social science

(noun)

A branch of science that studies the society and human behavior in it, including anthropology, communication studies, criminology, economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, social studies, and sociology.

Related Terms

Examples of social science in the following topics:

  • Writing in Different Academic Disciplines

    • Academic writing conventions vary substantially according to discipline—that is, whether one is working in the humanities, the social or natural sciences, or business.
    • Science writing includes writing in two main categories: natural sciences and social sciences.
    • These include physical sciences such as biology, chemistry, engineering, geology, physics, and so forth.
    • The social sciences, on the other hand, focus on human behavior and societies.
    • Categories of social science include psychology, anthropology, political science, sociology, education, and economics.

  • Making Connections Across Disciplines

    • Writing in science includes two main categories: natural sciences and social sciences.
    • Pure sciences are life sciences, physical sciences, and earth sciences.
    • Social sciences focus on human behavior and societies.
    • Social sciences involve documenting actual events as they happen as with case studies.
    • Categories of social science include psychology, anthropology, political science, sociology, education, business, and economics.

  • Introduction and Thesis

    • The introduction to a social-science paper should succinctly present the main ideas.
    • Papers in the sciences generally aim for an objective voice and stay close to the facts.
    • A thesis statement in the social sciences should include your principal findings and conclusions.
    • The social sciences include academic disciplines like anthropology, sociology, psychology, and economics

  • When to Use Chicago/Turabian Style

    • It is used by most historical journals and some social science publications.
    • The most recent edition of The Chicago Manual of Style permits the use of both in-text citation systems ("Author–Date" style, which is usually used in the social sciences) or footnotes and endnotes (this is called "Notes and bibliography" style, which is usually used in the humanities).

  • APA: Reporting Statistics

    • Since experimental papers in the social sciences are usually written in APA style, you will need to know how to properly talk about statistics in the text of your paper.

  • Discussion and Conclusion

    • The conclusion section is not strictly necessary in the social sciences, but it can be helpful to provide a succinct summary of your work.

  • Chicago/Turabian (Author–Date): In-Text References and Parentheticals

    • The Chicago/Turabian citation style uses in-text citations only in its Author–Date method, which is generally used for social science papers and is explained below.
    • Social representations theory posits that reified scientific knowledge that exists at the boundaries of a given society will be interpreted in meaningful and often simplified forms by the majority (Pauling 2005).
    • Social representations theory posits that reified scientific knowledge that exists at the boundaries of a given society will be interpreted in meaningful and often simplified forms by the majority (Pauling and Liu 2005).
    • Social representations theory posits that reified scientific knowledge that exists at the boundaries of a given society will be interpreted in meaningful and often simplified forms by the majority (Pauling et al. 2005).

  • Critical Thinking

    • The humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences all utilize an arsenal of critical thinking skills, analytical methods, and theoretical material; critical thinking enables you to apply theories or methods from your area of expertise to another, and vice versa.

  • When to Use APA Style

    • But APA style is not used only in the field of psychology; in fact, it is extremely common throughout the social and behavioral sciences, and somewhat common in other scientific fields, such as medicine.
    • APA style rules are not limited to grammar and formatting; in fact, it was originally developed as a set of guidelines for writing without bias in the sciences.

  • Raising the Stakes of Your Argument

    • Learn how to make your argument more meaningful by connecting it to larger social, philosophical, or political questions.
    • Some academic disciplines like political science or public policy revolve entirely around exploring this connection.