Critical societal issues ranging from violent crime to the operation of the U.S. legal system demand the best available data and analysis for effective policymaking and an informed citizenry. With that in mind, the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded more than $5 million to fund 23 projects and four workshops through its Law and Social Sciences (LSS) program.
LSS focuses on scientific exploration of law and law-like systems of rules. The program funds research on a wide variety of topics relevant to social scientists and legal scholars, including:
"The Law and Social Sciences program addresses some of the most challenging topics facing society, ranging from persistent issues that have been with us for decades, to complications linked to new technology," said LSS program director Scott Barclay. "These new awards promise to add to the body of LSS-supported research that yields new insight into the law through rigorous scientific study."
Scientific studies often approach law and legal systems as dynamic structures involving multiple actors. LSS offers opportunities to incorporate diverse theoretical perspectives, methods of observation and analysis, and contexts for study. Past LSS funding has produced breakthrough discoveries in crime causation, violence, victimization, procedural justice, regulatory enforcement and other areas.
The latest LSS awards involve 33 separate institutions. The project focus, principal investigators and sponsor institutions are:
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