Social Sciences

Explore faculty and student work in economics, sociology, political science, anthropology, and other disciplines shaping our understanding of society.

FAS Overhaul Brings Deep Cuts to Social Sciences, Phillips Brooks House

After a final round of layoffs, University leaders say 165 staff jobs were eliminated across the division.

by Lydialyle Gibson

The ancient Mesopotamian settlement of Tell Brak

Evidence of ancient urbanism at the Mesopotamian settlement of Tell Brak....

by Paul Gleason

Making Credit Safer

It is impossible to buy a toaster that has a one-in-five chance of bursting into flames and burning down your house. But it is possible to...

Race in a Genetic World

“I am an African American,” says Duana Fullwiley, “but in parts of Africa, I am white.” To do fieldwork as a medical...

Scanning the Social Sciences

Letters have gone out inviting senior faculty members from across the University, nominated by the deans of their respective schools, to...

Are Immigration Authorities' Efforts to Curb Gangs Backfiring?

Matthew Quirk ’03 explains how deportation of Latino gang members by U.S. immigration authorities may actually make the gangs stronger...

The Talking Cure

For decades, insurers and risk-management departments have told doctors that if they make a mistake, the last thing they should do is admit it...

Inevitable Mistakes, Avoidable Harm

The culture of medicine has long tried to keep doctors from making mistakes by indoctrinating them to believe that they shouldn’t make...

Born Digital

Forty years ago they were “Born Free,” 20 years ago they were “Born in the U.S.A.,” but today kids are born digital, and...

by Paul Gleason

Saving Money, Oil, and the Climate

The United States is in urgent need of a comprehensive, rational, and—above all—honest policy to guide its energy future, a policy...

Interest Rate Insight

Wondering what in the world is going on with the economy lately? Let Sebastian Mallaby explain.