Deans Stephen Kosslyn and Peter Marsden
Academic Year 2010–2011

Transition in Divisional Deanship

Effective December 31, 2010, Stephen Kosslyn, John Lindsley Professor of Psychology in Memory of William James, stepped down as dean of social science, after serving in that capacity since July 2008. Kosslyn, initially appointed to the Harvard faculty in 1977, immediately assumed the directorship of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University.

On January 1, 2011, Peter Marsden, the Edith and Benjamin Geisinger Professor of Sociology and a Harvard College Professor, became dean of social science. Marsden was appointed at Harvard in 1987. He twice served as chair of the Department of Sociology and of the Policy and Admissions Committee for the PhD in Organizational Behavior program.

Divisional Planning Initiatives

The division commissioned and oversaw an external consultant’s review of the administrative structure of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. At the end of the academic year, Dean Smith announced plans to integrate all six of the FAS museums of science and culture, including the Peabody Museum, into a new FAS museum consortium. Each museum collection will remain a separate organization that supports teaching and research activities, but will work collaboratively within the new organization on public programs.

Throughout the academic year, a working group chaired by Professor Mark Elliot met to discuss approaches to planning the future of the Fung Library, in light of the reorganization of the Harvard College Library and the increasing number of scholarly resources now available in digital form. The group envisions a space that would provide a range of research services as well as access to both print and digital media, to support research and teaching in international and area studies.

Planning for a possible renovation of and addition to the Tozzer Library continued during the academic year. The aspiration is to bring the social anthropology and archaeology components of Department of Anthropology into closer proximity, within close range of the collections housed in the Peabody Museum. This planning process will continue during academic year 2011–2012.

Administrative Dean Beverly Beatty led an Administrative Process Review Committee composed of administrative staff leaders in the divisions of social science and arts and humanities as well as representatives from the FAS Human Resources Office. The committee reviewed existing administrative processes, staffing levels, and workloads within the divisions, seeking to generate innovative ideas for heightening their effectiveness and efficiency. The committee reported to Dean Smith in March 2011, with recommendations concerning web support, faculty search/review processes, events management, and grants administration. A companion effort surveyed best practices for administrative functions at peer institutions.

The Harvard Sampler and “Hard Problems”

In October 2011, Harvard University Press will publish The Harvard Sampler: Liberal Education for the Twenty-First Century, co-edited by former Dean of Social Science Kosslyn, Harvard College Dean Evelynn Hammonds, and Ms. Jennifer Shephard, special initiatives program manager in the Division of Social Science. Written by faculty members at the cutting edge of their fields, these essays offer a clear and accessible overview of disciplines that are shaping the culture and the world. The authors invite readers to explore subjects as diverse as religious literacy and Islam; liberty and security in cyberspace; medical science and epidemiology; energy resources; evolution; morality; human rights; global history; the American Revolution; American literature and the environment; interracial literature; and the human mind.

In academic year 2009–2010, the division, funded by the Indira Foundation, organized a symposium on “Hard Problems in Social Science,” followed by an ongoing “web event” that garnered 7,000 visitors per month in April and May 2010, and (as of summer 2011) more than 14,000 Facebook fans. Early visitors to the website were invited to rank the presenters’ problems in terms of importance and difficulty, and to add their own problems to the list. Three articles published in 2011 discussed the results of this polling process, which can be found on the “Articles & Blogs” page of the Hard Problems section of the Division of Social Science website: http://socialscience.fas.harvard.edu/hardproblems.

Through these activities, the division seeks to engage the general public in the pressing questions being pursued by social scientists today.

Digital Technology Fair

On November 29, 2010, the Divisions of Arts and Humanities and Social Science co-hosted the annual Digital Technology Fair to introduce faculty, staff, and graduate students to Harvard groups that offer digital services and support. The fair highlighted a wide variety of digital media and web-based technologies for teaching and research, including—but not limited to—quantitative methods of inquiry. An online resource guide providing detailed information on all Digital Technology Fair exhibitors is available on the divisional website.

“Making the Ground Fertile for Peace in the Middle East”

On December 3 and 4, 2010, 20 individuals convened at the Radcliffe Institute of Advanced Study to discuss nonpolitical strategies for “making the ground fertile for peace in the Middle East.” The meeting was co-hosted by former dean Kosslyn, then-dean Barbara Grosz of the Radcliffe Institute, and Sir Ronald Cohen, chair of the Portland Trust and a member of the Harvard Board of Overseers. The workshop had two goals. The first was to identify major barriers to peace as well as existing common ground (shared cultural values; beliefs and attitudes held by each side that could be usefully conveyed) and to propose possible initiatives in the realms of art, popular culture, and the Internet that could be used to increase contact between the opposing sides and enhance common ground. The second goal was to create a network of “theorists” (psychologists and other experts specializing in conflict resolution, persuasion, and negotiation) and “practitioners” (artists, public relations strategists, and directors of nonprofit agencies working for peace) currently working in the region. By the end of the workshop the participants had outlined 11 proposals for media-based interventions, including advertising campaigns, television shows, online discussion groups, and collaborative music and visual art projects.

Behavioral Laboratory in the Social Sciences

In the summer of 2011, the Division of Social Science and Harvard College launched the Behavioral Laboratory in the Social Sciences (BLISS), a 10-week summer residential program for Harvard undergraduates participating in research projects affiliated with Harvard faculty. Modeled on the successful Program for Research in Science and Engineering (PRISE), and supported by the Office for Undergraduate Research Initiatives (OURI), this research experience program is designed to stimulate community and creativity among a diverse cohort of 12 motivated BLISS Fellows.

The program’s primary goal is to provide each fellow with a formative and substantive research experience working on a social science project designed and overseen by a Harvard faculty member. It also aspires to build a lively community of student researchers: BLISS Fellows live together in Quincy House for the summer, share meals and evening activities, and participate in a full calendar of on-campus and Boston-area cultural and recreational summer offerings. They attend a weekly speaker series featuring distinguished social scientists who are prominent researchers at Harvard and other universities. They also participate in OURI-sponsored practicums on research ethics, presentation design, and public speaking, and can attend academic talks sponsored by other summer undergraduate programs, including PRISE. To conclude the summer, each fellow makes a public research presentation.

Unrestricted funds provided seed money for this and a second pilot year of BLISS. If a review of the pilot years proves favorable, lasting support for the program will be sought.

Visitas Panel

Faculty members in the division presented a panel discussion on the question “How do we prevent another financial crisis from happening?” on Monday, April 18, 2011, as part of the Visitas program organized by the Admissions Office for prospective members of the Class of 2015 and their parents. Panelists included Professors James E. Alt of the government department; Efraim Benmelech and Benjamin M. Friedman of the economics department; and Emma Rothschild of the history department.