ITHACA, N.Y. -- Legislators, politicians, educators, governmental agencies, business leaders, judges and others regularly attempt to make decisions based on sound scientific research. Translating that research to sound policy decisions can be challenging. Two leading Cornell University developmental psychologists hope to facilitate the understanding and application of research findings that inform decisions that relate to children in the U.S.
To better inform those who make important decisions concerning children, and to bridge the gap between scientists and the decision-makers who translate their research into practice, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded two Cornell professors $2.45 million over five years to establish the Cornell Institute for Research on Children (CIRC).
"Nothing remotely like this institute currently exists," says Patsy Brannon, dean of the College of Human Ecology at Cornell, who promoted the establishment of the innovative Children's Research Initiative at NSF. "The new institute will allow us to conduct and disseminate multidisciplinary research on questions of significance to children and their families."
Co-directed by Stephen J. Ceci, the Helen L. Carr Professor of Developmental Psychology, and Wendy M. Williams, associate professor of human development, both in the College of Human Ecology, CIRC will focus on getting rigorous, scientifically defensible, "digested" research findings into the hands of society's decision-makers to better inform their thinking about complex issues and, ultimately, the decisions they make about children.
All too often, the media and policy-makers seize upon timely issues, such as whether small classes lead to better student performance, whether SAT and GRE coaching courses meaningfully increase test scores, or whether sex education courses and drug rejection programs alter students' attitudes and behaviors, say Ceci and Williams. Then, they set policies and make decisions that affect daily lives, but often without adequate knowledge of the relevant scientific findings bearing on these issues. For example, during the 2000 presidential campaign, both candidates advocated smaller class sizes to enhance student performance, despite the fact that the relationship between class size and student outcomes is far more complex than the candidates' slogans suggested.
Ceci and Williams will commission national teams of outstanding developmental scientists to study policy-relevant questions and to create a public consensus position. CIRC has an "all-star" senior scientific advisory board of eminent developmental psychologists, school and welfare economists, pediatricians, developmental neuroscientists and sociologists, Ceci and Williams report, to guide the institute in selecting topics to investigate, choose scientists to conduct the actual investigations and provide mechanisms for translating findings for the public.
The institute also will provide graduate and postdoctoral training in developmental sciences in the public interest, and organize a secondary/post-secondary training initiative to draw future scholars from ethnically diverse and low-socioeconomic backgrounds into developmental science in the public interest, specifically targeting historically black colleges and universities and community colleges. In addition, twice a year CIRC will co-publish articles in Scientific American and Psychological Science in the Public Interest, a new journal founded by Ceci. CIRC also will publish a monograph series devoted to translating promising developmental research into public-policy proposals.
Related World Wide Web sites: The following sites provide additional information on this news release. Some might not be part of the Cornell University community, and Cornell has no control over their content or availability.
o Information on the NSF grant
http://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/servlet/showaward?award=0126555
o Information about the new journal, Psychological Science in the Public Interest
<http://www.psychologicalscience.org/newsresearch/publications/journals/pspi.html >
o Information on Stephen J. Ceci
http://www.human.cornell.edu/search/results_people.cfm?pers_type=P Faculty&unit=allunits>
o Information on Wendy M. Williams
http://www.human.cornell.edu/faculty/facultybio.cfm?netid=wmw5&facs=1