2.3. Sociologists as Policy Advisors and Evaluators

Sociologists who work for universities and corporations rarely talk to one another, given the starkly different goals of their research. However, one important space where sociologists who conduct basic and applied research interact is the arena of public policy. Here, we can see scientific ideas and findings dramatically shaping the social structure that determines how people live their lives.

Influencing policy is a direct way that social scientists can have an impact on real people. Corporations, governments, and other organizations each have their own policies—rules and regulations for how things should be done. When social scientists talk about changing policies, though, they’re typically talking about changing government policies, or public policies, given that governments typically have the greater authority to enact and implement policies with a broad scope and reach. Of particular interest to sociologists is social policy, a type of public policy that has to do with human well-being—from health care to education to labor regulations.^[1]

Sometimes sociologists wind up making policy directly—by being elected to office or appointed to top positions where they can actually determine the laws or regulations on the books. One of the most prominent U.S. sociologists who became an incredibly influential policymaker was Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who served in a variety of key executive-branch positions for both Democratic and Republican administrations and represented New York in the Senate for decades. Political leaders like Ronald Reagan, the U.S. president, and Michelle Obama, the first African American First Lady, never worked as professional sociologists but majored in sociology in college. (If you’re looking for other big names, the ASA curates a list of sociology majors who went on to fame in politics and other fields.)

For the most part, however, sociologists assist policymakers as advisors. They help provide services, by researching what particular communities need and what the most effective ways to deliver those services are. They measure the performance of government agencies. And they collect and assess the evidence in favor of or against certain policy reforms. Sociologists based at academic institutions sometimes do this work as consultants for government agencies, but larger agencies typically hire their own researchers.

Organizations outside of the government also generate scientific knowledge that can influence policy. We have already discussed think tanks, whose scholars are often engaged in scientific debates. As we will describe later in this section, though, there is a much broader array of policy-oriented research settings, many of which conduct research for very practical purposes.

In their work on policy matters, social scientists will frequently put together policy briefs, which summarize a particular issue and the recommended policy approaches for dealing with it. The idea here is that policymakers can quickly read these briefs (which often break down the existing scientific literature in a concise and accessible way) and then make informed decisions about what laws, regulations, or procedures to put in place. An organization’s researchers may also write up a white paper—a report that is similar to a policy brief but typically meant to present an organization’s take on the issue and spark a larger discussion and debate. A white paper may be geared to policymakers, the public, or a variety of other audiences. (Companies can even produce white papers—generally, to convince customers or other stakeholders about the merits of a particular product or business strategy.)

In terms of original research, social scientists working on policy matters often conduct what is called evaluation research, the analysis of the real-world consequences of social programs or policies. This type of research is frequently deployed when some form of policy intervention is planned—that is, government officials want to launch or expand particular programs or enact or alter particular laws or regulations. These policy interventions may involve sweeping reforms, such as efforts to overhaul a country’s health or social welfare systems. However, they can also entail smaller-scale changes, such as revising a school district’s curricula or deciding whether to continue a support program for at-risk teenagers.

As the name suggests, evaluation research often involves researchers finding ways to measure whether the policy intervention in question has had its intended consequences. It can also be more exploratory, aimed at defining or diagnosing a particular social problem in order to determine whether an intervention may be warranted. The fact that evaluation research touches on both social problems and policy solutions makes it a natural fit for sociologists.

Broadly speaking, a program is made up of different interventions that individuals or groups receive—anything from giving low-income households access to housing vouchers, to enrolling individuals in a smoking cessation class. The evaluation of programs usually starts with a needs assessment. This step entails systematic efforts to determine what assistance may be needed by the individual clients or communities that the program serves. Typically, a needs assessment is designed to compare what the actual situation is to what an appropriate, acceptable, or ideal standard would be. A relevant program may then be designed or restructured to address any important gaps between that standard and the current reality. You’ll notice that the sort of research being done in program evaluation is somewhat similar to the market research that corporations do, but the target demographic here is not a for-profit firm’s customers, but a government agency or nonprofit organization’s clients. Like market researchers, program evaluators can be hired in house (by the agency or organization that is evaluating its own programs), or they can work on a contract basis, as organizational or community consultants.

An outcomes assessment is another common step in the program evaluation process. Here, researchers determine if a particular program has achieved its intended outcomes. They often start by identifying and measuring the program’s “inputs” and “outputs.” Inputs are the various resources the program took advantage of—its funding, of course, but also less obvious resources such as the organization’s physical location, the equipment it owns, and the experience and knowledge of its staff. Outputs are the tangible results of the program. These typically include quantitative measures, such as the number of clients helped or the number of staff members trained to implement an intervention, but they might also include qualitative data, such as feedback from interviewed clients. Outcomes are the observed changes, whether intended or unintended, that occurred due to the program.

After measuring these outcomes, researchers need to determine if the program actually achieved its desired results (Wagenaar 2002). If they have been rigorously trained as social scientists, they will be careful to rule out alternative explanations for the success or failure of a program, rather than just taking, say, higher numbers of clients helped or staff trained as proof. In fact, many program evaluations nowadays use the approach of a randomized controlled trial in order to provide harder evidence that programs actually work (we’ll discuss this methodological approach further in Chapter 12: Experiments).

While some sociology programs at the college or university level teach program evaluation, students interested in pursuing a career in this area typically need to learn these specialized skills by doing internships or further studies in fields more explicitly focused on policy analysis. For example, undergraduate sociology majors often end up applying to master’s programs in public administration, public policy, public health, or data science to be trained in the approaches used in particular sectors. That said, having a sharp understanding of good research design is prized across policy circles—both within government agencies and outside them, as we will discuss in turn.

Government Research

In the United States, the federal government is one of the largest employers of applied sociological researchers. Several agencies stand out in particular. Given how much sociologists rely on the Census Bureau’s data for their quantitative analyses, it’s not surprising that the bureau hires many sociologists—particularly, those with training in demography, a sociological field that focuses on the statistical study of populations. For a similar reason, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which collects data on workers and employers, is a good home for sociologists with strong quantitative skills. Those two bureaus are housed at the Department of Commerce and Department of Labor, respectively, which employ social scientists at various levels. Likewise, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Housing and Urban Development—two cabinet-level agencies that oversee a wide range of social policies for the federal government—regularly hire social scientists to evaluate those policies and perform other policy-oriented tasks. On Capitol Hill, sociologists with policy knowledge sometimes get hired as legislative aides or otherwise support or advise members of Congress.

A number of government agencies are specifically tasked with the goal of conducting research to help keep policymakers informed. These agencies can be categorized as governmental think tanks. An example in the United States would be the Congressional Research Service—known as “Congress’s think tank”—which provides nonpartisan and oftentimes confidential advice to lawmakers about the impacts of proposed or enacted legislation and other regulatory matters.

Specializing in particular sociological methods can go a long way in landing you a job at any one of these agencies. In particular, statistical analysis skills are prized in governmental circles, given how much policymakers tend to rely on quantitative data in making decisions about where to allocate resources. Knowledge of substantive areas of research can also be helpful. For example, sociologists with a focus on criminology work for the Department of Justice, rural sociologists work for the Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior, and sociologists who study education work for the Department of Education. It’s also worth noting that very specific research methods can get you a job in an agency with personnel needs in that area—for instance, Jennifer Johnson (profiled in Chapter 15: Materials-Based Methods), a sociologist skilled in social network analysis, worked for the Department of Defense to analyze terrorist networks before she became an academic.

Research-oriented agencies similar to the ones we’ve just described exist at the state and local level as well. Virginia, for example, has a Department of Housing and Community Development that regularly hires sociologists with quantitative analysis skills. In well-resourced cities, dedicated research outfits (such as the data analytics division of the New York City Office of Technology and Innovation) work with city agencies to crunch their numbers and use that data to improve services. State and local agencies—ranging from departments of motor vehicles to housing authorities—often hire their own data scientists as well.

Having an advanced degree in sociology or a related field can be helpful in landing the above jobs. Other government work doesn’t require it, but your general skills as a sociologist can be useful in these settings as well. For instance, the Department of State looks for diplomatic and other personnel with the sort of knowledge of different cultures and social systems that sociological coursework often instills. A deep familiarity with social science and social policy can also go far in agencies that work on matters of law enforcement, intelligence, and security.

Keep in mind that the sprawling federal departments we have described above—which comprise the top tier of the executive branch’s organizational structure—also house numerous smaller agencies. For example, the National Parks Service, which regularly hires researchers, is part of the Department of the Interior. If you are interested in a career in public service, you should study how the government is organized and where possible agencies may be located in order to find job opportunities that fit your skills and interests. Furthermore, landing a job in any of these settings—federal, state, or local—often requires you to do an internship in the agency first, which will give you job-specific skills and build relationships with those doing the permanent hiring (as a sociologist, always remember the importance of social ties!).

Research for Nonprofit Organizations

Policy-relevant research may also be conducted by nonprofit organizations. The precise definition of “nonprofit organization” varies depending on the context, but the term is often used to refer to any organization that is not government-owned and not primarily devoted to making money—anything from charities and churches to labor unions and political organizations. Like for-profit firms, nonprofits operate within the private sector, but in their case, any profits made have to be committed to the organization’s social purpose, rather than being distributed among owners and investors.^[2] Especially when these organizations operate at the international level, they might be called nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), a category that includes globe-spanning networks such as Greenpeace and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Charities (and the foundations that fund them) are particularly interested in measuring the effectiveness of programs to help those in need, which makes a social science background useful in these workplaces. Beyond program evaluation, though, the staff of nonprofit organizations frequently draw upon research-related skills in their work. For example, human rights NGOs like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch employ researchers to gather information and document abuses.

Many nonprofit organizations seek to promote specific political causes or social objectives. They launch campaigns to influence popular opinions on an issue or mobilize public pressure to influence the behaviors of corporations and governments. Some also seek to lobby elected officials and government agencies in order to get laws passed or repealed and regulations imposed or rescinded. These advocacy groups may have more or less explicit political leanings, and some actively support the goals of larger social movements. (We’ll have more to say about activism and social movements later on, though it is worth mentioning here that the nonprofit sector has also been criticized for being too “establishment” and blocking social change.^[3]) Larger advocacy organizations, such as the AFL-CIO (a confederation of U.S. labor unions) and Oxfam (a network of charitable organizations fighting global poverty), employ large numbers of researchers at various levels who study issues relevant to their organization’s mission. These researchers often help their organization craft its public messaging and its appeals to government and corporate policymakers. Individual branches of a larger network may also hire their own researchers.

In addition to whatever research they do, nonprofits hire people with research-related skills to be grant writers, also known as development specialists. These professionals write proposals for grant funding from governments or foundations, private organizations that manage large amounts of assets on behalf of a particular public purpose. Those funders, in turn, hire people to review their grant applications. Sociologists often make excellent grant writers and reviewers, given that many grant proposals discuss data and past research—and academics themselves apply for research grants all the time. While some social science departments or public policy schools do offer courses in grant writing, a sociology student interested in this line of work may have to get that training elsewhere—through internships, online courses, or in-person workshops frequently offered in nonprofit circles (Candid is a national clearinghouse for grant-related resources).

We’ve already talked a bit about think tanks, but there’s more to say about how they operate—particularly when compared to other sorts of nonprofit organizations that do research. Think tanks are often distinguished from advocacy groups, with the idea that think tanks are primarily focused on researching a particular set of topics, while advocacy groups push a particular agenda, using any research they do to further that end. In the real world, however, these lines are often blurred. In fact, there are concerns that some think tanks today do not conduct actual scientific research, but try to promote the policy preferences of wealthy donors. It should also be noted that some think tanks have close ties to the government—either being themselves government agencies, as we described earlier, or relying heavily on government contracts, such as the California-based Rand Corporation, a regular employer of sociologists, which studies military and security issues as well as topics relating to families and public health for the U.S. federal government.

In the United States, the most prominent think tanks tend to be located in Washington, DC, given that their researchers advise government officials and often testify before Congress. The Brookings Institution, which receives funding from the U.S. government as well as foreign governments, is one of the country’s largest and most prestigious think tanks, employing legions of economists, political scientists, sociologists, and other researchers. Brookings has a reputation for being politically centrist and for having experts in all areas—international relations, urban policy, and environmental and energy issues, among others. More explicitly political think tanks (all of which hire social scientists) include the American Enterprise Institute, Cato Institute, Center for American Progress, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Center for Economic and Policy Research, Economic Policy Institute, Heritage Foundation, Manhattan Institute, and Urban Institute. Of course, other countries (and many U.S. states) have their own think tanks catering to their relevant policymakers.

Some think tanks specialize in evaluation research. One of the largest is Mathematica, an employee-owned company headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, whose clients include federal, state, and local governments, along with corporations, foundations, universities, and professional associations. Another major player in this field is IMPAQ,  based in Maryland and Washington, DC, which focuses on health care, economic development, and human services; it works with government agencies like the U.S. Department of Labor and charities like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Smaller U.S. evaluation research firms include North Carolina-based Compass Evaluation and Research (a women-owned company that specializes in place-based initiatives as well as education) and Rockman et al (an employee-owned firm in California and Indiana that engages in education, technology, and media evaluation research).

Nonprofit organizations that conduct surveys or polls routinely hire researchers trained in social scientific methods—particularly, interviewing and survey design. One prominent example is the National Opinion Research Center (NORC), which conducts the General Social Survey—an accounting of the attitudes, concerns, and practices of Americans that has been regularly collected since 1972. (The National Science Foundation, the U.S. federal government’s chief funding agency for scientific research, provides financial support for this survey.) Like some research centers or institutes, NORC is affiliated with a university—in its case, the University of Chicago—but landing a job there doesn’t mean you need to be a university faculty member, and NORC happens to have offices across the country.

Another well-known research outfit that conducts its own surveys is the Pew Research Center, a think tank based in Washington. Pew comments frequently in the news media on demographic trends and has a particularly strong reputation for rigorous and nonpartisan research. Given its mission to inform the public and policymakers on important issues, Pew regularly hires sociologists and other social scientists to collect survey data, analyze that data, and write up reports for public consumption. Pew happens to be a think tank that regularly conducts polls, but some polling outfits—like the company Gallup, mentioned in an earlier section—are not considered think tanks due to the fact they do less in the way of analysis of the data they collect. (Again, the lines between these organizational categories can be blurry.) That said, political polling is another important way that social scientific methods can influence policy. For better or worse, government officials routinely use such data to make decisions about which causes they should support or where they should allocate resources.