The Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) is an advocacy organization that promotes attention to and Federal funding for the social and behavioral sciences. It serves as a bridge between the academic research community and the Washington policymaking community. Its members consist of more than 100 professional associations, scientific societies, universities, and research centers and institutes.
In its many activities, COSSA:
- Represents the needs and interests of social and behavioral scientists;
- Educates federal officials about social and behavioral science;
- Informs the science community about relevant federal policies;
- and Cooperates with other science and education groups in pursuit of common goals.
COSSA works with federal agencies and with the relevant congressional committees and offices to explain the importance of social and behavioral sciences toAmerica’s economic and national security.Many advocacy activities are conducted through coalitions. COSSA has not only participated actively in these groups, but, has and continues to, serve in leadership positions. Its Executive Director has served as the chair of the Coalition for National Science Funding (CNSF) and its Deputy Director for Health Policy co-chairs the Coalition to Protect Research (CPR) and the Coalition for the Advancement for Health Through Behavioral and Social Science Research (CAHT-BSSR).
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COSSA Washington Update
To keep its constituency informed, the Consortium produces a biweekly newsletter, the COSSA Washington Update, that covers:
- Federal policies and debates relevant to social and behavioral scientists
- Sources of federal support for research
- The administration’s funding request for each fiscal year in a special budget issue
View our most current issue below.
COSSA Washington Update Volume 29, Issue 15
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COSSA Executive Director Howard J. Silver Ph.D, Testifies Before Congress
COSSA and Community Respond to NAS "Framework for Science Standards"
COSSA Language in House America COMPETES bill
COSSA Comments on Science Framework Standards
COSSA Testimony to House Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee & House Appropriations Committee
COSSA Testimony on the Fiscal Year 2011 Agriculture Appropriations
CAHT-BSSR Testimony to House Subcommitee on Labor, Health and Human Services
COSSA Weighs in on PCAST's Discussion on STEM
COSSA Responds to Senator Coburn's Proposed Amendment to Eliminate Funding for the National Science Foundation’s Political
Science Program
COSSA Transition Memorandum to President-Elect Barack Obama
COSSA Policy Recommendations to NIH Transition Team
COSSA Publications
Click here to download COSSA's 2009 Annual Report.
Fostering Human Progress: Social and Behavioral Science Contributions to Public Policy
To mark twenty years of its efforts and accomplishments in Washington, COSSA produce Fostering Human Progress: Social and Behavioral Science Contributions to Public Policy (with generous help from a National Science Foundation grant). The book reviews the contributions of social and behavioral science research to policy in seven broad areas: international affairs, crime, prosperity, health, education, fairness, and the environment. It also contemplates the future contributions of the social and behavioral sciences in these policy areas. Click here to download for free.
Collaborative for Enhancing Diversity in the Sciences (CEDS)
COSSA works diligently with a number of individual and professional associations concerned about building the scientific workforce to respond to global challenges and to the needs of an increasingly diverse population.
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Educational Research Association
American Psychological Association
American Sociological Association
Association of American Medical Colleges
Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research
Society for Research in Child Development
CLICK HERE to Join the Collaborative!
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COSSA BRIEFINGS
One of COSSA’s roles is to serve as a bridge between the academic research community and the Washington policymaking community. To accomplish this, from the beginning COSSA has presented the results of social and behavioral science research to policy makers through a series of briefings or seminars held on Capitol Hill. The audiences for these sessions have consisted of congressional staff, executive branch agency staff, public interest group representatives, and sometimes Members of Congress.
March 15, 2010
"Better Living Through Economics: How Fundamental Economic Research Improves People's Lives"
L-R: Nancy Lutz, NSF Economics Program Officer, Roth, Ausubel, Madrian, Siegfried, and Dan Newlon, American Economic Association, Government Relations.
March 5, 2010
Investing in Discovery: The Impact of Basic Research
and the Role of the
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Presentend by The Ad Hoc Group for Medical Research in conjunction with the
Congressional Biomedical Research Caucus
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This briefing was co-sponsored by:
American Physiological Society
American Psychological Association
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
American Society for Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics
American Statistical Association
Association for Psychological Science
Association of Independent Research Institutes (AIRI)
Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)
Coalition for Life Sciences
Consortium of Social Science Associations
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)
Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences (FABBS)
Genetics Society of America
Research!America
Society for Neuroscience
July 19, 2009
"Showcasing Research from a National Science and Technology Council Report: Social, Behavioral and Economic Research in the Federal Context "
L-R: Weber, Poeppel, Wilkenfeld, Lightfoot,
and Morris. (Photo by Robert Stevens)
"Enhancing Diversity in Science"
L-R Arthur L. Coleman, Esq.,
EducationCounsel LLC,
Wanda E. Ward, PhD, Acting Director, Education and Human Resources National Science Foundation, Raynard S. Kington, MD, PhD,
Acting Director, National Institutes of Health,
Mary Ann McCabe, PhD ,
Society for Research in Child Development,
(Moderator)
American Psychological Association
August 12-15: San Diego, CA
Rural Sociological Society
August 12-15: Atlanta, GA
American Sociological Association
August 14-17: Atlanta, GA
American Political Science Association
September 2-5: Washington, D.C.
National Communication Association
November 14-17: San Francisco, California
American Society of Criminology
November 17-20: San Francisco, California
If you are a COSSA member and would like to submit your event to our listing please emal us at cossa@cossa.org. If you are not a member contact us to learn how!
“Every major issue facing modern society and every major issue facing our economic competitiveness will ultimately be multidisciplinary in nature…[requiring] the integration of the physical sciences or biological sciences with the social and behavioral sciences.”
AAAS Chief Executive Officer Alan Leshner
testifying before the Senate Science and Space Subcommittee, May 2, 2006
“In reality, social sciences have become so diffuse and widespread that nobody notices their role in understanding and shaping our world and daily lives any more. Without them, most public policies would simply not exist and many individual and collective decisions would be difficult.”
World Social Science Report 2010
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