scholarly journals Towards victim-oriented crime modelling in a social science e-infrastructure

2011 ◽  
Vol 369 (1949) ◽  
pp. 3353-3371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nick Malleson ◽  
Mark Birkin
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Research Programme ◽  
Prevention Strategies ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Realistic Representation ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Burglary Risk

The National e-Infrastructure for Social Simulation (NeISS) is a multi-disciplinary collaboration between computation and social science within the UK Digital Social Research programme. The project aims to develop new tools and services for social scientists and planners to assist in performing ‘what-if’ scenario predictions in a variety of policy contexts. A key part of the NeISS remit is to explore real-world scenarios and evaluate real policy applications. Research into the processes and drivers behind crime is an important application area that has major implications for both improving crime-related policy and developing effective crime prevention strategies. This paper will discuss how the current e-infrastructure and available microsimulation tools can be used to improve an existing agent-based burglary simulation (BurgdSIM) by including a more realistic representation of the victims of crime. Results show that the model produces different spatial patterns when individual-level victim data are used and a risk profile of the synthetic victims suggests which types of people have the largest burglary risk.

‘Who Wants to be a Social Engineer? A commentary on David Blunkett's Speech to the ESRC’

2000 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 74-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Hodgkinson
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Policy Process ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Politics And Government ◽  
The Government ◽  
Education And Employment ◽  
Social Scientific ◽  
The Uk

This article is a response to a speech addressed to the Economic and Social Research Council which was made, in February this year, by the UK Secretary of State for Education and Employment, David Blunkett. The speech was entitled ‘Influence or Irrelevance: can social science improve government?’ . Blunkett's programme for engaging social science in the policy process is far from unique and many of the arguments have been heard before. However, the curiosity of the speech lies in the fact that the conception of social science which Blunkett advocates mirrors the approach New Labour itself has to politics and government. This raises some rather interesting difficulties for social scientists. How do we engage in a debate about the role of social scientific research in the policy process when our own conception of the discipline may be radically at odds with that of the government? Furthermore, New Labour's particular conception of the relationship between social and policy-making means that we not only have to contest their notion of what it is we do, but also challenge their conception of the policy process. We cannot ignore this engagement, even if we wanted to. The challenge is to address it and to do so, moreover, in terms which Blunkett might understand. This article is an attempt to start this process.

Why they shared: recovering early arguments for sharing social scientific data

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 101-119
Author(s):  
Emily Hauptmann
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Data Sharing ◽  
Financial Stability ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Scientific Data ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Ethical Imperative ◽  
Social Scientific ◽  
The University ◽  
University Consortium

ArgumentMost social scientists today think of data sharing as an ethical imperative essential to making social science more transparent, verifiable, and replicable. But what moved the architects of some of the U.S.’s first university-based social scientific research institutions, the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research (ISR), and its spin-off, the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR), to share their data? Relying primarily on archived records, unpublished personal papers, and oral histories, I show that Angus Campbell, Warren Miller, Philip Converse, and others understood sharing data not as an ethical imperative intrinsic to social science but as a useful means to the diverse ends of financial stability, scholarly and institutional autonomy, and epistemological reproduction. I conclude that data sharing must be evaluated not only on the basis of the scientific ideals its supporters affirm, but also on the professional objectives it serves.

The Edwards' Report and the International Relations profession

1988 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Nicholson
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Social Science ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Research Council ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Social Science Community ◽  
The Social ◽  
Science Community

The Economic and Social Research Council recently published a Report commissioned from a committee chaired by Professor Edwards, a psychiatrist, so that the Council, and the social science community in general, might know what was good and bad in British social sciences, and where the promising future research opportunities lie over the next decade. Boldly called ‘Horizons and Opportunities in the Social Sciences’, the Report condensed the wisdom of social scientists, both British and foreign, and concludes with a broadly but not uncritically favourable picture of the British scene.

The ESRC Growing Older research programme, 1999–2004

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 657-674 ◽  
Author(s):  
ALAN WALKER
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Research Programme ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
New Knowledge ◽  
Full Capacity ◽  
The Uk

This article introduces the seven specially commissioned papers in this special issue of Ageing & Society from the projects funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council's Growing Older Programme. The ESRC Programme has been the largest single investment in social sciences research on ageing in the United Kingdom. It comprised 24 projects and, when operating at full capacity, 96 researchers. The article details the background to the Programme, its commissioning process, its eventual structure and how it operated. Then a selection is made of some of the ways in which the Programme has contributed new knowledge to social gerontology. No attempt is made to achieve comprehensive coverage of the Programme's topics but rather a selection is presented of the new insights generated under its six themes: defining and measuring quality of life, inequalities in quality of life, technology and the built environment, healthy and active ageing, family and support networks, and participation and activities in later life. The projects were spread unevenly across these themes but important new knowledge has been produced under each theme. The conclusion emphasises the scientific contribution of the Programme and especially the extent to which older people's own attitudes, aspirations and preferences have been at the forefront, but it questions whether or not policy makers and practitioners will use this major evidence base.

scholarly journals How effective was Newfoundland & Labrador’s travel ban to prevent the spread of COVID-19? An agent-based analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dionne M. Aleman ◽  
Benjamin Z. Tham ◽  
Sean J. Wagner ◽  
Justin Semelhago ◽  
Asghar Mohammadi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Disease Transmission ◽  
Spatial Location ◽  
Contact Tracing ◽  
Infection Rates ◽  
Case Scenario ◽  
Agent Based ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Transmission Rates ◽  
Imported Cases ◽  
The Uk

AbstractBackgroundTo prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Newfoundland & Labrador (NL), NL implemented a wide travel ban in May 2020. We estimate the effectiveness of this travel ban using a customized agent-based simulation (ABS).MethodsWe built an individual-level ABS to simulate the movements and behaviors of every member of the NL population, including arriving and departing travellers. The model considers individual properties (spatial location, age, comorbidities) and movements between environments, as well as age-based disease transmission with pre-symptomatic, symptomatic, and asymptomatic transmission rates. We examine low, medium, and high travel volume, traveller infection rates, and traveller quarantine compliance rates to determine the effect of travellers on COVID spread, and the ability of contact tracing to contain outbreaks.ResultsInfected travellers increased COVID cases by 2-52x (8-96x) times and peak hospitalizations by 2-49x (8-94x), with (without) contact tracing. Although contact tracing was highly effective at reducing spread, it was insufficient to stop outbreaks caused by travellers in even the best-case scenario, and the likelihood of exceeding contact tracing capacity was a concern in most scenarios. Quarantine compliance had only a small impact on COVID spread; travel volume and infection rate drove spread.InterpretationNL’s travel ban was likely a critically important intervention to prevent COVID spread. Even a small number of infected travellers can play a significant role in introducing new chains of transmission, resulting in exponential community spread and significant increases in hospitalizations, while outpacing contact tracing capabilities. With the presence of more transmissible variants, e.g., the UK variant, prevention of imported cases is even more critical.

Imperatives for Theories in Social Science: The North-South Divide Notwithstanding

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-217
Author(s):  
Aaron Ola Ogundiwin, ◽  
Joel N. Nwachukwu
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Conceptual Analysis ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Science Data ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
The North ◽  
Common Mistake ◽  
History Of ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Social Science Data

Abstract The paper underscores the place of theories in organizing social science data and experience. It holds that theories are indispensable to social research (The North-South divide notwithstanding), in view of the fact that the framework of knowledge and experience within which theories are established make a meaningful explanation of the world phenomenon reasonably possible. It delineates political philosophy and history of ideas from theory and thus, takes care of common mistake social scientists make differentiating between them. Furthermore, the paper on one hand, takes on the scientific requisites of theory such as assumption, concepts (and their functions), hypothesis (and its characteristics typology), law, models, paradigm and provides lucid conceptual analysis of each with a view to showing their relatedness to theory but not as synonyms to it. On the other hand, we singled out dependency theory in its emanation from knowledge and experience of underdevelopment of Third World countries, as the first and perhaps most relevant theoretic explanation of Africa’s underdevelopment. The paper posits that a good theory that will serve as a rudder for formulation of research questions, problem statement, as well as sustain the data analysis, and findings must parade some, if not all of the following qualities: precision and testability, empirical validity, parsimony, stimulation, and practicability.

Social Sciences in Contemporary Turkey

1971 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 72-82
Author(s):  
Walter F. Weiker
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Social Research ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
The State ◽  
Previous Article ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Time Space ◽  
Growing Body

In a previous article I sought to appraise the field of Turkish studies, for the most part among western (predominantly American) scholars (MESA Bulletin, Vol. 3, No. 3, October 15, 1969). To fill out the picture, it is appropriate to also view the state of social research among the rapidly growing body of Turkish teachers and researchers. This article is not, however, a direct parallel to others in the MESA “State of the Art” series, in that it is not basically bibliographical. Such a review would require far more time, space, and knowledge in depth of several other social science disciplines than is currently available to me, because despite the remarks made below about problems of definition, the quantity and technical sophistication of work by Turkish researchers is quite large and is growing rapidly. Furthermore, since most of the research referred to below is in Turkish, the number of persons to whom a bibliographic review might be useful is quite limited. Instead, I think it would be more interesting to MESA members and other American social scientists to examine the characteristics and problems of what is probably one of the most vigorous social science communities in the “developing” countries, with a view (among other things) to helping facilitate increased cooperation between Turkish and American scholars in our common endeavors of advancing the state of knowledge.

scholarly journals The Logic of Qualitative Comparative Analysis

1998 ◽  
Vol 43 (S6) ◽  
pp. 105-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles C. Ragin
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Qualitative Comparative Analysis ◽  
Research Strategies ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Social Phenomena ◽  
Science Theory ◽  
Common Strategy ◽  
The One ◽  
Interpretive Understanding

Social scientists often face a fundamental dilemma when they conduct social research. On the one hand, they may emphasize the complexity of social phenomena – a common strategy in ethnographic, historical and macro social research – and offer in–depth case studies sensitive to the specificity of the things they study. On the other hand, they may make broad, homo genizing assumptions about cases, and document generalities – patterns hold across many instances. Research strategies that focus on complexity are often labeled “qualitative”, “case–oriented”, “small–N”, or “intensive”. Those that focus on generality are often labeled “quantitative”, “variable–oriented”, “large–N”, or “extensive”. While the contrasts between these two types social research are substantial, it is easy to exaggerate their differences and t o caricature the two approaches, for example, portraying quantitative work on general patterns as scientific but sterile and oppressive, and qualitative research on small Ns as rich and emancipatory but journalistic. It is important to avoid these caricatures because the contrasts between these two general approaches provide important leads both for finding a middle path between them and for resolving basic methodological issues in social science Social scientists who study cases in an in–depth manner often see empiri cal generalizations simply as a means to another end – the interpretive understanding of cases. In this view, a fundamental goal of social science is t o interpret significant features of the social world and thereby advance our collective understanding of how existing social arrangements came about and why we live the way we do. The rough general patterns that social scientists may be able to identify simply aid the understanding of specific cases; they are not viewed as predictive. Besides, the task of interpreting and then representing socially significant phenomena (or the task of making selected social phenomena significant by representing them) is a much more immediate and tangible goal. In this view, empirical generalizations and social science theory are important – to the extent that they aid the goal interpretive understanding.

Coleman’s Boat Revisited: Causal Sequences and the Micro-macro Link

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 368-391 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gustav Ramström
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Macro Level ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Macro Model ◽  
Empirical Social Science ◽  
The Individual

This article argues that empirical social scientists can be freed from having to account for “micro-to-macro transitions.” The article shows, in opposition to the (still) dominant perspective based on Coleman’s macro-micro-macro model, that no micro-macro transitions or mechanisms connect the individual level to the macro level in empirical social science. Rather, when considering that social macro entities and properties are micro manifest rather than macro manifest, it becomes clear that the micro-macro move in empirical social science is purely conceptual or analytical.

The e-Social Science research agenda

2010 ◽  
Vol 368 (1925) ◽  
pp. 3761-3778 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Halfpenny ◽  
Rob Procter
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Future Development ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Science Research ◽  
National Centre ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Uk

In this paper, we use the experience of the first 5 years of the UK Economic and Social Research Council’s National Centre for e-Social Science as a basis for reflecting upon the future development of the e-Social Science research agenda.

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