This report summarizes a survey into the governance, use, and support of the behavioral and social sciences in the United States for the last 40 years. The document contains sections which deal with: (1) some major aspects in the history of the relationship between the federal government and the behavioral and social sciences; (2) major fields of…

This paper discusses the experiences of the author as an expert witness directly involved in litigation on desegregation. Using four court cases, it points out differences between social science and the law that restrict the use of social science testimony in public school desegregation cases. Four interrelated elements that contribute to this…

Recently, a United Nations study of 30,000 10- to 14-year-olds in nine countries ranked U.S. students next-to-last in their comprehension of foreign culture. Senator Robert Stafford of Vermont pointed out that the impressive array of witnesses before the committee indicated the need to increase geography literacy among young people. Senator…

Sexual abuse can have negative consequences for children during the time of abuse as well as later in life. An important research question concerns the cycle of sexual abuse, specifically the likelihood that individuals who were victims of sexual abuse as children will become sexual abusers of children in adulthood. At the request of Congress, the…

Offered in response to a request for background information from the Congressional Subcommittee on Science, Research, and Technology, the document presents a report of the National Science Foundation's (NSF) support for social and psychological sciences research. Major objectives of the report are to review the origins of NSF support programs;…

Through an analysis of the Supreme Court's post-1973 rulings, argues that the Court has not repudiated any doctrine that it had adopted before 1973 but has exhibited a reluctance to extend previously announced legal principles to claims for new remedies. Available from Duke University Press, Box 6697 College Station, Durham, NC 27708. (Author/IRT)

Traces the history of the United States Supreme Court "Brown v. Board of Education" decision that overturned 58 years of the infamous "separate but equal doctrine" confirmed in "Plessy v. Ferguson." (MLF)

Presents "Undergraduate Faculty Development in Science: A Report to the Congress by the National Science Foundation," recommending low priority for this program. Although two years old, the issues in the report are of paramount concern to planners charged with improving undergraduate science education. (Author/JN)

Argues against corporal punishment in schools; rebuts claims in earlier article regarding level of public approval for corporal punishment, number of times imposed, and its use and acceptance by states and school districts. Uses social-science research and case law to illustrate negative impact of corporal punishment and policymakers' decreasing…

As a result of the growing use of social science research and statistics in the legal process, a number of interest groups have sought an understanding of how these factors affect the outcome of judicial decisions. In this chapter, the authors present a historical overview of the judicial use of social science research and statistical data. The…

Begins by examining legal realism and then looks at significant school and race cases of the 1970s to demonstrate the pragmatic and contradictory ways the Supreme Court has employed social science evidence. Available from Duke University Press, Box 6697 College Station, Durham, NC 27708. (Author/IRT)

Questions assumptions by Schoenfeld and Zirkel in a study reviewing gender discrimination cases against institutions of higher education. Critiques the methodology used in that study, cautions about the overall utility of "outcomes analysis," and reports more promising routes of empirical legal research. (15 references) (MLF)

Researchers interviewed 83 social scientists, 70 attorneys, and 10 federal district judges to discover their views on the use of expert social science testimony in school desegregation litigation. Selected from 17 desegregation cases adjudicated in federal district courts since 1970, the interviewees were asked about their roles in the litigation;…

Reviews some recent lower court cases concerned with unconstitutionally-segregated schools and the development of remedies that involve four issues: busing, White flight, magnet schools, and compensatory education. Available from Duke University Press, Box 6697 College Station, Durham, NC 27708. (Author/IRT)

Eight papers examining different aspects of the effects of court decisions on education are contained in this book, the first of two volumes. The papers were solicited from scholars in the fields of law, political science, sociology, and education in conjunction with a 1979 conference held in Madison, Wisconsin. The conference was called to…