980 km). The onboard scientific complex “Tatyana“, as well as the mission control and information receiving centre, was designed and developed at Moscow State University. The scientific programme of the mission includes measurements of space radiation in different energy channels and Earth UV luminosity and lightning. The current education programme consists of basic multimedia lectures “Life of the Earth in the Solar Atmosphere” and computerized practice exercises “Space Practice” (based on the quasi-real-time data obtained from “Universitetskiy-Tatyana” satellite and other Internet resources). A multimedia lectures LIFE OF EARTH IN THE SOLAR ATMOSPHERE containing the basic information and demonstrations of heliophysics (including Sun structure and solar activity, heliosphere and geophysics, solar-terrestrial connections and solar influence on the Earth’s life) was created for upper high-school and junior university students. For the upper-university students there a dozen special computerized hands-on exercises were created based on the experimental quasi-real-time data obtained from our satellites. Students specializing in space physics from a few Russian universities are involved in scientific work. Educational materials focus on upper high school, middle university and special level for space physics students. Moscow State University is now extending its space science education programme by creating multimedia lectures on remote sensing, space factors and materials study, satellite design and development, etc. The space

Social Water Science Data: Dimensions, Data Management, and Visualization

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Jones, A. S.; Horsburgh, J. S.; Flint, C.; Jackson-Smith, D.

2016-12-01

Water systems are increasingly conceptualized as coupled human-natural systems, with growing emphasis on representing the human element in hydrology. However, social science data and associated considerations may be unfamiliar and intimidating to many hydrologic researchers. Monitoring social aspects of water systems involves expanding the range of data types typically used in hydrology and appreciating nuances in datasets that are well known to social scientists, but less understood by hydrologists. We define social water science data as any information representing the human aspects of a water system. We present a scheme for classifying these data, highlight an array of data types, and illustrate data management considerations and challenges unique to social science data. This classification scheme was applied to datasets generated as part of iUTAH (innovative Urban Transitions and Arid region Hydro-sustainability), an interdisciplinary water research project based in Utah, USA that seeks to integrate and share social and biophysical water science data. As the project deployed cyberinfrastructure for baseline biophysical data, cyberinfrastructure for analogous social science data was necessary. As a particular case of social water science data, we focus in this presentation on social science survey data. These data are often interpreted through the lens of the original researcher and are typically presented to interested parties in static figures or reports. To provide more exploratory and dynamic communication of these data beyond the individual or team who collected the data, we developed a web-based, interactive viewer to visualize social science survey responses. This interface is applicable for examining survey results that show human motivations and actions related to environmental systems and as a useful tool for participatory decision-making. It also serves as an example of how new data sharing and visualization tools can be developed once the

How the “Queen Science” Lost Her Crown: A Brief Social History of Science Fairs and the Marginalization of Social Science

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Jonathan Marx

2004-10-01

Full Text Available Science fairs at one time started out with an interest of increasing participation in the sciences. But as time has passed, the definition of science has been narrowed to the point where any possible social science project has been eliminated in favor of the bench sciences only. Even here, natural curiosity of students has been deemphasized. It is not surprising that science majors in the USA are becoming fewer and fewer given the narrowing of the disciplines. Young people are discouraged from majoring in science by the science establishment.

Enhancing Science Literacy and Art History Engagement at Princeton Through Collaboration Between the University Art Museum and the Council on Science and Technology

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Riihimaki, C. A.; White, V. M.

2016-12-01

The importance of innovative science education for social science and humanities students is often under-appreciated by science departments, because these students typically do not take science courses beyond general education requirements, nor do they contribute to faculty research programs. However, these students are vitally important in society—for example as business leaders or consultants, and especially as voters. In these roles, they will be confronted with decisions related to science in their professional and personal lives. The Council on Science and Technology at Princeton University aims to fill this education gap by developing and supporting innovative programs that bring science to cross-disciplinary audiences. One of our most fruitful collaborations has been with the Princeton University Art Museum, which has an encyclopedic collection of over 92,000 works of art, ranging from antiquity to the contemporary. Our work includes 1) bringing introductory environmental science courses to the Museum to explore how original works of art of different ages can serve as paleo-environmental proxies, thereby providing a means for discussing broader concepts in development of proxies and validation of reconstructions; 2) sponsoring a panel aimed at the general public and composed of science faculty and art historians who discussed the scientific and art historical contexts behind Albert Bierstadt's Mount Adams, Washington, 1875 (oil on canvas, gift of Mrs. Jacob N. Beam, accession number y1940-430), including the landscape's subjects, materials, technique, and style; and 3) collaborating on an installation of photographs relevant to a freshman GIS course, with an essay about the artwork written by the students. This first-hand study of works of art encourages critical thinking and an empathetic approach to different historical periods and cultures, as well as to the environment. Our collaboration additionally provides an opportunity to engage more students in

Report on a Boston University Conference December 7-8, 2012 on How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching?

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Garik, Peter; Benétreau-Dupin, Yann

2014-09-01

This is an editorial report on the outcomes of an international conference sponsored by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) (REESE-1205273) to the School of Education at Boston University and the Center for Philosophy and History of Science at Boston University for a conference titled: How Can the History and Philosophy of Science Contribute to Contemporary US Science Teaching? The presentations of the conference speakers and the reports of the working groups are reviewed. Multiple themes emerged for K-16 education from the perspective of the history and philosophy of science. Key ones were that: students need to understand that central to science is argumentation, criticism, and analysis; students should be educated to appreciate science as part of our culture; students should be educated to be science literate; what is meant by the nature of science as discussed in much of the science education literature must be broadened to accommodate a science literacy that includes preparation for socioscientific issues; teaching for science literacy requires the development of new assessment tools; and, it is difficult to change what science teachers do in their classrooms. The principal conclusions drawn by the editors are that: to prepare students to be citizens in a participatory democracy, science education must be embedded in a liberal arts education; science teachers alone cannot be expected to prepare students to be scientifically literate; and, to educate students for scientific literacy will require a new curriculum that is coordinated across the humanities, history/social studies, and science classrooms.

Third age university, social and institucional commitment

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Flora Moritz da Silva

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article brings reflections on the social commitment of permanent education programs for the elderly, at the universities, in the face of their institutional commitment to the plans. It was possible to rescue the responsibility concepts, social commitment and identify the elderly in the university, within the federal legislation, through bibliographical and documentary research. There was a survey of permanent education programs with at least 20 years, in 2016. It was carried out for the elderly in the 63 Brazilian Federal, and Public Universities and 17 cases were found. Thus, nine Pro-Rectors of Extension and a Unit Director accepted to participate in interviews by Skype or telephone, in the second semester of 2016, fulfilling the objective of describing the university authorities’ vision on the type of institutional support for such programs’ operation. Although it is possible to realize their relevance to the environment and the university, the institutional commitment is still far short of what is necessary.

Trimodernism and Social Sciences: A Note

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Snell, Joel C.

2012-01-01

The issues of premodern, modern, and postmodern can often confuse the social scientists because so much is drawn from modernism as the foundation of the social methodologies. Briefly, the author would like to differentiate the three modernism philosophies and indicate how a coalition of the three may apply to social sciences.

University access for social justice: a capabilities perspective

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Merridy Wilson-Strydom

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The closely related, but often contradictory, issues of increasing access to university and improving students' chances of success in their university studies have been and continue to be an important research focus within higher education studies and policy in South Africa and beyond. More recently, the challenge of underpreparedness of students entering university has gained prominence as universities struggle to increase their throughput rates. It can be argued that increasing access, without increasing chances of success, is becoming a new form of social exclusion within higher education. Thispaperproposes that approaching issues of access from a capabilities perspective (as developed by Amartya Sen provides a means of fostering access for social justice and countering access that leads to social exclusion. As such, this is a theoretical paper building on existing work on the capabilities approach within education to argue that the notion of capabilities provides a useful theoretical and conceptual framework for understanding the complexities of meaningful access to university in a deeply divided society like South Africa.

The Investigation of Social Problem Solving Abilities of University Students in Terms of Perceived Social Support

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Tras, Zeliha

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study is to analyze of university students' perceived social support and social problem solving. The participants were 827 (474 female and 353 male) university students. Data were collected Perceived Social Support Scale-Revised (Yildirim, 2004) and Social Problem Solving (Maydeu-Olivares and D'Zurilla, 1996) translated and…

Waterpipe smoking among health sciences university students in Iran: perceptions, practices and patterns of use

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Ghafouri Nasim

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In recent years waterpipe smoking has become a popular practice amongst young adults in eastern Mediterranean countries, including Iran. The aim of this study was to assess waterpipe smoking perceptions and practices among first-year health sciences university students in Iran and to identify factors associated with the initiation and maintenance of waterpipe use in this population. Results Out of 371 first-year health sciences students surveyed, 358 eight students completed a self-administered questionnaire in the classrooms describing their use and perceptions towards waterpipe smoking. Two hundred and ninety six responders met study inclusion criteria. Waterpipe smoking was common among first-year health sciences university students, with 51% of students indicating they were current waterpipe smokers. Women were smoking waterpipes almost as frequently as men (48% versus 52%, respectively. The majority of waterpipe smokers (75.5% indicated that the fun and social aspect of waterpipe use was the main motivating factor for them to continue smoking. Of waterpipe smokers, 55.3% were occasional smokers, using waterpipes once a month or less, while 44.7% were frequent smokers, using waterpipes more than once a month. A large number of frequent waterpipe smokers perceived that waterpipe smoking was a healthier way to use tobacco (40.6% while only 20.6% thought it was addictive. Compared to occasional smokers, significantly more frequent smokers reported waterpipe smoking was relaxing (62.5% vs. 26.2%, p = 0.002, energizing (48.5% vs. 11.4%, p = 0.001, a part of their culture (58.8% vs. 34.1%, p = 0.04, and the healthiest way to use tobacco (40.6% vs. 11.1%, p = 0.005. Conclusions Social and recreational use of waterpipes is widespread among first-year health sciences university students in Iran. Women and men were almost equally likely to be current waterpipe users. Public health initiatives to combat the increasing use of

Winch, Wittgenstein and the Idea of a Critical Social Science

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hermansen, Jens Christian

such phenomena. In the light of new uses ofWittgenstein within social theory and recent philosophical research on Wittgenstein (that challenge the orthodoxWinchian reception of Wittgenstein), the paper discusses the prospects of a critical social science after Wittgenstein.......In "The Idea of a Social Science" and in the article "Understanding a Primitive Society" Peter Winch develops what he believes to be the implications ofWittgenstein's late philosophy for the social sciences. Inspired byWittgenstein,Winch argues for a linguistic turn. Winch's basic ontological claim...... is that social life is conceptually organised: it is organised by the ways in which language is used by members of social life. This claim has methodological implications: the social sciences are, according to Winch, conceptual studies, that is, they are studies of the concepts possessed by members of social...

Evolution and the American social sciences: An evolutionary social scientist's view.

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Thayer, Bradley A

2004-03-01

American social scientists rarely ever use evolutionary concepts to explain behavior, despite the potential of such concepts to elucidate major social problems. I argue that this observation can be understood as the product of three influences: an ideologically narrowed political liberalism; a fear of ''Social Darwinism'' as a scientific idea, rather than a scientific apostasy; and a widely believed criticism of evolutionary thinking as deterministic, reductionistic, and Panglossian. I ask what is to be done to encourage social scientists to learn and to apply evolutionary lessons. I answer with four solutions. First, evolutionary social scientists should more effectively educate their non-evolutionary students and colleagues. Second, they should publicize, even popularize, accessible refutations of perennially misleading criticisms. Third, they should more credibly assure skeptics that evolutionary theory not only keeps the ''social'' in social science but better explains social behavior than can any individual-level theory, such as rational-choice theory. Fourth, they should recall that biology took generations to become Darwinian, and they must understand that the social sciences may take as long to become evolutionary.

A Department of Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at Hampton University

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Paterson, W. R.; McCormick, M. P.; Russell, J. M.; Anderson, J.; Kireev, S.; Loughman, R. P.; Smith, W. L.

2006-12-01

With this presentation we discuss the status of plans for a Department of Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences at Hampton University. Hampton University is a privately endowed, non-profit, non-sectarian, co-educational, and historically black university with 38 baccalaureate, 14 masters, and 4 doctoral degree programs. The graduate program in physics currently offers advanced degrees with concentration in Atmospheric Science. The 10 students now enrolled benefit substantially from the research experience and infrastructure resident in the university's Center for Atmospheric Sciences (CAS), which is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Promoting a greater diversity of participants in geosciences is an important objective for CAS. To accomplish this, we require reliable pipelines of students into the program. One such pipeline is our undergraduate minor in Space, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences (SEAS minor). This minor concentraton of study is contributing to awareness of geosciences on the Hampton University campus, and beyond, as our students matriculate and join the workforce, or pursue higher degrees. However, the current graduate program, with its emphasis on physics, is not necessarily optimal for atmospheric scientists, and it limits our ability to recruit students who do not have a physics degree. To increase the base of candidate students, we have proposed creation of a Department of Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, which could attract students from a broader range of academic disciplines. The revised curriculum would provide for greater concentration in atmospheric and planetary sciences, yet maintain a degree of flexibility to allow for coursework in physics or other areas to meet the needs of individual students. The department would offer the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees, and maintain the SEAS minor. The university's administration and faculty have approved our plan for this new department pending authorization by the university's board of trustees, which will

Stitching together the heterogeneous party: A complementary social data science experiment

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Anders Blok

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The era of ‘big data’ studies and computational social science has recently given rise to a number of realignments within and beyond the social sciences, where otherwise distinct data formats – digital, numerical, ethnographic, visual, etc. – rub off and emerge from one another in new ways. This article chronicles the collaboration between a team of anthropologists and sociologists, who worked together for one week in an experimental attempt to combine ‘big’ transactional and ‘small’ ethnographic data formats. Our collaboration is part of a larger cross-disciplinary project carried out at the Danish Technical University (DTU, where high-resolution transactional data from smartphones allows for recordings of social networks amongst a freshman class (N = 800. With a parallel deployment of ethnographic fieldwork among the DTU students, this research set-up raises a number of questions concerning how to assemble disparate ‘data-worlds’ and to what epistemological and political effects? To address these questions, a specific social event – a lively student party – was singled out from the broader DTU dataset. Our experimental collaboration used recordings of Bluetooth signals between students’ phones to visualize the ebb and flow of social intensities at the DTU party, juxtaposing these with ethnographic field-notes on shifting party atmospheres. Tracing and reflecting on the process of combining heterogeneous data, the article offers a concrete case of how a ‘stitching together’ of digital and ethnographic data-worlds might take place.

Approaching gender parity: Women in computer science at Afghanistan's Kabul University

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Plane, Jandelyn

This study explores the representation of women in computer science at the tertiary level through data collected about undergraduate computer science education at Kabul University in Afghanistan. Previous studies have theorized reasons for underrepresentation of women in computer science, and while many of these reasons are indeed present in Afghanistan, they appear to hinder advancement to degree to a lesser extent. Women comprise at least 36% of each graduating class from KU's Computer Science Department; however, in 2007 women were 25% of the university population. In the US, women comprise over 50% of university populations while only graduating on average 25% women in undergraduate computer science programs. Representation of women in computer science in the US is 50% below the university rate, but at KU, it is 50% above the university rate. This mixed methods study of KU was conducted in the following three stages: setting up focus groups with women computer science students, distributing surveys to all students in the CS department, and conducting a series of 22 individual interviews with fourth year CS students. The analysis of the data collected and its comparison to literature on university/department retention in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics gender representation and on women's education in underdeveloped Islamic countries illuminates KU's uncharacteristic representation of women in its Computer Science Department. The retention of women in STEM through the education pipeline has several characteristics in Afghanistan that differ from countries often studied in available literature. Few Afghan students have computers in their home and few have training beyond secretarial applications before considering studying CS at university. University students in Afghanistan are selected based on placement exams and are then assigned to an area of study, and financially supported throughout their academic career, resulting in a low attrition rate

The role of universities in promoting social entrepreneurship in South Africa

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Lawrence Mpele Lekhanya

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Social entrepreneurship can help to reduce socio-economic problems facing many countries including South Africa. Also it can be used as a strategic tool in building social cohesion in country. This paper aimed to examine the role of Universities in promoting social entrepreneurship in South Africa. The study also look assess the support that universities are providing to social entrepreneurship and to evaluate the extend of the support. The paper also analyses most strategies used by South African universities to help the development of social entrepreneurship. Mix approaches of qualitative and quantitative techniques were employed for data collection. The primary data was collected from six universities in South Africa where two comprehensive universities, two universities of Technologies from KwaZulu -Natal province and two comprehensive universities in Gauteng province were chosen for sample for this study. The sample consisted of 40 respondents made up of deans of faculties, heads of departments, and director of social entrepreneurship and head of social entrepreneurship department respectively according to structure of each university. Combination of structured qualitative and five –point Likert scale questionnaire were emailed to the respondents to complete. The results reveal that most of respondents are not involved in social entrepreneurship activities, or any entrepreneurship development programs. The findings also indicate that some respondents they had no clue about social entrepreneurship that their universities are involved in. the study was limited by exploratory nature. Therefore, generalization must be done with care. Further research should aim to target large sample and include other academic staff rather than focusing only on the deans and heads of departments.

Universal dimensions of social cognition: warmth and competence.

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Fiske, Susan T; Cuddy, Amy J C; Glick, Peter

2007-02-01

Like all perception, social perception reflects evolutionary pressures. In encounters with conspecifics, social animals must determine, immediately, whether the "other" is friend or foe (i.e. intends good or ill) and, then, whether the "other" has the ability to enact those intentions. New data confirm these two universal dimensions of social cognition: warmth and competence. Promoting survival, these dimensions provide fundamental social structural answers about competition and status. People perceived as warm and competent elicit uniformly positive emotions and behavior, whereas those perceived as lacking warmth and competence elicit uniform negativity. People classified as high on one dimension and low on the other elicit predictable, ambivalent affective and behavioral reactions. These universal dimensions explain both interpersonal and intergroup social cognition.

A university system's approach to enhancing the educational mission of health science schools and institutions: the University of Texas Academy of Health Science Education

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L. Maximilian Buja

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Background: The academy movement developed in the United States as an important approach to enhance the educational mission and facilitate the recognition and work of educators at medical schools and health science institutions. Objectives: Academies initially formed at individual medical schools. Educators and leaders in The University of Texas System (the UT System, UTS recognized the academy movement as a means both to address special challenges and pursue opportunities for advancing the educational mission of academic health sciences institutions. Methods: The UTS academy process was started by the appointment of a Chancellor's Health Fellow for Education in 2004. Subsequently, the University of Texas Academy of Health Science Education (UTAHSE was formed by bringing together esteemed faculty educators from the six UTS health science institutions. Results: Currently, the UTAHSE has 132 voting members who were selected through a rigorous, system-wide peer review and who represent multiple professional backgrounds and all six campuses. With support from the UTS, the UTAHSE has developed and sustained an annual Innovations in Health Science Education conference, a small grants program and an Innovations in Health Science Education Award, among other UTS health science educational activities. The UTAHSE represents one university system's innovative approach to enhancing its educational mission through multi- and interdisciplinary as well as inter-institutional collaboration. Conclusions: The UTAHSE is presented as a model for the development of other consortia-type academies that could involve several components of a university system or coalitions of several institutions.

DESANDANDO PASADOS, TEJIENDO FUTUROS. LAS CIENCIAS SOCIALES ESCOLARES EN PERSPECTIVA / UNDOING THE PAST, WEAVING FUTURES. THE SOCIAL SCIENCES AT SCHOOL IN PERSPECTIVE

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Laura M. Mendez

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Las ciencias sociales escolarizadas desde su constitución como disciplinas áulicas y, muy especialmente, en los últimos 30 años, han sufrido profundas transformaciones tanto en sus contenidos como en su fundamentación, sentido y metodologías. El propósito de este artículo es reconstruir el itinerario de los cambios y las permanencias de la enseñanza de las ciencias sociales en la Patagonia Norte, con relación a los contextos sociales, políticos y económicos en los que delinearon las propuestas educativas. Se analizarán especialmente las conceptualizaciones vinculadas al espacio social, la, temporalidad y las identidades, a los que se concibe como conceptos claves del universo social. Por último, el artículo presenta para su discusión, algunas sugerencias referidas a los actos de educar que vinculan a las ciencias sociales con docentes, estudiantes y realidades situadas. / Since their constitution as a school discipline, and particularly in the last 30 years, social sciences have sustained deep transformations in their contents and in their rationale, meaning and methodologies as well. The purpose of this article is to reconstruct the itinerary of those changes and the permanence of the teaching of the social sciences in the Patagonia Norte, in relation to the social, political and economic contexts where the educational proposals were formulated. The conceptualizations related to the social space, the temporality and the identities, which are conceived as key concepts of the social universe, will be specially analyzed. Finally, the article presents for discussion some suggestions related to the acts of education which associate the social sciences with teachers, students and situated realities.

Social Work Science and Knowledge Utilization

Science.gov (United States)

Marsh, Jeanne C.; Reed, Martena

2016-01-01

Objective: This article advances understanding of social work science by examining the content and methods of highly utilized or cited journal articles in social work. Methods: A data base of the 100 most frequently cited articles from 79 social work journals was coded and categorized into three primary domains: content, research versus…

Evaluation of Life Sciences and Social Sciences Course Books in Term of Societal Sexuality

Science.gov (United States)

Aykac, Necdet

2012-01-01

This study aims to evaluate primary school Life Sciences (1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades) and Social Sciences (4th, 5th, and 6th grades) course books in terms of gender discrimination. This study is a descriptive study aiming to evaluate the primary school Life Sciences (1st, 2nd, 3rd grades) and Social Sciences (4th, 5th, and 6th grades) course books…

Survival Analysis of Faculty Retention and Promotion in the Social Sciences by Gender.

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Janet M Box-Steffensmeier

Full Text Available Recruitment and retention of talent is central to the research performance of universities. Existing research shows that, while men are more likely than women to be promoted at the different stages of the academic career, no such difference is found when it comes to faculty retention rates. Current research on faculty retention, however, focuses on careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM. We extend this line of inquiry to the social sciences.We follow 2,218 tenure-track assistant professors hired since 1990 in seven social science disciplines at nineteen U.S. universities from time of hire to time of departure. We also track their time to promotion to associate and full professor. Using survival analysis, we examine gender differences in time to departure and time to promotion. Our methods account for censoring and unobserved heterogeneity, as well as effect heterogeneity across disciplines and cohorts.We find no statistically significant differences between genders in faculty retention. However, we do find that men are more likely to be granted tenure than women. When it comes to promotion to full professor, the results are less conclusive, as the effect of gender is sensitive to model specification.The results corroborate previous findings about gender patterns in faculty retention and promotion. They suggest that advances have been made when it comes to gender equality in retention and promotion, but important differences still persist.

Integrating social science knowledge into natural resource management public involvement practice

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stummann, Cathy Brown

This PhD study explores the long-recognized challenge of integrating social science knowledge into NRM public involvement practice theoretically and empirically. Theoretically, the study draws on research from adult learning, continuing rofessional education and professional knowledge development...... to better understand how social science knowledge can benefit NRM public involvement practice. Empirically, the study explores the potential of NRM continuing professional education as a means for introducing social science knowledge to public NRM professionals. The study finds social science knowledge can...... be of value to NRM public involvement prospectively and retrospectively; and that continuing professional education can be an effective means to introducing social science knowledge to public NRM professionals. In the design of NRM continuing professional education focused on social science knowledge...

Social Science in the Making: An Economist's View

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Winden, F.A.A.M.; van Lange, P.A.M.

2006-01-01

Recent developments in economics and psychology suggest that productivity in the social sciences will benefit from crossing existing academic barriers, and that such crossing is more and more likely. Social science is in the making, but its success seems particularly conditioned on the willingness

Popper, Rationality and the Possibility of Social Science

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Danny Frederick

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Social science employs teleological explanations which depend upon the rationality principle, according to which people exhibit instrumental rationality. Popper points out that people also exhibit critical rationality, the tendency to stand back from, and to question or criticise, their views. I explain how our critical rationality impugns the explanatory value of the rationality principle and thereby threatens the very possibility of social science. I discuss the relationship between instrumental and critical rationality and show how we can reconcile our critical rationality with the possibility of social science if we invoke Popper’s conception of limited rationality and his indeterminism.

Universities and Corporate Social Responsibility Performance: An ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Toshiba

CSR universities can pay attention to; these areas are: economic responsibility, ... The idea or thinking of corporate social ... commonly accepted that a good reputation can create a strong competitive advantage ...... Universalities also need to take into consideration philanthropic ..... Critical Perspectives on Accounting. Vol.

"Hypothetical machines": the science fiction dreams of Cold War social science.

Science.gov (United States)

Lemov, Rebecca

2010-06-01

The introspectometer was a "hypothetical machine" Robert K. Merton introduced in the course of a 1956 how-to manual describing an actual research technique, the focused interview. This technique, in turn, formed the basis of wartime morale research and consumer behavior studies as well as perhaps the most ubiquitous social science tool, the focus group. This essay explores a new perspective on Cold War social science made possible by comparing two kinds of apparatuses: one real, the other imaginary. Even as Merton explored the nightmare potential of such machines, he suggested that the clear aim of social science was to build them or their functional equivalent: recording machines to access a person's experiential stream of reality, with the ability to turn this stream into real-time data. In this way, the introspectometer marks and symbolizes a broader entry during the Cold War of science-fiction-style aspirations into methodological prescriptions and procedural manuals. This essay considers the growth of the genre of methodological visions and revisions, painstakingly argued and absorbed, but punctuated by sci-fi aims to transform "the human" and build newly penetrating machines. It also considers the place of the nearly real-, and the artificial "near-substitute" as part of an experimental urge that animated these sciences.

Early career researchers and PhD students from the social sciences use of Social Networking Sites (SNS) for science communication: an affordances approach

OpenAIRE

Manco Vega, Alejandra

2017-01-01

This research aims to understand the different practices and strategies early career researchers and PhD students from the social sciences have in Social Networking Sites (SNSs) for science communication in one particular country: Brazil. Following this purpose, the central research question is which are the motives and rationale of the researchers for using social networking sites for science communication. Two sub-questions arise from this general research question: How do practices and str...

Developing Communities of Enquiry: Dealing with Social and Ethical Issues in Science at Key Stage 3

Science.gov (United States)

Dunlop, Lynda; Humes, Gill; Clarke, Linda; Martin, Valerie McKelvey

2011-01-01

Reproductive technologies, drug discovery and exploration of the universe are areas of contemporary research that raise issues for individuals and society. Forward Thinking, Northern Ireland uses the development of communities of enquiry to promote discussion of these and other social and ethical issues in science with students aged 11-14 years.…

Mode-2 social science knowledge production?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kropp, Kristoffer; Blok, Anders

2011-01-01

The notion of mode-2 knowledge production points to far-reaching transformations in science-society relations, but few attempts have been made to investigate what growing economic and political demands on research may entail for the social sciences. This case study of new patterns of social science...... knowledge production outlines some major institutional and cognitive changes in Danish academic sociology during 'mode-2' times, from the 1980s onwards. Empirically, we rely on documentary sources and qualitative interviews with Danish sociologists, aiming to reconstruct institutional trajectories...... show how a particular cognitive modality of sociology — 'welfare reflexivity' — has become a dominant form of Danish sociological knowledge production. Welfare reflexivity has proven a viable response to volatile mode-2 policy conditions....

Citizen Data Science for Social Good in Complex Systems

OpenAIRE

Soumya Banerjee

2018-01-01

The confluence of massive amounts of openly available data, sophisticated machine learning algorithms and an enlightened citizenry willing to engage in data science presents novel opportunities for crowd sourced data science for social good. In this submission, I present vignettes of data science projects that I have been involved in and which have impact in various spheres of life and on social good. Complex systems are all around us: from social networks to transportation systems, cities, e...

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: About this journal

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: About this journal. Journal Home > Eastern Africa Social Science Research Review: About this journal. Log in or Register to get access to full text downloads.

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF UKRAINIAN UNIVERSITIES: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS AND MAIN DIRECTIONS OF DEVELOPMENT

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O. Grishnova

2014-04-01

Full Text Available The paper encapsulates the essence of university social responsibility. The study explores basic directions of universities social responsible activities in Ukraine and in western countries. A comparative assessment is conducted as to distribution of social responsibility in national universities activities. The paper specifies priority areas of social responsibility education.

South African University students' intentions to establish social Enterprises

OpenAIRE

Suzette Viviers; Chanel Venter; Goosain Solomon

2012-01-01

Stimulating social entrepreneurship in South Africa has the potential to address not only the high youth unemployment rate in the country, but also other pressing social and environmental challenges. This study was conducted as part of the 2011 Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey and focused on South African university students’ intentions to start social enterprises. The findings, based on 673 responses to an online questionnaire, reveal that the majority of respondents...

Student Empowerment in an Environmental Science Classroom: Toward a Framework for Social Justice Science Education

Science.gov (United States)

Dimick, Alexandra Schindel

2012-01-01

Social justice education is undertheorized in science education. Given the wide range of goals and purposes proposed within both social justice education and social justice science education scholarship, these fields require reconciliation. In this paper, I suggest a student empowerment framework for conceptualizing teaching and learning social…

GIS and the Social Sciences : Theory and Applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ballas, Dimitris; Clarke, Graham; Franklin, Rachel S.; Newing, Andy

2017-01-01

GIS and the Social Sciences offers a uniquely social science approach on the theory and application of GIS with a range of modern examples. It explores how human geography can engage with a variety of important policy issues through linking together GIS and spatial analysis, and demonstrates the

Role of ethnicity in social anxiety disorder: A cross-sectional survey among health science students.

Science.gov (United States)

Jager, Philip De; Suliman, Sharain; Seedat, Soraya

2014-07-16

To investigate the influence of ethnicity in social anxiety disorder (SAD), and the relationship with symptom severity, depression and substance use or abuse, in health sciences' students . This was a cross-sectional survey of 112 1(st), 2(nd) and 3(rd) year students from the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa. The self-reported Social Anxiety Spectrum questionnaire was used to assess for SAD. The Social Phobia Inventory (SPIN) was adapted to a version called the E-SPIN (Ethnic-SPIN) in order to evaluate the effects of ethnicity. Two sub-questions per stem question were included to assess whether SAD symptoms in social interactions were ethnicity dependent. Substance use was assessed with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and Drug Use Disorders Identification Test, and depression with the Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Of 112 students who completed the E-SPIN questionnaire, 54.4% (n = 61) met criteria for SAD, with significantly more females than males meeting criteria. Ethnicity had a significant effect on SAD symptomatology, but there was no effect of ethnicity on the rates of drug and alcohol abuse in students with and without SAD. Overall significantly more students with SAD met criteria for depression compared with students without the disorder. Among university students, SAD is prevalent regardless of whether interactions are with individuals of the same or different ethnic group. However, ethnicity may be an important determinant of social anxiety for some ethnic groups. SAD was significantly associated with major depression but not significantly associated with drug or alcohol abuse.

Pre-Service Teachers' Attitudes toward Teaching Science and Their Science Learning at Indonesia Open University

Science.gov (United States)

Suprapto, Nadi; Mursid, Ali

2017-01-01

This study focuses on attitudes toward (teaching) science and the learning of science for primary school among pre-service teachers at the Open University of Indonesia. A three-year longitudinal survey was conducted, involving 379 students as pre-service teachers (PSTs) from the Open University in Surabaya regional office. Attitudes toward…

The Relationship between Sleep Quality and Social Intimacy, and Academic Burn-Out in Students of Medical Sciences

OpenAIRE

Arbabisarjou, Azizollah; Mehdi, Hashemi Seyed; Sharif, Mohammad Reza; Alizadeh, Kobra Haji; Yarmohammadzadeh, Peyman; Feyzollahi, Zahra

2015-01-01

Introduction: Academic burnout leads to creation of a series of negative and scattered thoughts, loss of hope and emotional and physical exhaustion in carrying out activities. Two factors that affect academic burnout are sleep quality and social intimacy. This study was conducted in order to investigate the relationship between sleep quality and social intimacy, and academic burn-out in the students of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences Materials & Methods: This study was descriptive and c...

Academic procrastination and related factors in students of Guilan University of Medical Sciences

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MM Chehrzad

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Introduction: One of the challenges that students faced during their education is academic procrastination. It means “delay in performing a task”. Since academic procrastination could effect on various aspects of students' personal and social life, by identifying related factors it may be limited. This study aimed to determined academic procrastination and related factors in Students of Guilan University of Medical Sciences in 2015. Methods:  In this cross-sectional study, 459 students of all major programs of Guilan University of Medical Sciences were selected by stratified random sampling method. Data collection scales included three parts of demographic information, academic information and Procrastination Assessment Scale for Students (PASS by Solomon and Rothblum. Data was analyzed with T- Test, ANOVA, multiple regressions by SPSS V. 20.  Result: Most of students were female (72.7%, single (86% and undergraduate (66.6%. Mean score of academic procrastination was 63.3±9.1 and most students (69.5% had moderate procrastination. Academic procrastination had significant difference with gender (p=0.002 and academic level (p=0.03. Also in multiple regression models, gender, program of study  and academic level were main predictors of procrastination.  Females, dental students and postgraduate students had higher level of academic procrastination. Conclusion: There is a moderate academic procrastination in students of Guilan University of Medical Sciences and its relationship with gender, program of study and academic level was observed.  Investigation on causes and appropriate strategies to reduce this behavior is recommended.

The Ethical Challenges of Socially Responsible Science.

Science.gov (United States)

Resnik, David B; Elliott, Kevin C

2016-01-01

Social responsibility is an essential part of the responsible conduct of research that presents difficult ethical questions for scientists. Recognizing one's social responsibilities as a scientist is an important first step toward exercising social responsibility, but it is only the beginning, since scientists may confront difficult value questions when deciding how to act responsibly. Ethical dilemmas related to socially responsible science fall into at least three basic categories: 1) dilemmas related to problem selection, 2) dilemmas related to publication and data sharing, and 3) dilemmas related to engaging society. In responding to these dilemmas, scientists must decide how to balance their social responsibilities against other professional commitments and how to avoid compromising their objectivity. In this article, we will examine the philosophical and ethical basis of social responsibility in science, discuss some of the ethical dilemmas related to exercising social responsibility, and make five recommendations to help scientists deal with these issues.

Response: From Fish and Bicycles to a Science of Social Work

Science.gov (United States)

Marsh, Jeanne Cay

2012-01-01

John Brekke challenges the field and profession of social work to define and develop the "science of social work". This response to Brekke's paper identifies the premises undergirding a discussion of the science of social work related to (1) a definition of "science";; (2 ) an organizing principle for social work; (3) a…

Social Science in Forestry Curricula: A Case Study of Colombia Forestry Programs

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Liz Farleidy Villarraga-Flórez

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Tropical forest management depends greatly on complex social interactions. To understand the underlying human causes of deforestation and to plan forest management, it is of great importance to incorporate social science in the study of forestry. There is insufficient information about the incorporation of social sciences in undergraduate forestry programs. Foresters are well prepared in ecology, silviculture, forest measurements, and operational topics such as logging, but their knowledge of basic elements of social sciences is limited. This study explored the extent to which tertiary forestry education programs in Colombia include social science. It also examined students’ perceptions of social sciences courses in the curriculum. About 10% of course credits are in economics, administration, and foreign language, courses on social science are listed as optional. A high percentage of current sophomore (fifth semester, junior, and senior students do not have clear knowledge of basic social research methods, although a majority have used social science techniques at some point in their academic careers.

University access for social justice: a capabilities perspective ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

University access for social justice: a capabilities perspective. M Wilson-Strydom. Abstract. The closely related, but often contradictory, issues of increasing access to university and improving students' chances of success in their university studies have been and continue to be an important research focus within higher ...

Performance in grade 12 mathematics and science predicts student nurses' performance in first year science modules at a university in the Western Cape.

Science.gov (United States)

Mthimunye, Katlego D T; Daniels, Felicity M

2017-10-26

The demand for highly qualified and skilled nurses is increasing in South Africa as well as around the world. Having a background in science can create a significant advantage for students wishing to enrol for an undergraduate nursing qualification because nursing as profession is grounded in scientific evidence. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictive validity of grade 12 mathematics and science on the academic performance of first year student nurses in science modules. A quantitative research method using a cross-sectional predictive design was employed in this study. The participants included first year Bachelor of Nursing students enrolled at a university in the Western Cape, South Africa. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed to analyse the data by using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences versions 24. Descriptive analysis of all variables was performed as well as the Spearman's rank correlation test to describe the relationship among the study variables. Standard multiple linear regressions analysis was performed to determine the predictive validity of grade 12 mathematics and science on the academic performance of first year student nurses in science modules. The results of this study showed that grade 12 physical science is not a significant predictor (p > 0.062) of performance in first year science modules. The multiple linear regression revealed that grade 12 mathematics and life science grades explained 37.1% to 38.1% (R2 = 0.381 and adj R2 = 0.371) of the variation in the first year science grade distributions. Based on the results of the study it is evident that performance in grade 12 mathematics (β = 2.997) and life science (β = 3.175) subjects is a significant predictor (p < 0.001) of the performance in first year science modules for student nurses at the university identified for this study.

Prevalence of ADHD among the Students Residing in Dormitory of Ardabil University of Medical Sciences

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Fariba Sadeghi Movahed

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Background & Objective: Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD is a heredity and psychological disorder that often continues to adulthood and causes great number of emotional, social, educational and occupational problem for college students. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of ADHD among students residing in the dormitory of Ardabil University of Medical Sciences.   Methods: In this cross sectional study, all students in the dormitory of Ardabil University of Medical Sciences were included. They filled the Self reporting Conner’s ADHD questionnaires. Data were extracted and analyzed with SPSS.   Results: During this study, the prevalence of ADHD was 8.6 percent. The males show more involvement rate than females. The students with ADHD showed more incidences of smoking and psychotropic drug consumption.   Conclusion: Due to the high prevalence of ADHD among the college students, early diagnosis and treatment of ADHD seems to be necessary.

Curricular transformation of health professions education in Tanzania: the process at Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (2008-2011).

Science.gov (United States)

Ngassapa, Olipa D; Kaaya, Ephata E; Fyfe, Molly V; Lyamuya, Eligius F; Kakoko, Deodatus C; Kayombo, Edmund J; Kisenge, Rodrick R; Loeser, Helen; Mwakigonja, Amos R; Outwater, Anne H; Martin-Holland, Judy; Mwambete, Kennedy D; Kida, Irene; Macfarlane, Sarah B

2012-01-01

Tanzania requires more health professionals equipped to tackle its serious health challenges. When it became an independent university in 2007, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) decided to transform its educational offerings to ensure its students practice competently and contribute to improving population health. In 2008, in collaboration with the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), all MUHAS's schools (dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and public health and social sciences) and institutes (traditional medicine and allied health sciences) began a university-wide process to revise curricula. Adopting university-wide committee structures, procedures, and a common schedule, MUHAS faculty set out to: (i) identify specific competencies for students to achieve by graduation (in eight domains, six that are inter-professional, hence consistent across schools); (ii) engage stakeholders to understand adequacies and inadequacies of current curricula; and (iii) restructure and revise curricula introducing competencies. The Tanzania Commission for Universities accredited the curricula in September 2011, and faculty started implementation with first-year students in October 2011. We learned that curricular revision of this magnitude requires: a compelling directive for change, designated leadership, resource mobilization inclusion of all stakeholders, clear guiding principles, an iterative plan linking flexible timetables to phases for curriculum development, engagement in skills training for the cultivation of future leaders, and extensive communication.

On the almost inconceivable misunderstandings concerning the subject of value-free social science.

Science.gov (United States)

Black, Donald

2013-12-01

A value judgment says what is good or bad, and value-free social science simply means social science free of value judgments. Yet many sociologists regard value-free social science as undesirable or impossible and readily make value judgments in the name of sociology. Often they display confusion about such matters as the meaning of value-free social science, value judgments internal and external to social science, value judgments as a subject of social science, the relevance of objectivity for value-free social science, and the difference between the human significance of social science and value-free social science. But why so many sociologists are so value-involved - and generally so unscientific - is sociologically understandable: The closest and most distant subjects attract the least scientific ideas. And during the past century sociologists have become increasingly close to their human subject. The debate about value-free social science is also part of an epistemological counterrevolution of humanists (including many sociologists) against the more scientific social scientists who invaded and threatened to expropriate the human subject during the past century. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2013.

Strengthening Social Science Research in Iraq | IDRC - International ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

This grant will allow the Iraqi Institute of Strategic Studies to map the country's social science research capacity by means of field research and a survey in three ... Outputs. Journal articles. Problems of the national and the ethnic/sectarian in Iraq [Arabic language]. Download PDF. Reports. State of social sciences in Iraq ...

Social Sciences and Space Exploration

Science.gov (United States)

1988-01-01

The relationship between technology and society is a subject of continuing interest, because technological change and its effects confront and challenge society. College students are especially interested in technological change, knowing that they must cope with the pervasive and escalating effect of wide-ranging technological change. The space shuttle represents a technological change. The book's role is to serve as a resource for college faculty and students who are or will be interested in the social science implications of space technology. The book is designed to provide introductory material on a variety of space social topics to help faculty and students pursue teaching, learning, and research. Space technologies, perspectives on individual disciplines (economics, history, international law, philosophy, political science, psychology, and sociology) and interdiscipline approaches are presented.

The university, social education and the education of social educator

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Irandi Pereira

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the relations between university and social education and their developments in the social educator education supported by an education conception linked to the collective rights. This article emphasizes the relations between theory and the social education actions, the social educator continual education, according to three focus: Brazilian higher education aspects, the call for a more general education towards the demands resulting from the contemporary context, in which the formal education, in its different levels, cannot answer the low income adults, youngsters and children solicitations and yet the requests needed for the social educator continual education. The readings have shown that the debate is insufficient in face of the social education experiences carried out in national and international scenarios. It is a field to be effectively established.

Science, Innovation, and Social Work: Purpose: Clash or Convergence?

Science.gov (United States)

Flynn, Marilyn L.

2017-01-01

Social work as a human services profession has been distinctive for its inclusion of research as a required element of practice and instrument in instigating reform. At the present time, the relationship of social work to science and a redefinition of social work as a science have reentered our national dialogue with new force. This expansion of…

Creating and Sustaining University-Community Partnerships in Science Education (Invited)

Science.gov (United States)

Finkelstein, N.

2009-12-01

Despite years of research and investment, we have yet to see the widespread implementation of a myriad research-proven instructional strategies in STEM education[1]. To address this challenge, we present and analyze one such strategy, a theoretically-grounded model of university-community partnership [2] that engages university students and children in a collective enterprise that has the potential to improve the participation and education of all. We document the impact of this effort on: university participants who learn about education, the community and science; children in the community who learn about science, the nature of science and develop their identities and attitudes towards science; and, shifts in institutional structures which may allow these programs to be part of standard practice. This project is designed to be sustained and scaled, and is analyzed through the application of a new framework [3] which brings together theories of STEM change that come from studies in higher education, faculty development and disciplinary-based education research in STEM. [1] National Research Council. (2003). Improving Undergraduate Instruction in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics: Report of A Workshop. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press. [2] Finkelstein, N. and Mayhew, L. (2008). Acting in Our Own Self-Interest: Blending University and Community. Proceedings of the 2008 Physics Education Research Conf, AIP Press. Melville NY, 1064, 19-22. [3] Henderson, C., Finkelstein, N. & Beach A. (to appear). Beyond Dissemination in College science teaching: An Introduction to Four Core Change Strategies. Accepted May 2009 in Journal of College Science Teaching.

HALF A CENTURY OF GENERATIVE LINGUISTICS – WHAT HAS THE PARADIGM GIVEN TO SOCIAL SCIENCE?

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Mihailo Antović

2007-12-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to join marking the fiftieth anniversary of generativelinguistics by focusing on some principal contributions the field has given to science in general. In the first part of the paper, I discuss the issue of 'modern linguistics', as it is widely taught in local universities, and examine the importance of the generative school in this notion of modernity. In the second part, I analyze the fundamental conceptions and epistemological framework of this school in the study of language, pinpointing fifteen legacies it seems to have already left to human thought, as follows: breakup withbehaviourism; reinstitution of the hypothetico-deductive method; elaboration of the mind-body issue; revival of the thesis that the only true reality is that of the human mind; reintroduction and extension of the term 'cognitive'; participation in rapidterminological changes in the social sciences; return to the problem of language universals with a strong focus on the genetic origins of language faculty; extended usage of the term 'grammar'; contribution to the deletion of clear boundaries between the natural and social sciences, especially in psychology; rise of reductionism in formalsciences; return to the once forgotten Gestalt principles of perception; radical breakup between lexical and sentence semantics; neo-Darwinism; rise of neuroscience; impetus to the foundation of new fields, often multidisciplinary ones. Reconciliation of cognitiveand generative linguistics in the future is anticipated.

Climate change adaptation and social sciences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charles, L.

2013-01-01

Climate change subjects societies to a large range of uncertainties concerning the future and their development orientation. It came up as a scientific global problem, extended to political concerns first at a global and then national scales. Though it has long been the object of economic approaches which have notably contributed to its recognition, particularly the Stern Report, social sciences have hardly been mobilized as part of policies to counteract it. Social sciences strongly question the notion of climate change being built as a global scale transcendent phenomenon, analyzed by several authors. With the rise of adaptation policies, the question becomes even more important. Adaptation first comes up as a spontaneous behaviour, independent of policy, in close relationship to social dimensions as a basic way through which climate change is grasped collectively. Thus adaptation policies' social aspects need to be carefully worked in relation with more general goals for adaptation policies to be implemented efficiently, on the basis of wide interactions between local and global scales. (author)

The Department of Food Science at Aarhus University

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2014-01-01

The Dept. of Food Science at Aarhus University is all about food and food quality. Everyone has an expertise in food whether they are focused on taste, health-promoting qualities, sustainable food production or developing new food products. At Dept. of Food Science we carry out research on a high...

Rural science education as social justice

Science.gov (United States)

Eppley, Karen

2017-03-01

What part can science education play in the dismantling of obstacles to social justice in rural places? In this Forum contribution, I use "Learning in and about Rural Places: Connections and Tensions Between Students' Everyday Experiences and Environmental Quality Issues in their Community"(Zimmerman and Weible 2016) to explicitly position rural education as a project of social justice that seeks full participatory parity for rural citizens. Fraser's (2009) conceptualization of social justice in rural education requires attention to the just distribution of resources, the recognition of the inherent capacities of rural people, and the right to equal participation in democratic processes that lead to opportunities to make decisions affecting local, regional, and global lives. This Forum piece considers the potential of place-based science education to contribute to this project.

Explicit training in human values and social attitudes of future engineers in Spain : commentary on "preparing to understand and use science in the real world: interdisciplinary study concentrations at the technical University of Darmstadt".

Science.gov (United States)

Fabregat, Jaime

2013-12-01

In Spain before the 1990s there was no clear and explicit comprehensive training for future engineers with regard to social responsibility and social commitment. Following the Spanish university curricular reform, which began in the early 1990s, a number of optional subjects became available to students, concerning science, technology and society (STS), international cooperation, the environment and sustainability. The latest redefinition of the Spanish curriculum in line with the Bologna agreements has reduced the number of non-obligatory subjects, but could lead to improving preparation for social responsibility due to the requirement that the design of curricula and the assessment of students should be based on competencies, some of which include human values and attitudes.

Research and teaching nuclear sciences at universities in developing countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-11-01

A formulation is given for a set of ground rules to be applied when introducing or improving nuclear science training at the university level in developing countries. Comments are made on the general requirements needed for the teaching of nuclear science at the university and particular suggestions made for the areas of nuclear physics radiochemistry and radiation chemistry and electronics

Business in Social Work Education: A Historically Black University's Social Work Entrepreneurship Project

Science.gov (United States)

Archibald, Paul; Muhammad, Omar; Estreet, Anthony

2016-01-01

The destabilization of the current economy has sparked increased interest in entrepreneurship, especially for underrepresented minority social work students. The entrepreneurial thinking of these social work students entering social work programs at historically Black colleges and universities needs to be fostered in a learning environment. This…

The Homogeneity of Social Selection in Accessing Higher Ranked Universities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munk, Martin David; Baklanov, Nikita

2018-01-01

This paper demonstrates the persistence of social selectivity throughout the educational ladder, with evident social reproduction at the top. By jointly modelling multiple choices of high school, university, field of study, and institutional rank of university using a multinomial transition model...

Higher Social-Science Education in the U.S.S.R.

Science.gov (United States)

Volkov, F. M.

1979-01-01

Examines social science teaching in the Soviet Union and explains how it is related to technological advancement. Topics discussed include social progress, developments within the social sciences, political influences, teaching methods, and teacher characteristics. Journal availability: see SO 507 303. (DB)

The Social Science Teacher. 1972. Collected Conference Papers: Social Science Concepts Classroom Methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Noble, Pat, Ed.; And Others

Papers in this publication are collected from a conference on social science concepts and classroom methods which focused on the theories of Jerome Bruner. The first article, entitled "Jerome Bruner," outlines four of Bruner's themes--structure, readiness, intuition, and interest--which relate to cognitive learning. Three…

Scientific Competencies in the Social Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Dietrich, Heike; Zhang, Ying; Klopp, Eric; Brünken, Roland; Krause, Ulrike-Marie; Spinath, Frank M.; Stark, Robin; Spinath, Birgit

2015-01-01

The aim of the present study was to introduce a general theoretical model of scientific competencies in higher education and to adapt it to three social sciences, namely psychology, sociology, and political science, by providing evidence from expert interviews and program regulations. Within our general model, we distinguished and specified four…

Social Science Research Findings and Educational Policy Dilemmas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Steven I. Miller

2000-01-01

Full Text Available The article attempts to raise several distinctions regarding the presumed relationship of social science research findings to social policy making. The distinctions are made using Glymour's critique of the Bell Curve. An argument is made that (1 social science models and research findings are largely irrelevant to the actual concerns of policy makers and (2 what is relevant, but overlooked by Glymour, is how ideological factors mediate the process. The forms that ideological mediation may take are indicated.

Identification of subjects for social responsibility education at universities and the present activity at the university of Tokyo.

Science.gov (United States)

Karima, Risuke; Oshima, Yoshito; Yamamoto, Kazuo

2006-01-01

The management of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has recently become a critical concern for companies in advanced countries. For universities, there is a requirement to contribute to the promotion of CSR, resulting in graduates who have sufficient cognition of and a good attitude towards CSR. In addition, universities have social responsibilities, which can be called "University Social Responsibility (USR)." On the basis of the concepts of the guidelines for CSR in the "Green Paper," which was presented by the European Committee (EC) in 2001, we provide a perspective here on what factors dictate the establishment of education programs for social responsibilities at universities. These factors include an outline of the concepts and the significance of CSR, social ethics and the morals of higher education and research, compliances, human resource management, human rights, safety and health in academic settings, and various concerns regarding environmental safety and preservation. Additionally, through the concept postulated here for social responsible education, in this paper, we introduce the present activity at the University of Tokyo (UT) in terms of the education program for CSR and USR, proposing that the future establishment of university-wide education programs based on the concept of CSR and the value of sustainability is required at UT.

Science Ideals and Science Careers in a University Biology Department

Science.gov (United States)

Long, David E.

2014-01-01

In an ethnographic study set within a biology department of a public university in the United States, incongruity between the ideals and practice of science education are investigated. Against the background of religious conservative students' complaints about evolution in the curriculum, biology faculty describe their political intents for…

University Knowledge Transfer Offices and Social Responsibility

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irene Martín-Rubio

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Numerous studies and reviews about University Knowledge Transfer Offices (UKTO have been written, but there are few that focus on Social Responsibility (SR. We present a systematic review of the research on both fields. We consider not only logics from agency theory and resource-based view, but also the dynamic approach from institutional theory, as they aim to generate sustainable economic and social value. The evolution of Knowledge Transfer Offices depends on their role as brokers of collaborations among different stakeholders, according to their mission and capacity to confront the innovation gap. We follow the line of SR viewed as a response to the specific demands of large stakeholders. Building upon recent conceptualizations of different theories, we develop an integrative model for understanding the institutional effects of the UKTO on university social responsibility.

The Employment Outlook for Social Science Majors in the South.

Science.gov (United States)

Galambos, Eva C.

This assessment of the future job market for social science graduates is made both generically and separately for certain disciplines. The definition of the social sciences follows the USOE definition and includes: anthropology, archeology, economics, history, geography, political science, sociology, criminology, international relations, urban…

Risk in social science

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Zinn, Jens; Taylor-Gooby, Peter

2006-01-01

... for control. Advances in social science improve understanding of how people perceive and prioritise risks, broaden awareness of the bearing of a range of other issues (trust, experience during the life course, democratic expectations) on people's capacity to manage risks, and facilitate exploration of the ways in which people communicate abo...

Pre-Service Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Teaching Science and Their Science Learning at Indonesia Open University

OpenAIRE

Nadi SUPRAPTO; Ali MURSID

2017-01-01

This study focuses on attitudes toward (teaching) science and the learning of science for primary school among pre-service teachers at the Open University of Indonesia. A three-year longitudinal survey was conducted, involving 379 students as pre-service teachers (PSTs) from the Open University in Surabaya regional office. Attitudes toward (teaching) science’ (ATS) instrument was used to portray PSTs’ preparation for becoming primary school teachers. Data analyses were used, including descrip...

Managing obligations to society. Case of best ranked universities in social responsibility

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Păunescu Carmen

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Universities have always been engines for the economy, in multiple roles they play, trying to adapt to the continual dynamic changes in the environment, to better align their offerings with the current expectations of the students, employers and society as a whole. Many of the jobs that are now developing on the market and still will develop, as well as the multiple roles that the graduates are asked to play in society, have never been on the agenda of the universities in the past, nor on the mind of the curriculum designers. The current paper aims to assess the university engagement with community by analyzing 27 world universities best ranked in social responsibility according to QS Stars University Ratings 2016. In the paper, we discuss the extent to which different attributes of the university social responsibility are reflected among the initiatives and projects run by the universities investigated. Also, we analyze correlations between university ranking in social responsibility and other rankings. Following the QS Stars methodology, the criteria used to evaluate social responsibility of selected universities included: community investment and development, social work and service in community, human capital development, environmental concern and impact, and other social responsibility actions. The results show that the degree of involvement of universities in social responsible initiatives varies broadly for each one of the dimensions analyzed, in terms of nature, intensity and impact of initiatives. Our research findings offer good insights for both universities’ leaders and community developers in their joint-efforts to develop and grow a prosperous community.

Robotics as an integration subject in the computer science university studies. The experience of the University of Almeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manuela Berenguel Soria

2012-11-01

Full Text Available This work presents a global view of the role of robotics in computer science studies, mainly in university degrees. The main motivation of the use of robotics in these studies deals with the following issues: robotics permits to put in practice many computer science fundamental topics, it is a multidisciplinary area which allows to complete the basic knowledge of any computer science student, it facilitates the practice and learning of basic competences of any engineer (for instance, teamwork, and there is a wide market looking for people with robotics knowledge. These ideas are discussed from our own experience in the University of Almeria acquired through the studies of Computer Science Technical Engineering, Computer Science Engineering, Computer Science Degree and Computer Science Postgraduate.

Social representations of science and gender in Science teaching

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bettina Heerdt

2017-09-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the Social Representations (SR of teachers regarding the Nature of Science (NoS, gender issues in society, Science and in the teaching context. The theoretical approach is Moscovici’s SR associated to NoS discussions, Science feminist theories and Teaching of Science. A number of twenty-two teachers were part of this research. Data were collected through the filmic record. The lexical analysis was performed using the Alceste software. Four classes were formed: NoS, Gender and women in Science, Gender and teaching context, and Gender and society. In the areas of the teachers’ education, it was not possible to find significant differences in SR. Through empirical data, the distinct argumentation of men and women is noticed. The SR of men, naturalized, discriminatory and of gender issue denial in society and Science, is more forceful than of women. It is necessary, in the initial and continued education, the problematization of gender issues in Science.

Using the Theme of Mass Extinctions to Teach Science to Non-Science Major College and University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Boness, D. A.

2013-12-01

The general public is heavily exposed to "news" and commentary---and arts and entertainment---that either inadvertently misrepresents science or even acts to undermine it. Climate change denial and evolution denial is well funded and pervasive. Even university-educated people get little exposure to the aims, methods, debates, and results of scientific inquiry because unless they earn degrees in science they typically only take one or two introductory science courses at the university level. This presentation reports the development of a new, non-science major Seattle University course on mass extinctions throughout earth history. Seattle University is an urban, Jesuit Catholic university. The topic of mass extinctions was chosen for several reasons: (1) To expose the students to a part of current science that has rich historical roots yet by necessity uses methods and reasoning from geology, geophysics, oceanography, physics, chemistry, biology, and astronomy. This multidisciplinary course provides some coverage of sciences that the student would not typically ever see beyond secondary school. (2) To enable the students to learn enough to follow some of the recent and current debates within science (e.g., mass extinctions by asteroid impact versus massive volcanism, ocean anoxia, and ocean acidification), with the students reading some of the actual literature, such as articles in Science, Nature, or Nature Geoscience. (3) To emphasize the importance of "deep time" as evolutionary biological processes interact with massive environmental change over time scales from hundreds of millions of years down to the seconds and hours of an asteroid or comet strike. (4) To show the effects of climate change in the past, present, and future, due to both natural and anthropogenic causes. (5) To help the student critically evaluate the extent to which their future involves a human-caused mass extinction.

Time and Money Explain Social Class Differences in Students' Social Integration at University

Science.gov (United States)

Rubin, Mark; Wright, Chrysalis L.

2017-01-01

Working-class students tend to be less socially integrated at university than middle-class students. The present research investigated two potential reasons for this working-class social exclusion effect. First, working-class students may have fewer finances available to participate in social activities. Second, working-class students tend to be…

Creating university spin-offs: a science-based design perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Burg, van J.C.; Romme, A.G.L.; Gilsing, V.A.; Reymen, I.M.M.J.

2008-01-01

Academic entrepreneurship by means of university spin-offs commercializes technological breakthroughs, which may otherwise remain unexploited. However, many universities face difficulties in creating spin-offs. This article adopts a science-based design approach to connect scholarly research with

Creating university spin-offs : a science-based design perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Burg, van J.C.; Romme, A.G.L.; Gilsing, V.A.; Reymen, I.M.M.J.; Dan Remenyi, xx

2007-01-01

Academic entrepreneurship by means of university spin-offs commercializes technological breakthroughs, which may otherwise remain unexploited. However, many universities face difficulties in creating spin-offs. This article adopts a science-based design approach, to connect scholarly research with

Towards Shibboleth-based security in the e-infrastructure for social sciences

OpenAIRE

Jie, Wei; Daw, Michael; Procter, Rob; Voss, Alex

2007-01-01

The e-Infrastructure for e-Social Sciences project leverages Grid computing technology to provide an integrated platform which enables social science researchers to securely access a variety of e-Science resources. Security underpins the e-Infrastructure and a security framework with authentication and authorization functionality is a core component of the e-Infrastructure for social sciences. To build the security framework, we adopt Shibboleth as the basic authentication and authorization i...

[Universalization of health or of social security?].

Science.gov (United States)

Levy-Algazi, Santiago

2011-01-01

This article presents an analysis of the architecture of Mexico's health system based on the main economic problem, failing to achieve a GDP growth rate to increase real wages and give workers in formal employment coverage social security. This analysis describes the relationship between social security of the population and employment status of it (either formal or informal employment) and the impact that this situation poses to our health system. Also, it ends with a reform proposal that will give all workers the same social rights, ie to grant universal social security.

Dubna - A University Town Exhibition Science Bringing Nations Together

CERN Multimedia

1977-01-01

On the initiative of the JINR Directorate, which was supported by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Russia, the International University of Nature, Society and Man, was set up in 1991. Then, the JINR University Centre was established, where senior students of the leading Russian Physics institutes finish their education under the supervision of JINR scientists and attend practical studies in the JINR Laboratories. This new JINR development concept envisages a gradual conversion to an international centre which will integrate fundamental science, technological studies and education.

Dubna - A University Town Exhibition Science Bringing Nations Together

CERN Multimedia

1999-01-01

On the initiative of the JINR Directorate, which was supported by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Russia, the International University of Nature, Society and Man, was set up in 1991. Then, the JINR University Centre was established, where senior students of the leading Russian Physics institutes finish their education under the supervision of JINR scientists and attend practical studies in the JINR Laboratories. This new JINR development concept envisages a gradual conversion to an international centre which will integrate fundamental science, technological studies and education.

Commonly Shared Foundation of Mathematics, Information Science, Natural Science, Social Science, and Theology

OpenAIRE

Wayne, James J.

2014-01-01

Through a simple thought experiment, this paper shows that there must be a shared foundation of mathematics, information science, natural science, social science, and theology. The thought experiment is to ask a volunteer to write down an arbitrary real number between 0 and 1 with many digits. For example, 0.19823765010367129462…. would be one of such numbers. Then we analyze this experiment result by asking five simple questions: Is the real number a random real? Can the observed real numbe...

Mining of Social Media Data of University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Archana

2017-01-01

The youth power to speak their mind, recommendations and opinions about various issues on social media cannot be ignored. There is a generated by students on social media websites like, facebook, Orkut, twitter etc. This paper focusses on the extraction of knowledge from the data floated by the University students on social websites in different…

Building capacity in implementation science research training at the University of Nairobi.

Science.gov (United States)

Osanjo, George O; Oyugi, Julius O; Kibwage, Isaac O; Mwanda, Walter O; Ngugi, Elizabeth N; Otieno, Fredrick C; Ndege, Wycliffe; Child, Mara; Farquhar, Carey; Penner, Jeremy; Talib, Zohray; Kiarie, James N

2016-03-08

Health care systems in sub-Saharan Africa, and globally, grapple with the problem of closing the gap between evidence-based health interventions and actual practice in health service settings. It is essential for health care systems, especially in low-resource settings, to increase capacity to implement evidence-based practices, by training professionals in implementation science. With support from the Medical Education Partnership Initiative, the University of Nairobi has developed a training program to build local capacity for implementation science. This paper describes how the University of Nairobi leveraged resources from the Medical Education Partnership to develop an institutional program that provides training and mentoring in implementation science, builds relationships between researchers and implementers, and identifies local research priorities for implementation science. The curriculum content includes core material in implementation science theory, methods, and experiences. The program adopts a team mentoring and supervision approach, in which fellows are matched with mentors at the University of Nairobi and partnering institutions: University of Washington, Seattle, and University of Maryland, Baltimore. A survey of program participants showed a high degree satisfaction with most aspects of the program, including the content, duration, and attachment sites. A key strength of the fellowship program is the partnership approach, which leverages innovative use of information technology to offer diverse perspectives, and a team model for mentorship and supervision. As health care systems and training institutions seek new approaches to increase capacity in implementation science, the University of Nairobi Implementation Science Fellowship program can be a model for health educators and administrators who wish to develop their program and curricula.

Socializing the coast: Engaging the social science of tropical coastal research

Science.gov (United States)

Spalding, Ana K.; Biedenweg, Kelly

2017-03-01

The broad scale and rapid rate of change in the global environment is causing some of the world's most challenging problems, such as habitat degradation, loss of biodiversity, and food insecurity. These problems are especially pressing in coastal environments in the tropics, resulting in significant impacts on human wellbeing and ecological systems across the globe. The underlying causes of marine and coastal environmental change are both anthropogenic and natural; and, while it is difficult to parse out causal linkages as either exclusively human or naturally occurring, feedbacks between drivers only exacerbate the issues. Increasingly, scholars are turning to integrated research efforts, whereby multiple disciplines are used to answer pressing questions about and find solutions for the sustainability of human life and natural ecosystems across the coastal tropics. This article leverages the recent wave of interdisciplinary research to explore the various ways in which the social sciences have successfully contributed to a more complete understanding of coastal systems across the tropics. It also identifies opportunities for research that move beyond single disciplinary approaches to coastal science. The concluding discussion suggests social science knowledge areas that are underutilized in coastal research and provides suggestions for increasing the incorporation of social science in coastal research programs.

Critical bioethics: beyond the social science critique of applied ethics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hedgecoe, Adam M

2004-04-01

This article attempts to show a way in which social science research can contribute in a meaningful and equitable way to philosophical bioethics. It builds on the social science critique of bioethics present in the work of authors such as Renee Fox, Barry Hoffmaster and Charles Bosk, proposing the characteristics of a critical bioethics that would take social science seriously. The social science critique claims that traditional philosophical bioethics gives a dominant role to idealised, rational thought, and tends to exclude social and cultural factors, relegating them to the status of irrelevancies. Another problem is they way in which bioethics assumes social reality divides down the same lines/categories as philosophical theories. Critical bioethics requires bioethicists to root their enquiries in empirical research, to challenge theories using evidence, to be reflexive and to be sceptical about the claims of other bioethicists, scientists and clinicians. The aim is to produce a rigorous normative analysis of lived moral experience.

Regression analysis for the social sciences

CERN Document Server

Gordon, Rachel A

2010-01-01

The book provides graduate students in the social sciences with the basic skills that they need to estimate, interpret, present, and publish basic regression models using contemporary standards. Key features of the book include: interweaving the teaching of statistical concepts with examples developed for the course from publicly-available social science data or drawn from the literature. thorough integration of teaching statistical theory with teaching data processing and analysis. teaching of both SAS and Stata "side-by-side" and use of chapter exercises in which students practice programming and interpretation on the same data set and course exercises in which students can choose their own research questions and data set.

Social Responsibility At The Academic Level. Study Case: The University Of Bucharest

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul Marinescu

2010-12-01

Full Text Available In the last decades the corporate social responsibility (CSR has been a major subject both for universities, civil society and businesses. Although the CSR concept is especially promoted by large multinational and transnational corporations, it has become also a prominent issue for universities. Social responsibility represents more than a challenge for universities. It has to be a purpose of the universities, taking into account that young people formation also means creating a high level of awareness about the need to involve members of society in solving social problems. Our paper contributes for better clarifying the CSR concept and presents as a study case some of initiatives of the University of Bucharest related to the social responsibility.

Effects of Perceived Social Support and Psychological Resilience on Social Media Addiction among University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Bilgin, Okan; Tas, Ibrahim

2018-01-01

This research investigated the effects of perceived social support and psychological resilience on social media addiction among university students. The research group was composed of 503 university students. The ages of participant students varied between 17 and 31 years old. 340 (67.6%) of the participants are female and 163 (32.4%) of them are…

Collaboration in the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences in Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Haddow, Gaby; Xia, Jianhong; Willson, Michele

2017-01-01

This paper reports on the first large-scale quantitative investigation into collaboration, demonstrated in co-authorship, by Australian humanities, arts and social sciences (HASS) researchers. Web of Science data were extracted for Australian HASS publications, with a focus on the softer social sciences, over the period 2004-2013. The findings…

The Relationship between Sleep Quality and Social Intimacy, and Academic Burn-Out in Students of Medical Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Arbabisarjou, Azizollah; Hashemi, Seyed Mehdi; Sharif, Mohammad Reza; Haji Alizadeh, Kobra; Yarmohammadzadeh, Peyman; Feyzollahi, Zahra

2015-11-05

Academic burnout leads to creation of a series of negative and scattered thoughts, loss of hope and emotional and physical exhaustion in carrying out activities. Two factors that affect academic burnout are sleep quality and social intimacy. This study was conducted in order to investigate the relationship between sleep quality and social intimacy, and academic burn-out in the students of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. This study was descriptive and correlational. The population of this study consisted of the students in Tabriz University of Medical Sciences and 196 medical students were selected. They completed Berso et al. Academic Burnout Questionnaire, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and Miller Social Intimacy Scale (MSIS). The validity of the questionnaires confirmed by experts' views. Their reliability were obtained as 77%, 64% and 85% for academic burnout, sleep quality and social intimacy questionnaires respectively by calculating the internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha). For data analysis, descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation test, Regression, cluster analysis and t-test were used. The results showed that there was a positive and significant relationship between sleep quality and academic burnout at the level pintimacy and academic burnout at the level pintimacy were able to predict 37% and 39% of academic burnout respectively. Moreover, the students were divided into two clusters of individuals with high social intimacy and individuals with low social intimacy. No significant difference was found between the two types in terms of the variable of academic burn-out. Based on the research results, it can be stated that the variables of sleep quality and social intimacy are the predictor factors of academic burn-out.

A guide to understanding social science research for natural scientists.

Science.gov (United States)

Moon, Katie; Blackman, Deborah

2014-10-01

Natural scientists are increasingly interested in social research because they recognize that conservation problems are commonly social problems. Interpreting social research, however, requires at least a basic understanding of the philosophical principles and theoretical assumptions of the discipline, which are embedded in the design of social research. Natural scientists who engage in social science but are unfamiliar with these principles and assumptions can misinterpret their results. We developed a guide to assist natural scientists in understanding the philosophical basis of social science to support the meaningful interpretation of social research outcomes. The 3 fundamental elements of research are ontology, what exists in the human world that researchers can acquire knowledge about; epistemology, how knowledge is created; and philosophical perspective, the philosophical orientation of the researcher that guides her or his action. Many elements of the guide also apply to the natural sciences. Natural scientists can use the guide to assist them in interpreting social science research to determine how the ontological position of the researcher can influence the nature of the research; how the epistemological position can be used to support the legitimacy of different types of knowledge; and how philosophical perspective can shape the researcher's choice of methods and affect interpretation, communication, and application of results. The use of this guide can also support and promote the effective integration of the natural and social sciences to generate more insightful and relevant conservation research outcomes. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

The Postgraduate Study of Macromolecular Sciences at the University of Zagreb (1971-1980)

OpenAIRE

Kunst, B.; Dezelic, D.; Veksli, Z.

2008-01-01

The postgraduate study of macromolecular sciences (PSMS) was established at the University of Zagreb in 1971 as a university study in the time of expressed interdisciplinary permeation of natural sciences - physics, chemistry and biology, and application of their achievements in technologicaldisciplines. PSMS was established by a group of prominent university professors from the schools of Science, Chemical Technology, Pharmacy and Medicine, as well as from the Institute of Biology. The study...

Social sciences via network analysis and computation

CERN Document Server

Kanduc, Tadej

2015-01-01

In recent years information and communication technologies have gained significant importance in the social sciences. Because there is such rapid growth of knowledge, methods and computer infrastructure, research can now seamlessly connect interdisciplinary fields such as business process management, data processing and mathematics. This study presents some of the latest results, practices and state-of-the-art approaches in network analysis, machine learning, data mining, data clustering and classifications in the contents of social sciences. It also covers various real-life examples such as t

Science Students and the Social Sciences: Strange Bedfellows?

Science.gov (United States)

Yeong, Foong May

2014-01-01

With various internet resources available to students, the main aim of a good university education today should not merely be to provide students with content knowledge, but rather to equip them with essential skills necessary to develop into lifelong learners. Among science educators, repeated calls have been made to promote a more holistic…

Narratives of location: School science identities and scientific discourse among Navajo women at the University of New Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Brandt, Carol B.

This research examines the interplay of scientific discourse and students' sense of self among four Navajo (Dine) women as they major in science at a university in the southwestern United States. This dissertation research is an ethnographic case study of Navajo women as they were completing their final year of undergraduate study in the life sciences at a university. How do Navajo women express their identity in Western science at the university? What role does scientific discourse play in this process? This research employs a feminist poststructural approach to language and expands the way discourse has typically been addressed in science education. I expand the notion of discourse through poststructuralism by recognizing the co-constitutive role of language in fashioning realities and generating meaning. Data sources in this study included transcripts from one-on-one interviews, electronic correspondence (e-mail), observations of social contexts on campus, students' writing for science courses, university policy statements, departmental outcomes assessments, web profiles of student research in science, and a researcher's reflective journal. This study took place beginning in January 2002 and continued through May of 2003 at the University of New Mexico. After completing the thematic (constant comparative analysis) and an analysis of metaphors, I "retold" or "restoried" the narratives collected during interviews. In the cross case analysis, I compared each participant's description of those discursive spaces that afforded engagement with science, and those locations where their awareness of academic language was heightened in a process of metadiscourse. I identified these spaces as locations of possibility in which students and their mentors (or instructors) valued connected knowing, acknowledged each other's history, culture, and knowledge, and began speaking to each other subject-to-subject to challenge normative views of schooling. The participants in this

Fire social science research–selected highlights.

Science.gov (United States)

Armando González-Cabán; Richard W. Haynes; Sarah McCaffrey; Evan Mercer; Alan Watson

2007-01-01

Forest Service Research and Development has a long-standing component of social fire science that since 2000 has expanded significantly. Much of this new work focuses on research that will increase understanding of the social and economic issues connected with wildland fire and fuels management. This information can enhance the ability of agencies and communities to...

About the Social Responsibility of Universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan José Martí-Noguera

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Given the arrival of the fourth industrial revolution, according to a recent report by the World Economic Forum (2016; it becomes urgent to, from the universities, thoroughly reflect upon the role and impact of higher education in the contemporary society, regarding the evolution of its social and economic systems. Such an analysis must face critical aspects as the pertinence and quality of the educational offer, the teaching and learning methods, the social relevance of research and its transference, the funding systems available to satisfy the needs and expectations of the interest groups, as well as those of society as a whole. © Revista Colombiana de Ciencias Sociales.

Availability and Overlap of Quality Computer Science Journal Holdings in Selected University Libraries in Malaysia

OpenAIRE

Zainab, A.N.; Ng, S.L.

2003-01-01

The study reveals the availability status of quality journals in the field of computer science held in the libraries of the University of Malaya, (UM), University of Science Malaysia (USM), University of Technology Malaysia (UTM), National University of Malaysia (UKM) and University Putra Malaysia (UPM). These universities are selected since they offer degree programmes in computer science. The study also investigates the degree of overlaps and unique titles in the five libraries. The Univers...

Science Motivation of University Students: Achievement Goals as a Predictor

Science.gov (United States)

Arslan, Serhat; Akcaalan, Mehmet; Yurdakul, Cengiz

2017-01-01

The objective of this investigation is to make a study of the relationship between achievement goals and science motivation. Research data were collected from 295 university students. Achievement goals and science motivation scales were utilized as measure tools. The link between achievement goals orientation and science motivation was…

The present state of social science research in Asia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lieten, G.K.

2014-01-01

The first pan-Asia conference ‘Status and Role of Social Science Research in Asia, Emerging Challenges and Policy Issues’ (New Delhi, 13-15 March 2014), with representatives from 24 countries in Asia and some non-Asian countries, was intended to assess the present state of social science research in

Mapping 'Social Responsibility' in Science

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Glerup, Cecilie; Horst, Maja

2014-01-01

This article employs the Foucauldian notion of ‘political rationality’ to map discussions and ideals about the responsibility of science toward society. By constructing and analyzing an archive of 263 journal papers, four political rationalities were identified: the Demarcation rationality, which......, which insists that responsible science should live up to public demands for innovation and democracy; and the Integration rationality, which advocates that science should be co-constructed with societal actors in order to be socially responsible. While each rationality is distinct, the article argues...... that all of them address the issue of a boundary (or integration) between science and society. Hence, it is not possible for scientists to avoid ‘a relationship’ with society. The political question is how this relationship is to be defined and regulated....

Teachers Learning to Teach Science by Doing Science at the University of Arizona

Science.gov (United States)

Mangin, K. L.; Thompson, R. M.; Wilch, M.

2006-12-01

Many departments across the College of Science at the University of Arizona provide the opportunity for teachers to do original scientific research. These programs either provide skills and curriculum that can be translated into the classroom or include direct participation by K-12 students with their teachers. This paper introduces three of the many unique programs that UA offers for teacher professional development. The College of Science offers a teacher professional development course to accompany a public lecture series that runs each semester on a different topic of current social and scientific interest. During the Spring 2006 semester, the series subject was evolution, with attendance at each lecture running in excess of 600. This fall, the topic is climate change. In addition to attending lectures and participating in group discussions with the speakers, the teachers conduct research into regional climate change using the Western Regional Climate Center's publicly available, web-hosted climate data. The teachers brainstorm about possible influences on the data other than anthropogenic alteration of atmospheric composition, and control for these influences in their experimental design as best they can. Such influences might include urbanization, instrumental change, and natural variability. The College of Science is developing collaborations with community partners, including a local high school science magnet and a high school in the Galapagos Islands. Among several programs created in partnership with Tucson High School, Science and Nature in Tandem for Youth (SANITY) brings science teachers and students to the Southwest Research Station to conduct ecological research of their own design including the investigation of the effects of drought and other physical factors on the biosphere. The Southwest Research Station is located in the Chiricahua Mountains, one of the so-called "sky islands" and a crucial cradle of biodiversity vulnerable to the effects of

Regression analysis for the social sciences

CERN Document Server

Gordon, Rachel A

2015-01-01

Provides graduate students in the social sciences with the basic skills they need to estimate, interpret, present, and publish basic regression models using contemporary standards. Key features of the book include: interweaving the teaching of statistical concepts with examples developed for the course from publicly-available social science data or drawn from the literature. thorough integration of teaching statistical theory with teaching data processing and analysis. teaching of Stata and use of chapter exercises in which students practice programming and interpretation on the same data set. A separate set of exercises allows students to select a data set to apply the concepts learned in each chapter to a research question of interest to them, all updated for this edition.

The Relationship Between Organizational Culture and Organizational Commitment in Zahedan University of Medical Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Azizollah, Arbabisarjou; Abolghasem, Farhang; Amin, Dadgar Mohammad

2016-01-01

Background and Objective: Organizations effort is to achieve a common goal. There are many constructs needed for organizations. Organizational culture and organizational commitment are special concepts in management. The objective of the current research is to study the relationship between organizational culture and organizational commitment among the personnel of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive- correlational study. The statistical population was whole tenured staff of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences that worked for this organization in 2012-2013. Random sampling method was used and 165 samples were chosen. Two standardized questionnaires of the organizational culture (Schein, 1984) and organizational commitment (Meyer & Allen, 2002) were applied. The face and construct validity of the questionnaires were approved by the lecturers of Management and experts. Reliability of questionnaires of the organizational culture and organizational commitment were 0.89 and 0.88 respectively, by Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient. All statistical calculations performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 21.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). The level of significance was set at Porganizational culture and organizational commitment (P value=0.027). Also, the results showed that there was a significant relation between organizational culture and affective commitment (P-value=0.009), organizational culture and continuance commitment (P-value=0.009), and organizational culture and normative commitment (P-value=0.009). PMID:26925884

The Relationship Between Organizational Culture and Organizational Commitment in Zahedan University of Medical Sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Azizollah, Arbabisarjou; Abolghasem, Farhang; Mohammad Amin, Dadgar

2015-12-14

Organizations effort is to achieve a common goal. There are many constructs needed for organizations. Organizational culture and organizational commitment are special concepts in management. The objective of the current research is to study the relationship between organizational culture and organizational commitment among the personnel of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences.  This is a descriptive- correlational study. The statistical population was whole tenured staff of Zahedan University of Medical Sciences that worked for this organization in 2012-2013. Random sampling method was used and 165 samples were chosen. Two standardized questionnaires of the organizational culture (Schein, 1984) and organizational commitment (Meyer & Allen, 2002) were applied. The face and construct validity of the questionnaires were approved by the lecturers of Management and experts. Reliability of questionnaires of the organizational culture and organizational commitment were 0.89 and 0.88 respectively, by Cronbach's Alpha coefficient. All statistical calculations performed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 21.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). The level of significance was set at Porganizational culture and organizational commitment (P value=0.027). Also, the results showed that there was a significant relation between organizational culture and affective commitment (P-value=0.009), organizational culture and continuance commitment (P-value=0.009), and organizational culture and normative commitment (P-value=0.009).

Consultancy research as a barrier to strengthening social science research capacity in Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

Wight, Daniel; Ahikire, Josephine; Kwesiga, Joy C

2014-09-01

There is a shortage of senior African social scientists available to lead or manage research in Africa, undermining the continent's ability to interpret and solve its socio-economic and public health problems. This is despite decades of investment to strengthen research capacity. This study investigated the role of individually commissioned consultancy research in this lack of capacity. In 2006 structured interviews (N = 95) and two group discussions (N = 16 total) were conducted with a fairly representative sample of Ugandan academic social scientists from four universities. Twenty-four senior members of 22 Ugandan and international commissioning organizations were interviewed. Eight key actors were interviewed in greater depth. Much of Ugandan social science research appears to take the form of small, individually contracted consultancy projects. Researchers perceived this to constrain their professional development and, more broadly, social science research capacity across Uganda. Conversely, most research commissioners seemed broadly satisfied with the research expertise available and felt no responsibility to contribute to strengthening research capacity. Most consultancy research does not involve institutional overheads and there seems little awareness of, or interest in, such overheads. Although inequalities in the global knowledge economy are probably perpetuated primarily by macro-level factors, in line with Dependency Theory, meso-level factors are also important. The current research market and institutional structures in Uganda appear to create career paths that seriously impede the development of high quality social science research capacity, undermining donor investments and professional effort to strengthen this capacity. These problems are probably generic to much of sub-Saharan Africa. However, both commissioning and research organizations seem ready, in principle, to establish national guidelines for institutional research consultancies. These

Dualism of Social Conditions: Religion, Morality and Science

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rasa Levickaitė

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The paper analyses the topic of social dualism through religion, morality and science. The paper refers to one of the most original works uncovering the social roots of religion – The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life by Emile Durkheim (1858–1917 who is considered to be the founder of modern sociology. The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life develops the coherent theory of religion as well as ventilates different aspects of the religious life. The message of the paper is: is religion the generative essence of social aspect, does a state of constant dependence stimulate a sense of religious piety, is a moral social order able to stabilize dualism of human energy. The paper proposes an assertion that science as a social phenomenon reflects knowledge and the values of its perception which are impacted by imagination and classified codes of cultural forms. As a result a thesis is proposed – a cultural (influenced by environment and a personal (influenced by internal factors desire for differentiation and its provoked conflict is of a social character. The second part of the paper deals with relation between science and social phenomena with inherent dualism. A short discussion is presented on L’ Année Sociologique (a group of scientists initiated by Durkheim representing a new sociological paradigm, the beginning of scientific social culture giving sense to cooperation of sociological theory and practice. 

Investigating University Students' Preferences to Science Communication Skills: A Case of Prospective Science Teacher in Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Suprapto, Nadi; Ku, Chih-Hsiung

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate Indonesian university students' preferences to science communication skills. Data collected from 251 students who were majoring in science education program. The Learning Preferences to Science Communication (LPSC) questionnaire was developed with Indonesian language and validated through an exploratory…

Reconsidering social science theories in natural resource management continuing professional education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Stumann, Cathy Brown; Gamborg, Christian

2014-01-01

on the impact of these changes for NRM professionals resulted in many studies calling for NRM professionals to learn a host of new social science-related skills and knowledge. Twenty years later, research continues to show that NRM professionals are struggling to develop these ‘new’ skills and calls...... for integrating the social sciences in NRM education and practice endure. This paper discusses the challenge of integrating social science skills and knowledge into NRM public involvement practice and continuing professional education. The paper argues for a reconsideration of how social science theories relate...... to professionals’ practical theories and concludes with some implications and proposals for NRM continuing professional education....

Dubna - A University Town Exhibition Science Bringing Nations Together

CERN Multimedia

2000-01-01

1994 marked the opening of the Dubna International University of Nature, Society and Man. It was established on the initiative of the JINR Directorate and supported by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Russia. An integral part of the University is the JINR University Centre which offers educational programmes in high energy physics, nuclear physics, nuclear methods in condensed matter physics, applied physics, and radio-biology.

Science, the public, and social elites: how the general public, scientists, top politicians and managers perceive science.

Science.gov (United States)

Prpić, Katarina

2011-11-01

This paper finds that the Croatian public's and the social elites' perceptions of science are a mixture of scientific and technological optimism, of the tendency to absolve science of social responsibility, of skepticism about the social effects of science, and of cognitive optimism and skepticism. However, perceptions differ significantly according to the different social roles and the wider value system of the observed groups. The survey data show some key similarities, as well as certain specificities in the configuration of the types of views of the four groups--the public, scientists, politicians and managers. The results suggest that the well-known typology of the four cultures reveals some of the ideologies of the key actors of scientific and technological policy. The greatest social, primarily educational and socio-spatial, differentiation of the perceptions of science was found in the general public.

University-Industry Collaboration from a Relationship Marketing Perspective: An Empirical Analysis in a Spanish University

Science.gov (United States)

Frasquet, Marta; Calderon, Haydee; Cervera, Amparo

2012-01-01

Building relationships between universities and industry bodies is of prime importance for creating value for universities' stakeholders. This paper focuses on relationships in relation to undergraduate internship programmes in the Social Sciences. Using the relationship marketing approach, we analyze this type of collaboration of firms with a…

Social behavior in the "Age of Empathy"?-A social scientist's perspective on current trends in the behavioral sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Matusall, Svenja

2013-01-01

Recently, several behavioral sciences became increasingly interested in investigating biological and evolutionary foundations of (human) social behavior. In this light, prosocial behavior is seen as a core element of human nature. A central role within this perspective plays the "social brain" that is not only able to communicate with the environment but rather to interact directly with other brains via neuronal mind reading capacities such as empathy. From the perspective of a sociologist, this paper investigates what "social" means in contemporary behavioral and particularly brain sciences. It will be discussed what "social" means in the light of social neuroscience and a glance into the history of social psychology and the brain sciences will show that two thought traditions come together in social neuroscience, combining an individualistic and an evolutionary notion of the "social." The paper concludes by situating current research on prosocial behavior in broader social discourses about sociality and society, suggesting that to naturalize prosocial aspects in human life is a current trend in today's behavioral sciences and beyond.

The conception of Social Pedagogy in the training of Social Educators in Spain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Érico Ribas Machado

2017-05-01

Full Text Available This text presents research data developed in a doctoral study from the methodological perspective of Comparative Education (GARCIA GARRIDO, 1986. In order to achieve the thesis objective, we opted for the analysis of the Social Pedagogy disciplines syllabus that compose the curricular proposal of the Undergraduate Course in Social Education of ten Spanish universities, namely: 1. National University of Distance Education; 2. Autonomous University of Barcelona; 3. University of Castilla-La Mancha; 4. Santiago de Compostela University; 5. University of Salamanca; 6. University of Deusto; 7. University of León; 8. University of Valencia; 9. University of Las Palmas de Gran Canarias; 10. University of Málaga. We also opted to combine the content analysis with comparative methodology (PEREZ SERRANO, 2003. The analysis of the syllabuses permitted to verify a persistent attempt to characterize Social Pedagogy as a Science that should articulate theory and practice as essence for the formation of the Social Educator.

The Maryland nuclear science baccalaureate degree program: The university perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Janke, T.A.

1989-01-01

Nuclear utilities' efforts in response to industry-wide pressures to provide operations staff with degree opportunities have encountered formidable barriers. This paper describes, from the university's perspective, the development and operation of the University of Maryland University College (UMUC) special baccalaureate program in nuclear science. This program has successfully overcome these problems to provide degree education on-site, on-line, and on time. Program delivery began in 1984 with one utility and a single site. It is currently delivered at eight sites under contract to six utilities with a total active student count of over 500. The first graduates are expected in 1989. The program is an accredited university program and enjoys licensure approval from the six states within which it operates. In addition to meeting US Nuclear Regulatory Commission proposed guidelines for degreed operators, the program increasingly appears as part of utility management development programs for all plant personnel and a factor in employee retention. The owner utilities, the University of Maryland, and the growing user's group are committed to the academic integrity, technical capability, and responsiveness of the program. The full support of this partnership speaks well for the long-term service of the Bachelor of Science in Nuclear Science program to the nuclear power industry

75 FR 65363 - Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (OppNet)

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-22

... public meeting to promote and publicize the Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (Opp... . Background: The Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (OppNet) is a trans-NIH initiative to expand the agency's funding of basic behavioral and social sciences research (b-BSSR). OppNet prioritizes...

Effective Pedagogy in Social Sciences. Educational Practices Series-23

Science.gov (United States)

Sinnema, Claire; Aitken, Graeme

2012-01-01

This booklet is a synthesis of research on social sciences teaching that has been shown to have a positive effect on a range of desirable student outcomes: cognitive, skills, participatory and affective outcomes. Education in the social sciences plays an important role in developing students' sense of identity and influencing the ways in which…

Social Politics: Social Media as a public sphere for Jamaican University Students

OpenAIRE

Clarke, Kevin

2016-01-01

The growth of social media use in Jamaica has changed how people communicate with each other and how they participate in the democratic process. To date, minimal research has been done to ascertain the relationship between social media use and the political process, specifically with younger members of the population. Through a survey and focus group interviews, this dissertation seeks to identify whether Jamaican university students are using social media to participate in the political proc...

Evolution and the Human Population. Science In a Social CONtext.

Science.gov (United States)

Solomon, Joan

Science In a Social CONtext is a series of eight books based on the project SISCON-in-Schools. The books provide a new course in science and society for general studies at sixth-form level. The course has been specially designed to make scientific problems accessible to the non-scientist, as well as to explain the social aspects of science to the…

How social science should complement scientific discovery: lessons from nanoscience

Science.gov (United States)

Berube, David M.

2018-05-01

This article examines the state of social science of science, particularly nanoscience. It reviews what has been done and offers a series of constructive criticisms. It examines some of the problems associated with experts and expertise and itemizes challenges we confront dealing with them. It presages some of the social science research work that we may consider to embrace in the future.

Social support over Facebook as predictor of life satisfaction among Malaysian university students

OpenAIRE

SHOK HONG OOI

2017-01-01

Many young people interact and thus receive and communicate social support over the online world, particularly through Facebook. This paper focuses on how Malaysian university students perceived social support over Facebook. More specifically, this study focuses on how perceived social support influence university students’ life satisfaction. Participants were 800 university students from southern of Malaysia (178 male and 622 female). The finding showed that social support is related to univ...

Social and behavioral science priorities for genomic translation.

Science.gov (United States)

Koehly, Laura M; Persky, Susan; Spotts, Erica; Acca, Gillian

2018-01-29

This commentary highlights the essential role of the social and behavioral sciences for genomic translation, and discusses some priority research areas in this regard. The first area encompasses genetics of behavioral, social, and neurocognitive factors, and how integration of these relationships might impact the development of treatments and interventions. The second area includes the contributions that social and behavioral sciences make toward the informed translation of genomic developments. Further, there is a need for behavioral and social sciences to inform biomedical research for effective implementation. The third area speaks to the need for increased outreach and education efforts to improve the public's genomic literacy such that individuals and communities can make informed health-related and societal (e.g., in legal or consumer settings) decisions. Finally, there is a need to prioritize representation of diverse communities in genomics research and equity of access to genomic technologies. Examples from National Institutes of Health-based intramural and extramural research programs and initiatives are used to discuss these points. © Society of Behavioral Medicine 2018.

The role of socially accountable universities in improving the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2015-05-02

May 2, 2015 ... the output of rural-origin graduates in required fields such as healthcare.[16]. Stellenbosch University, in response to the inadequate preparation of rural students for university, implemented school interventions to improve learners' grades in mathematics and science in preparation for tertiary education.

University crisis and social responsibility

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Camilo dos Santos Filho

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to investigate the repercussion of the recent crisis of the university on its mission and responsibility and, from this reflection, to propose ways for the consolidation of this responsibility. The three main crisis faced by the university  from the middle of the XXth century identified by Boaventura Souza Santos as crisis of hegemony, of legitimacy and institutional, constituted the framework of discussion of the problem of social responsibility of the university. Although true for the universities of the advanced countries, the loss of hegemony in the area of research still does not occur in Brazilian university. To overcome the crisis of legitimacy, the creation of advanced academic and professional training institutions for the cultivation of the intellectual and professional elite of the country, as well as of non university institutions of mass higher education for the cultural and technological formation of the youth is justified. To make possible the access to these institutions by discriminated socioeconomic segments of society, the adoption of the policy of affirmative action in the form of quotas is justified.  The overcoming of the institutional crisis will be achieved when the State respect the specificity of the universities and when the evaluation criteria of her functions be adequate to her specific nature and the titularity of the evaluation belong to the institutions themselves assuring the external evaluation by effective pairs and not by pairs coopted by the State.

Electronic journals: Their use by teachers/researchers of engineering and social sciences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martins, Fernanda; Machado, Diana; Fernandes, Alberto; Ribeiro, Fernanda

2015-01-01

Libraries must attend the needs of their different users. Academics are usually a particular kind of users with specific needs. Universities are environments where scientific communication is essential and where electronic format of journals is becoming more and more frequently used. This way it becomes increasingly important to understand how academics from different scientific areas use the available electronic resources. The aim of this study is to better understand the existing differences among the users of electronic journals in Engineering and Social Sciences. The research undertaken was mainly focused on the study of the use of electronic journals by teachers/researchers from the Faculties of Engineering and of Arts from the University of Porto, Portugal. In this study an international survey was used in order to characterize the levels of use and access of electronic journals by these communities. The ways of seeking and using scientific information, namely in terms frequency of access, the number of articles consulted, the use of databases and the preference of publishing in electronic journals were analyzed. A set of comparisons were established and results indicate an extensive use of the electronic format, regardless the faculty. However, some differences emerge when it comes to details. Such is the case of the usage rate of reference management software which is considerably more used by Engineering academics than Social Science ones. Generally, electronic journals meeting the information needs of its users and are increasingly used as a preferred means of research. Though, some particular differences in the use of them have emerged, when comparing academics from these two faculties

Electronic journals: Their use by teachers/researchers of engineering and social sciences

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martins, Fernanda, E-mail: mmartins@letras.up.pt; Machado, Diana, E-mail: mmartins@letras.up.pt; Fernandes, Alberto, E-mail: mmartins@letras.up.pt; Ribeiro, Fernanda, E-mail: mmartins@letras.up.pt [Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto (Portugal)

2015-02-09

Libraries must attend the needs of their different users. Academics are usually a particular kind of users with specific needs. Universities are environments where scientific communication is essential and where electronic format of journals is becoming more and more frequently used. This way it becomes increasingly important to understand how academics from different scientific areas use the available electronic resources. The aim of this study is to better understand the existing differences among the users of electronic journals in Engineering and Social Sciences. The research undertaken was mainly focused on the study of the use of electronic journals by teachers/researchers from the Faculties of Engineering and of Arts from the University of Porto, Portugal. In this study an international survey was used in order to characterize the levels of use and access of electronic journals by these communities. The ways of seeking and using scientific information, namely in terms frequency of access, the number of articles consulted, the use of databases and the preference of publishing in electronic journals were analyzed. A set of comparisons were established and results indicate an extensive use of the electronic format, regardless the faculty. However, some differences emerge when it comes to details. Such is the case of the usage rate of reference management software which is considerably more used by Engineering academics than Social Science ones. Generally, electronic journals meeting the information needs of its users and are increasingly used as a preferred means of research. Though, some particular differences in the use of them have emerged, when comparing academics from these two faculties.

Two-year impacts of a universal school-based social-emotional and literacy intervention: an experiment in translational developmental research.

Science.gov (United States)

Jones, Stephanie M; Brown, Joshua L; Lawrence Aber, J

2011-01-01

This study contributes to ongoing scholarship at the nexus of translational research, education reform, and the developmental and prevention sciences. It reports 2-year experimental impacts of a universal, integrated school-based intervention in social-emotional learning and literacy development on children's social-emotional, behavioral, and academic functioning. The study employed a school-randomized, experimental design with 1,184 children in 18 elementary schools. Children in the intervention schools showed improvements across several domains: self-reports of hostile attributional bias, aggressive interpersonal negotiation strategies, and depression, and teacher reports of attention skills, and aggressive and socially competent behavior. In addition, there were effects of the intervention on children's math and reading achievement for those identified by teachers at baseline at highest behavioral risk. These findings are interpreted in light of developmental cascades theory and lend support to the value of universal, integrated interventions in the elementary school period for promoting children's social-emotional and academic skills. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Social Anxiety Experiences and Responses of University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Akacan, Behiye; Secim, Gurcan

2015-01-01

The aim of this study is to examine the responses of university students in social anxiety situations in order to create a psychological counselling program with a structured group based on Cognitive Behavioural and Existential Approaches. These responses involve the behaviour and thoughts of the university students in situations where they…

Dynamic Externalities, Universities and Social Capital Formation in the EU Biotechnology Industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Malgorzata RUNIEWICZ-WARDYN

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The paper investigates the role of dynamic externalities, university-industry linkages and role of social networking in the biotechnology industry in the European Union (EU. Universities act as platforms for local knowledge spillovers and university-industry cluster development in the biotechnology field. The R&D activities at universities contribute to successful business innovations. However, the relationship between the universities and the local innovation capabilities is much more complex and therefore requires more in-depth analysis. The following study derives from the knowledge of the new economic geography, endogenous growth theory, biotechnology, as well as theories of social capital and social networks. The quantitative research elaborates contemporary literature and databases to find channels of interdependence between local university-based knowledge flows, social capital, and biotechnology cluster performance. The results of the study show that the biotechnology industry relies very much on university-business R&D partnerships and research mobility (e.g. pharmaceutical firms that performed basic research in close cooperation with academia produced more patents. In addition, social networking and informal contacts seem to be a more important for the diffusion of knowledge, especially at the beginning of R&D process, as they allow for building credibility between potential partners.

Enhance Your Science With Social Media: No ... Really

Science.gov (United States)

Goss, H.; Aiken, A. C.; Sams, A.

2016-12-01

The ability to communicate the societal value of basic research to nonacademic audiences is morphing from an optional soft skill to a crucial tool for scientists who are competing over finite or shrinking resources for research. Former National Academy of Sciences President Ralph Cicerone argued as early as 2006 that "scientists themselves must do a better job of communicating directly to the public," taking advantage of "new, non-traditional outlets" on the Internet. Findings suggest that scientists have begun to embrace social media as a viable tool for communicating research and keeping abreast of advancements in their fields. Social media is changing the way that scientists are interacting with each other and with the global community. Scientists are taking to popular social media (Twitter, Facebook, etc.) to challenge weak research, share replication attempts in real time, and counteract hype. Incorporating social media into the different stages of a scientific publication: Accelerates the pace of scientific communication and collaboration Facilitates interdisciplinary collaboration Makes it possible to communicate results to a large and diverse audience Encourages post-publication conversations about findings Accelerates research evaluation Makes science more transparent Amplifies the positive effects of scientists' interactions with more traditional media Our presentation will demonstrate how scientists can use social media as a tool to support their work, collaborate with peers around the world, and advance the cause of science. Information will be presented by communications experts and research librarians in collaboration with scientists who are already active on social media. Content will focus on pragmatic best practices for engaging peers, other stakeholders, promoting science and scientific research, and measuring success.

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN SOCIAL SKILLS IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS OF ARGENTINA

OpenAIRE

Matias García Terán; Gabriela A Cabanillas; Valeria E Morán; Fabián O Olaz

2014-01-01

Different authors claim that the differences found in the social skills repertoire of men and women could be explained by gender orientation. The purpose of this study is to determine if there are gender differences in social skills in university students from Córdoba (Argentina). The  Social Skills Questionnaire for College Students (SSQ-C) (Morán, Olaz & Del Prette, in preparation) was applied to a sample of 1076 university students of both sexes, aged between 18 and 25 years old, from 56 u...

The development of socially responsible life-sciences teachers through community service learning.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.J. Rian de Villiers

2012-03-01

Full Text Available In South Africa, polices in higher education are urging tertiary institutions to produce graduates who are socially responsible citizens. One method of achieving this is through service-learning initiatives. Zoos as community partners can provide exciting educational opportunities for students to do animal behaviour studies and to develop their social responsibility. A sample of 58 preservice life-sciences teachers from a South African university completed a questionnaire on their animal behaviour studies. This study sought to determine how animal behaviour studies could successfully be incorporated as a community service-learning project in a zoo setting, what the educational value of these studies was and what the benefits were of incorporating this community service-learning component in the life-sciences course. The incorporation of the service-learning component into the zoology course led to the students’ personal and professional development, knowledge about themselves, sensitivity to cultural diversity, civic responsibility and insights into the ways in which communities operate. For a successful service-learning project, lectures, students and community partners should all have a sense of engagement. A number of suggestions are made to improve the incorporation of this service-learning component into the existing zoology course.

Relationships between Alexithymia and Machiavellian Personality Beliefs among University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Sheikhi, Siamak; Issazadegan, Ali; Norozy, Merseda; Saboory, Ehsan

2017-01-01

The present study considered the relationships between alexithymia and Machiavellian personality beliefs among university students. Two hundred and thirteen students (95 women and 118 men) studying Master's degrees in psychology, education, law, political sciences, and social sciences at the University of Tehran were randomly chosen using…

Cultural, Social and Political Perspectives in Science Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

education research to question whether conventional research approaches, foci and theoretical approaches are sufficient in a world of science education that is neither politically neutral, nor free of cultural values. Attention is not only on the individual learner but on the cultural, social and political......This book presents a collection of critical thinking that concern cultural, social and political issues for science education in the Nordic countries. The chapter authors describe specific scenarios to challenge persisting views, interrogate frameworks and trouble contemporary approaches...... to researching teaching and learning in science. Taking a point of departure in empirical examples from the Nordic countries the collection of work is taking a critical sideways glance at the Nordic education principles. Critical examinations target specifically those who are researching in the fields of science...

Employment & the Unity of Social Sciences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivo Šlaus

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Employment and the unity of social sciences are discussed. The paper argues that employment is the simplest and the best indicator of human-centered sustainable and secure development.

GENDER DIFFERENCES IN SOCIAL SKILLS IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS OF ARGENTINA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matias García Terán

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Different authors claim that the differences found in the social skills repertoire of men and women could be explained by gender orientation. The purpose of this study is to determine if there are gender differences in social skills in university students from Córdoba (Argentina. The  Social Skills Questionnaire for College Students (SSQ-C (Morán, Olaz & Del Prette, in preparation was applied to a sample of 1076 university students of both sexes, aged between 18 and 25 years old, from 56 undergraduate programs  distributed on five public and private universities of the city of Córdoba, Argentina. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA was conducted to analyze the existence of differences between men and women. We found differences in favour of men in social skills for affective and sexual approach, and in favour of women in conversational skills, refusal assertiveness and empathic skills and expression of positive feelings; there were no differences in social skills for academic and workplace settings. The results and their possible practical implications are discussed.

Social Science Disciplines. Fundamental for Curriculum Development.

Science.gov (United States)

McLendon, Johathan C., Ed.

This guide is written for the social studies curriculum developer interested in developing a structured multidisciplinary program based on the concepts, methodology, and structure of social science disciplines and history. Seven 15-29 page chapters are included on each discipline: Anthropology and Psychology, by Charles R. Berryman; Economics, by…

University rankings in computer science

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ehret, Philip; Zuccala, Alesia Ann; Gipp, Bela

2017-01-01

This is a research-in-progress paper concerning two types of institutional rankings, the Leiden and QS World ranking, and their relationship to a list of universities’ ‘geo-based’ impact scores, and Computing Research and Education Conference (CORE) participation scores in the field of computer...... science. A ‘geo-based’ impact measure examines the geographical distribution of incoming citations to a particular university’s journal articles for a specific period of time. It takes into account both the number of citations and the geographical variability in these citations. The CORE participation...... score is calculated on the basis of the number of weighted proceedings papers that a university has contributed to either an A*, A, B, or C conference as ranked by the Computing Research and Education Association of Australasia. In addition to calculating the correlations between the distinct university...

Social anxiety experiences and responses of university students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Behiye Akacan

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study is to examine the responses of university students in social anxiety situations in order to create a psychological counselling program with a structured group based on Cognitive Behavioural and Existential Approaches. These responses involve the behaviour and thoughts of the university students in situations where they experience or anticipate social anxiety. The semi-structured interview form developed by the researchers was used in the study during the face-to-face interviews with fifty-one 4th year students from the Guidance and Psychological Counselling (GPC and Pre-School Teaching (PST departments. The scope of the interview form includes the situations where 1 students experience social anxiety in the school setting and their thoughts and behaviours regarding these situations, 2 the situations where they anticipate social anxiety in their future profession, and 3 the situations where they experience social anxiety in their daily lives. Our aim was to collect data from these areas. The data collected were analysed through content analysis. The findings of the study revealed that the thoughts regarding the social anxiety situations of the final year students studying in Guidance and Psychological Counselling and Pre-School Teaching departments are generally negative and their behaviour usually presents as desertion or avoidance.

Learning to teach science for social justice in urban schools

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Vora, Purvi

This study looks at how beginner teachers learn to teach science for social justice in urban schools. The research questions are: (1) what views do beginner teachers hold about teaching science for social justice in urban schools? (2) How do beginner teachers' views about teaching science for social justice develop as part of their learning? In looking at teacher learning, I take a situative perspective that defines learning as increased participation in a community of practice. I use the case study methodology with five teacher participants as the individual units of analysis. In measuring participation, I draw from mathematics education literature that offers three domains of professional practice: Content, pedagogy and professional identity. In addition, I focus on agency as an important component of increased participation from a social justice perspective. My findings reveal two main tensions that arose as teachers considered what it meant to teach science from a social justice perspective: (1) Culturally responsive teaching vs. "real" science and (2) Teaching science as a political act. In negotiating these tensions, teachers drew on a variety of pedagogical and conceptual tools offered in USE that focused on issues of equity, access, place-based pedagogy, student agency, ownership and culture as a toolkit. Further, in looking at how the five participants negotiated these tensions in practice, I describe four variables that either afforded or constrained teacher agency and consequently the development of their own identity and role as socially just educators. These four variables are: (1) Accessing and activating social, human and cultural capital, (2) reconceptualizing culturally responsive pedagogical tools, (3) views of urban youth and (4) context of participation. This study has implications for understanding the dialectical relationship between agency and social justice identity for beginner teachers who are learning how to teach for social justice. Also

The importance of interpretive social science to promoting renewable energy and sustainable development

OpenAIRE

Steve Connelly

2016-01-01

A few years ago I was privileged to hear one of the UK’s leading scientists speak on ‘tackling climate change’ at my university (Krebs 2010). Lord Krebs is a zoologist, and as Chair of the Adaptation Sub- Committee of the UK Government’s Committee on Climate Change he has a significant role in advising government on this major challenge of our times.  What struck me was that the major challenges he presented demand social science to answer them: Will we switch from talking to doing? Are we pr...

Developing a Science Cafe Program for Your University Library

Science.gov (United States)

Scaramozzino, Jeanine Marie; Trujillo, Catherine

2010-01-01

The Science Cafe is a national movement that attempts to foster community dialog and inquiry on scientific topics in informal venues such as coffee houses, bookstores, restaurants and bars. The California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Robert E. Kennedy Library staff have taken the Science Cafe model out of bars and cafes and into…

Cultural, Social and Political Perspectives in Science Education

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

This book presents a collection of critical thinking that concern cultural, social and political issues for science education in the Nordic countries. The chapter authors describe specific scenarios to challenge persisting views, interrogate frameworks and trouble contemporary approaches to resea......This book presents a collection of critical thinking that concern cultural, social and political issues for science education in the Nordic countries. The chapter authors describe specific scenarios to challenge persisting views, interrogate frameworks and trouble contemporary approaches...... to researching teaching and learning in science. Taking a point of departure in empirical examples from the Nordic countries the collection of work is taking a critical sideways glance at the Nordic education principles. Critical examinations target specifically those who are researching in the fields of science...... conditions and contexts in science education. The different chapters review debates and research in teacher education, school teaching and learning including when external stakeholders are involved. Even though the chapters are contextualized in Nordic settings there will be similarities and parallels...

A new foundation for the social sciences?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjerre, Jørn

2015-01-01

The aim of John Searle’s philosophy of society is to provide a foundation for the social sciences. Arguing that the study of social reality needs to be based on a philosophy of language, Searle claims that sociology has little to offer, since no sociologist ever took language seriously. Attacking...

Role of the future creative universities in the triple helix of science and technology corridors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Iraj nabipour

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The science and technology corridor is a complex cluster containing universities, science parks, research centers, high-tech companies, venture capital, institutional and physical infrastructures, and human capital in a defined geography with its unique management and legal structure in association with the business space and knowledge-based products. In fact, the science and technology corridor reflects the concept of development based on the knowledge region (the especial region for science and technology. The knowledge region is clearly a triple helix phenomenon par excellence: universities, governments and businesses combine their efforts to construct a common advantage which they would not be able to offer on their own. The future creative universities in connection with the knowledge city-regions not only will deal with innovation and entrepreneurial training but also produce a competitive, vibrant environment with high indices for quality of life and full of green technologies. In this article, we will present functional interactions of the creative universities in the triple helix, particularly the missions for the Iranian universities of medical sciences. As a theoretical model, the complex interactions of Bushehr University of Medical Sciences and Health Services with Bushehr Science and Technology Corridor will be discussed.

Basic mathematics for the biological and social sciences

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Marriott, F H C

2013-01-01

Basic Mathematics for the Biological and Social Sciences deals with the applications of basic mathematics in the biological and social sciences. Mathematical concepts that are discussed in this book include graphical methods, differentiation, trigonometrical or circular functions, limits and convergence, integration, vectors, and differential equations. The exponential function and related functions are also considered. This monograph is comprised of 11 chapters and begins with an overview of basic algebra, followed by an introduction to infinitesimal calculus, scalar and vector quantities, co

EDUCATIONAL POTENTIAL OF THE “SOCIAL ACCELERATOR” TECHNOLOGY: DEVELOPING SOCIAL – ENTREPRENEURIAL COMPETENCE OF STUDENTS AT CLASSICAL UNIVERSITIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. G. Syryamkina

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Modern trends in the development of education and society as a whole not only strengthen the role of modern universities in transformation of the social sphere, but also require a new approach to developing skills and over-professional competencies of university students, especially students of social and humanitarian specialties, who will live in conditions of a new technological paradigm. In this connection, classical universities have a special role because social and cultural development of society is their original mission. Therefore, development of social and entrepreneurial competence of students is an urgent educational task of modern classical universities. Education of social entrepreneurs is one of the relevant educational tasks which solution enables to provide additional resources for growth of welfare of fellow citizens. The work of social entrepreneurs is directed to the creative solution of social problems of the region, the help to its residents and positive changes in local society.The aim of the article is to demonstrate the experience of approbation of the educational technology for developing social and entrepreneurial competence of students in a classical university.Methodology and research methods. The methodological basis of the work is based on system-activity and competence approaches. The authors have used such methods as analysis of scientific literature; analysis of documents; desktop research; interviewing and questioning of participants in the educational process; educational experiment; reflection and generalisation of practical experience of implementing a program of accelerating business projects in a classical university (case study.Results and scientific novelty. The new approach to the development of social and entrepreneurial competence of students is proposed by the authors; that approach is based on the introduction of “Social Accelerator” technology into educational practice of higher

Field Research in Political Science Practices and Principles

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gravier, Magali

2017-01-01

Book review of: Kapiszewski (Diana), Maclean (Lauren M.), Read (Benjamin L.) ­ Field Research in Political Science. Practices and Principles. ­ Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2015 (Strategies for Social Inquiry). XIV + 456 p. Figures. Annexe. Bibliogr. Index.......Book review of: Kapiszewski (Diana), Maclean (Lauren M.), Read (Benjamin L.) ­ Field Research in Political Science. Practices and Principles. ­ Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2015 (Strategies for Social Inquiry). XIV + 456 p. Figures. Annexe. Bibliogr. Index....

NASA’s Universe of Learning: Engaging Subject Matter Experts to Support Museum Alliance Science Briefings

Science.gov (United States)

Marcucci, Emma; Slivinski, Carolyn; Lawton, Brandon L.; Smith, Denise A.; Squires, Gordon K.; Biferno, Anya A.; Lestition, Kathleen; Cominsky, Lynn R.; Lee, Janice C.; Rivera, Thalia; Walker, Allyson; Spisak, Marilyn

2018-06-01

NASA's Universe of Learning creates and delivers science-driven, audience-driven resources and experiences designed to engage and immerse learners of all ages and backgrounds in exploring the universe for themselves. The project is a unique partnership between the Space Telescope Science Institute, Caltech/IPAC, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, and Sonoma State University and is part of the NASA SMD Science Activation Collective. The NASA’s Universe of Learning projects pull on the expertise of subject matter experts (scientist and engineers) from across the broad range of NASA Astrophysics themes and missions. One such project, which draws strongly on the expertise of the community, is the NASA’s Universe of Learning Science Briefings, which is done in collaboration with the NASA Museum Alliance. This collaboration presents a monthly hour-long discussion on relevant NASA astrophysics topics or events to an audience composed largely of informal educators from informal learning environments. These professional learning opportunities use experts and resources within the astronomical community to support increased interest and engagement of the informal learning community in NASA Astrophysics-related concepts and events. Briefings are designed to create a foundation for this audience using (1) broad science themes, (2) special events, or (3) breaking science news. The NASA’s Universe of Learning team engages subject matter experts to be speakers and present their science at these briefings to provide a direct connection to NASA Astrophysics science and provide the audience an opportunity to interact directly with scientists and engineers involved in NASA missions. To maximize the usefulness of the Museum Alliance Science Briefings, each briefing highlights resources related to the science theme to support informal educators in incorporating science content into their venues and/or interactions with the public. During this

Broadening Participation in the Life Sciences with Social-Psychological Interventions

Science.gov (United States)

Tibbetts, Yoi; Harackiewicz, Judith M.; Priniski, Stacy J.; Canning, Elizabeth A.

2016-01-01

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have recently documented the positive effects of social-psychological interventions on the performance and retention of underrepresented students in the life sciences. We review two types of social-psychological interventions that address either students' well-being in college science courses or students'…

Investigating Knowledge Management Status among Faculty Members of Kerman University of Medical Sciences based on the Nonaka Model in 2015.

Science.gov (United States)

Vali, Leila; Izadi, Azar; Jahani, Yunes; Okhovati, Maryam

2016-08-01

Education and research are two major functions of universities, which require proper and systematic exploitation of available knowledge and information. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the knowledge management status in an education system by considering the function of faculty members in creation and dissemination of knowledge. This study was conducted to investigate the knowledge management status among faculty members of the Kerman University of Medical Sciences based on the Nonaka and Takeuchi models in 2015. This was a descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study. It was conducted on 165 faculty members at the Kerman University of Medical Sciences, who were selected from seven faculties as weighted using a random stratified sampling method. The Nonaka and Takeuchi knowledge management questionnaire consists of 26 questions in four dimensions of socialization, externalization, internalization, and combination. Scoring of questions was conducted using the five-point Likert scale. To analyze data, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation coefficients, and the Kruskal-Wallis test were employed. The four dimensions in the Nonaka and Takeuchi model are based on optimal indicators (3.5), dimensions of combination, and externalization with an average of 3.3 were found in higher ranks and internalization and socialization had averages of 3.1 and 3. According to the findings of this study, the average knowledge management among faculty members of the Kerman University of Medical Sciences was estimated to be 3.1, with a bit difference compared to the average. According to the results of t-tests, there was no significant relationship between gender and various dimensions of knowledge management (p>0.05). The findings of Kruskal-Wallis showed that there is no significant relationship between variables of age, academic rank, and type of faculty with regard to dimensions of knowledge management (p>0.05). In addition, according to the results of

Quantum Mechanics and the Social Sciences: After Hermeneutics.

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Heelan, Patrick A.

1995-01-01

An analysis of the hermeneutical aspect of quantum mechanical measurement reveals close analogs with the hermeneutical social/historical sciences. Suggests that the hermeneutical analysis of science requires the move from the epistemological attitude to an ontological view. (LZ)

Modeling human behavior in economics and social science.

Science.gov (United States)

Dolfin, M; Leonida, L; Outada, N

2017-12-01

The complex interactions between human behaviors and social economic sciences is critically analyzed in this paper in view of possible applications of mathematical modeling as an attainable interdisciplinary approach to understand and simulate the aforementioned dynamics. The quest is developed along three steps: Firstly an overall analysis of social and economic sciences indicates the main requirements that a contribution of mathematical modeling should bring to these sciences; subsequently the focus moves to an overview of mathematical tools and to the selection of those which appear, according to the authors bias, appropriate to the modeling; finally, a survey of applications is presented looking ahead to research perspectives. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Measuring University Students' Perceived Self-Efficacy in Science Communication in Middle and High Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Chi, Shaohui; Liu, Xiufeng; Gardella, Joseph A.

2016-01-01

Service learning typically involves university students in teaching and learning activities for middle and high school students, however, measurement of university students' self-efficacy in science communication is still lacking. In this study, an instrument to measure university students' perceived self-efficacy in communicating science to…

Science anxiety and social cognitive factors predicting STEM career aspirations of high school freshmen in general science class

Science.gov (United States)

Skells, Kristin Marie

Extant data was used to consider the association between science anxiety, social cognitive factors and STEM career aspirations of high school freshmen in general science classes. An adapted model based on social cognitive career theory (SCCT) was used to consider these relationships, with science anxiety functioning as a barrier in the model. The study assessed the following research questions: (1) Do social cognitive variables relate in the expected way to STEM career aspirations based on SCCT for ninth graders taking general science classes? (2) Is there an association between science anxiety and outcomes and processes identified in the SCCT model for ninth graders taking general science classes? (3) Does gender moderate these relationships? Results indicated that support was found for many of the central tenants of the SCCT model. Science anxiety was associated with prior achievement, self-efficacy, and science interest, although it did not relate directly to STEM career goals. Gender was found to moderate only the relationship between prior achievement and science self-efficacy.

The Postgraduate Study of Macromolecular Sciences at the University of Zagreb (1971– 1980)

OpenAIRE

Deželić, D.; Kunst, B.; Veksli, Zorica

2008-01-01

The postgraduate study of macromolecular sciences (PSMS) was established at the University of Zagreb in 1971 as a university study in the time of expressed interdisciplinary permeation of natural sciences - physics, chemistry and biology, and application of their achievements in technological disciplines. PSMS was established by a group of prominent university professors from the schools of Science, Chemical Technology, Pharmacy and Medicine, as well as from the Institute of Biology. The s...

Jackson State University (JSU)’s Center of Excellence in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education (CESTEME)

Science.gov (United States)

2016-01-08

Actuarial Science Taylor, Triniti Lanier Alcorn State University Animal Science Tchounwou, Hervey Madison Central Jackson State University Computer...for Public Release; Distribution Unlimited Final Report: Jackson State University (JSU)’s Center of Excellence in Science , Technology, Engineering...Final Report: Jackson State University (JSU)’s Center of Excellence in Science , Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education (CESTEME) Report

75 FR 50783 - Committee for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences Notice of Meeting

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-17

... NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION ADVISORY Committee for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences..., Behavioral, and Economic Sciences ( 1171). Date/Time: September 7, 2010; 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. September 8... Assistant Director, Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences, National Science Foundation...

Investigation of Science Faculty with Education Specialties within the Largest University System in the United States

OpenAIRE

Bush, Seth D; Pelaez, Nancy; Rudd, James A, II; Stevens, Michael T; Tanner, Kimberly D; Williams, Kathy, PhD

2011-01-01

Efforts to improve science education include university science departments hiring Science Faculty with Education Specialties (SFES), scientists who take on specialized roles in science education within their discipline. Although these positions have existed for decades and may be growing more common, few reports have investigated the SFES approach to improving science education. We present comprehensive data on the SFES in the California State University (CSU) system, the largest university ...

Political diversity will improve social psychological science.

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Duarte, José L; Crawford, Jarret T; Stern, Charlotta; Haidt, Jonathan; Jussim, Lee; Tetlock, Philip E

2015-01-01

Psychologists have demonstrated the value of diversity--particularly diversity of viewpoints--for enhancing creativity, discovery, and problem solving. But one key type of viewpoint diversity is lacking in academic psychology in general and social psychology in particular: political diversity. This article reviews the available evidence and finds support for four claims: (1) Academic psychology once had considerable political diversity, but has lost nearly all of it in the last 50 years. (2) This lack of political diversity can undermine the validity of social psychological science via mechanisms such as the embedding of liberal values into research questions and methods, steering researchers away from important but politically unpalatable research topics, and producing conclusions that mischaracterize liberals and conservatives alike. (3) Increased political diversity would improve social psychological science by reducing the impact of bias mechanisms such as confirmation bias, and by empowering dissenting minorities to improve the quality of the majority's thinking. (4) The underrepresentation of non-liberals in social psychology is most likely due to a combination of self-selection, hostile climate, and discrimination. We close with recommendations for increasing political diversity in social psychology.

Science, Society, and Social Networking

Science.gov (United States)

White, K. S.; Lohwater, T.

2009-12-01

The increased use of social networking is changing the way that scientific societies interact with their members and others. The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) uses a variety of online networks to engage its members and the broader scientific community. AAAS members and non-members can interact with AAAS staff and each other on AAAS sites on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, as well as blogs and forums on the AAAS website (www.aaas.org). These tools allow scientists to more readily become engaged in policy by providing information on current science policy topics as well as methods of involvement. For example, members and the public can comment on policy-relevant stories from Science magazine’s ScienceInsider blog, download a weekly policy podcast, receive a weekly email update of policy issues affecting the scientific community, or watch a congressional hearing from their computer. AAAS resource websites and outreach programs, including Communicating Science (www.aaas.org/communicatingscience), Working with Congress (www.aaas.org/spp/cstc/) and Science Careers (http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org) also provide tools for scientists to become more personally engaged in communicating their findings and involved in the policy process.

Integration of Social Sciences in Nuclear Research

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bovy, M.; Eggermont, G

2002-04-01

In 1998, SCK-CEN initiated a programme to integrate social sciences into its scientific and technological projects. Activities were started on the following issues: (1) sustainable development; (2) ethics and decision making in nuclear waste management (transgenerational ethics/retrievability; socio-psychological aspect and local involvement); (3) law and liability (medical applications and the basic safety standards implementation); (4) decision making (emergency management); safety culture; ALARA and ethical choices in protection). Two working groups were created to discuss two broad items: (1) ethical choices in radiation protection; and (2) the role and culture of the expert. Progress and major achievements in SCK-CEN's social science programme in 2001 are summarised.

Integration of Social Sciences in Nuclear Research

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bovy, M.; Eggermont, G.

2002-01-01

In 1998, SCK-CEN initiated a programme to integrate social sciences into its scientific and technological projects. Activities were started on the following issues: (1) sustainable development; (2) ethics and decision making in nuclear waste management (transgenerational ethics/retrievability; socio-psychological aspect and local involvement); (3) law and liability (medical applications and the basic safety standards implementation); (4) decision making (emergency management); safety culture; ALARA and ethical choices in protection). Two working groups were created to discuss two broad items: (1) ethical choices in radiation protection; and (2) the role and culture of the expert. Progress and major achievements in SCK-CEN's social science programme in 2001 are summarised

Teaching through Interactive Multi-Media Programming. A New Philosophy of the Social Sciences and a New Epistemology of Creativity.

Science.gov (United States)

Riskin, Steve R.

This paper discusses the results of an experimental, non-traditional university class in sociology in which students produced an interactive multimedia module in a social science subject area using a computer system that allowed instant access to film, sound, television, images, and text. There were no constraints on the selection of media, or the…

Social sciences, scientific research, higher education and social developments - An Albanian inside of dialectics and structured scientific research, in social sciences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nada Kallçiu

2013-01-01

At first this will involve the policy makers at the central level, like the Ministry of Education and Sciences and the main research actors in the public and in the private sector. The criteria of the geographical and the subjects coverage has been also used in order to be able to present a public institutions of the higher education and research but even the enterprises that act in the research area are mainly focusing to the integration of these two systems which have been working separately for a long period of time and that must become efficient in order to adapt to the conditions of a country that has limited financial resources. This article is intended to provide a comprehensive overview of the scientific research in Albania, focusing in defining the priority areas for the research in social sciences. The information about the higher education and the potential problems that it faces, is based on a big number of research institutions, selected based on their involvement in scientific research in social sciences. This article brings into evidence the fact that in order to establish a stable and effective infrastructure in scientific research in Albania, is important to work in different directions. A successful way to increase the efficasity through the elements of the “innovative system” is by working with organizations that work in specific sectors of the economy, aiming for a possible cooperation in scientific search, for an important social contribution.

The Behavioral and Social Sciences: Contributions and Opportunities in Academic Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Patrick O; Grigsby, R Kevin

2017-06-01

The Association of American Medical Colleges plays a leading role in supporting the expansion and evolution of academic medicine and medical science in North America, which are undergoing high-velocity change. Behavioral and social science concepts have great practical value when applied to the leadership practices and administrative structures that guide and support the rapid evolution of academic medicine and medical sciences. The authors are two behavioral and social science professionals who serve as academic administrators in academic medical centers. They outline their career development and describe the many ways activities have been shaped by their work with the Association of American Medical Colleges. Behavioral and social science professionals are encouraged to become change agents in the ongoing transformation of academic medicine.

Pramana – Journal of Physics | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Author Affiliations. LIUWEI ZHAO1 2 JIULI YIN2. Social Science Computing Experiment Center, School of Management, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu 212 013, China; Nonlinear Scientific Research Center, Faculty of Science, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu 212013, P R China ...