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The purpose of the article is to review four major social science research projects currently under way in the Nordic countries, and to discuss the preconditions for, and the significance of, the manner in which the projects are organised. Four models for organising social science research are outlined, and applied to the projects. The main conclusion of the study, albeit of a tentative nature, is that whether a research project is organised according to one or other model is dependent upon the infrastructure of social science research, and the organisation of the wider society in the country concerned.

Clinical examples of misapplications of social science research are reviewed with an emphasis on what can be learned with regard to dealing with and preventing such misuse of this type of knowledge. The differences in language and culture that characterize scientific research as separate from advocacy and social policy are also examined, with recommendations for improved cross‐cultural communication.

This volume elaborates on various dimensions of social science research in India, presenting a strong case for designing a comprehensive national social science policy which can meaningfully strengthen and promote a research ecosystem for improved public policymaking in the country. Addressing issues like lack of funding, availability of data, infrastructure and quality of research output, it will serve as a national benchmark and reference database for social sciences in India.

This paper analyses an innovative form of North–South cooperation – specifically between the Ministry of Development Cooperation of the Netherlands and Bolivia – to strengthen research capacity in the social sciences for development. The most notable innovation is that the donor approached the recipient country with an open agenda, allowing the Bolivian partners total autonomy to plan, implement, and manage their own programme, thus ensuring local ownership of the process in the South. The resulting programme – the Strategic Research Programme of Bolivia (PIEB) – was devised so as to promote research around an agenda built with wide participation of stakeholders. Research grants are allocated on a competitive basis, widely publicised, with clear guidelines and selection criteria. Research proposals are carried out by teams and have a strong component of training and involvement of research users. The achievements of the programme show the importance of the South retaining autonomy and ownership, provided the local leadership creates mechanisms for building trust and social accountability. They also demonstrate the importance of nurturing research excellence by creating quality control mechanisms. All elements taken together, PIEB may be seen as an example of institutional innovation in the Bolivian context. Notwithstanding the success and achievements presented above, building research capacity in the social sciences for development is an intensive, long‐term, and continuous process. In the long run, foreign assistance can only supplement investments made by countries on their own.

1. Science and Scientism -- 1.1. The Social Sciences and the Analytical Method -- 1.2. Hucksterism in Economics -- 1.3. The Systems Paradigm and the Re-emphasis of Interaction -- 1.4. The Status of Mathematical Research -- 1.5. General Systems Methodology and Empirical Research -- 1.6. The Influence of Cybernetics -- 1.7. Lessons from the Situation in Physics -- 2. General Systems Methodology as Language -- 2.1. Thematic Influences on Knowledge -- 2.2. Methodological and Pragmatist Emphases -- 2.3. General Systems Research as a Methodological Language -- 3. Basic Concepts -- 3.1. Categorization and Uncertainty -- 3.2. Epistemological Levels -- 3.3. Primitive Concepts -- 3.4. System Traits -- 3.5. Basic System Types -- 3.6. Higher Level Systems -- 4. Generative Systems -- 4.1. Introduction -- 4.2. Representation of Source Systems -- 4.3. Representation of Data Systems -- 4.4. Definition of Mask -- 4.5. Choice of Best Mask, Sampling Scheme and Behavior System -- 5. Structure Systems -- 5.1. General Considerations -- 5.2. Definition of Structure -- 5.3. Structural Derivations -- 5.4. Separability in Design -- 5.5. Summary of Fundamental Concepts -- 6. GSPS -- I: An Organized Methodological Framework -- II: General Systems Problem Solving and the Study of Domestic Conflict -- Appendices -- References -- Indices.

This article provides an editorial introduction to the following three related articles on the growing use and influence of social science research in family law. It first considers why this has become problematic and identifies some common strategies used by advocates, sometimes under the guise of scholarship, to destroy the standing of research findings contrary to their ideological or political position. Then it discusses briefly the remedies proposed to mitigate these kinds of problems within the following three articles.

AbstractFew would doubt that literary translation, in addition to transferring language, also deals with the problem of transferring aspects of culture. This is far less obvious with respect to the translation of scientific literature, which is held to use a universally valid and objective set of terms. The humanities and social sciences, however, involve just as many cultural ties as do literary works. This raises the question of how one should deal with terms that do not exist within the conceptual range of the target audience, or with concepts whose claim to universality is questionable. This gives rise to the question of whether indigenous concepts are universal or culturally specific. Finally, one must determine whether the use of indigenous concepts does in fact rule out a cross-cultural comparison. These questions are dealt with in this essay in the context of debates on the indigenization of the Chinese social sciences.