In 21st century, when we study the social sciences, we are studying how people put their societies together and we are looking at the impacts of their decisions about how their societies should be run. By studying these things, we are becoming better informed about how societies should be put together.
Ten reasons why you need social science in a globalized world
According to Audrey Osler there are 10 reasons why you need social science:
1- Social scientists help us imagine alternative futures. Social science can open up debate and give us a say in shaping our collective future. The social sciences developed as a field of study during the nineteenth century. Social science helped people understand the consequences and application of the new technologies of the age. But it isn’t enough to rely on the scientists. We also need social scientists to analyze and critique what’s going on. That way we will make informed choices that shape the future.
2- Social science can help us make sense of our finances. Social science is not just important for the future but for what’s happening now. A range of social scientists – not just economists but also psychologists, sociologists and political scientists, for example ‐ can help us understand the economic crisis and weigh up decisions we make for ourselves and those which governments make on our behalf. Without this kind of analysis we may feel like pawns in a global game of chess. With the knowledge and understanding that social science offers us, we will feel empowered to act for ourselves, and to influence decisions being made on our behalf.
3- Social scientists contribute to our health and well‐being. From sports sociologists to public health experts, from those interpreting medical statistics to those evaluating policies for our care in old age, social scientists are working hard to make sure that our health, leisure and social care services work to best effect. Our eating habits are influenced by a whole range of circumstances. Some apparently unhealthy choices may seem rational: if the person doing the shopping knows that others will simply not eat the healthy option and it will just go to waste, they may simply not buy it. So it’s no good just giving people a booklet on healthy eating. Effective nutritional advice needs to be tailored to people’s everyday lives and contexts.
4- Social science might save your life. Accidents at work happen even in the best regulated companies that provide staff training and take all necessary precautions. A top‐down imposed safety regime simply doesn’t work. It’s when people see unsafe work practices as unacceptable and take decisions as teams that workplaces become safer. Employers need to see people as individuals who take their lead from those with whom they identify. These principles have also been shown to work in crowd control. When those responsible for crowd management at football matches are trained in techniques which take this into account, there’s virtually no trouble.
5- Social science can make your neighborhood safer. One common myth is that if you take measures to reduce crime in one neighbourhood the criminals simply move on, leading to increased crime in another area. Sociologists at Nottingham Trent University worked closely with police to reduce crime through a method involving scanning for crime patterns. They were able to identify patterns that regular police work had not picked up, so avoiding guess work and lost time. A technique called situational crime prevention developed by the same team is now regularly used by the police, working with the public and private sectors to prevent crime. Together they make things more difficult for would‐be criminals.
6- We need social scientists as public intellectuals. British society is sometimes said to be anti‐intellectual. Yet in our fast changing world, there is a place for the social scientist as public intellectual. Social scientists have a duty to make their work interesting and engaging to the rest of us. They need to explain not only why social science is relevant but do it in a compelling way. Then we will want to listen, read and find out more. Perhaps more social scientists will have to become active listeners, talking more often to the public, each other and to scientists. Then we can get all the disciplines around the table together. In a knowledge‐based world, we need people who can integrate a variety of different types of knowledge, and that come from different intellectual roots and from a range of institutions to work together.
7- Social science can improve our children’s lives and education. All societies and all governments want to show they are doing the best for children. Yet too often education reform seems to take place without regard for the best interests of the learners. Education research shows that many parents, particularly parents of younger children, are more concerned that their children enjoy school, than that they are academic stars. We just need to listen to children, provide structured opportunities for them to give their views, and prepare adults to really listen.
8- Social science can change the world for the better. We can generally agree that world needs to be a safer place where all people can enjoy basic dignity and human rights. This is the case even when we can’t always agree on what we should do to make this happen. Social scientists working in interdisciplinary teams have made their mark in the area of human welfare and development. They are concerned with the social and economic advancement of humanity at large. They work with government institutions, UN organizations, social services, funding agencies, and with the media. They are influencing the work of strategists, planners, teachers and programme officers in developing and growing economies, to influence development so that it impacts on the lives of the poorest members of society.
9- Social science can broaden your horizons. For debates about feminism, peace, ecology, social movements, and much more, social science offers each of us new perspectives and new ways of understanding. Whether your idea of relaxation is visiting a museum, watching soaps, or chatting online, social science encourages a fresh look at our everyday activities and culture.
10- We need social science to guarantee our democracy. Social science offers multiple perspectives on society, informs social policy and supports us in holding our politicians and our media to account.
Ten reasons why you need social science in a globalized world
According to Audrey Osler there are 10 reasons why you need social science:
1- Social scientists help us imagine alternative futures. Social science can open up debate and give us a say in shaping our collective future. The social sciences developed as a field of study during the nineteenth century. Social science helped people understand the consequences and application of the new technologies of the age. But it isn’t enough to rely on the scientists. We also need social scientists to analyze and critique what’s going on. That way we will make informed choices that shape the future.
2- Social science can help us make sense of our finances. Social science is not just important for the future but for what’s happening now. A range of social scientists – not just economists but also psychologists, sociologists and political scientists, for example ‐ can help us understand the economic crisis and weigh up decisions we make for ourselves and those which governments make on our behalf. Without this kind of analysis we may feel like pawns in a global game of chess. With the knowledge and understanding that social science offers us, we will feel empowered to act for ourselves, and to influence decisions being made on our behalf.
3- Social scientists contribute to our health and well‐being. From sports sociologists to public health experts, from those interpreting medical statistics to those evaluating policies for our care in old age, social scientists are working hard to make sure that our health, leisure and social care services work to best effect. Our eating habits are influenced by a whole range of circumstances. Some apparently unhealthy choices may seem rational: if the person doing the shopping knows that others will simply not eat the healthy option and it will just go to waste, they may simply not buy it. So it’s no good just giving people a booklet on healthy eating. Effective nutritional advice needs to be tailored to people’s everyday lives and contexts.
4- Social science might save your life. Accidents at work happen even in the best regulated companies that provide staff training and take all necessary precautions. A top‐down imposed safety regime simply doesn’t work. It’s when people see unsafe work practices as unacceptable and take decisions as teams that workplaces become safer. Employers need to see people as individuals who take their lead from those with whom they identify. These principles have also been shown to work in crowd control. When those responsible for crowd management at football matches are trained in techniques which take this into account, there’s virtually no trouble.
5- Social science can make your neighborhood safer. One common myth is that if you take measures to reduce crime in one neighbourhood the criminals simply move on, leading to increased crime in another area. Sociologists at Nottingham Trent University worked closely with police to reduce crime through a method involving scanning for crime patterns. They were able to identify patterns that regular police work had not picked up, so avoiding guess work and lost time. A technique called situational crime prevention developed by the same team is now regularly used by the police, working with the public and private sectors to prevent crime. Together they make things more difficult for would‐be criminals.
6- We need social scientists as public intellectuals. British society is sometimes said to be anti‐intellectual. Yet in our fast changing world, there is a place for the social scientist as public intellectual. Social scientists have a duty to make their work interesting and engaging to the rest of us. They need to explain not only why social science is relevant but do it in a compelling way. Then we will want to listen, read and find out more. Perhaps more social scientists will have to become active listeners, talking more often to the public, each other and to scientists. Then we can get all the disciplines around the table together. In a knowledge‐based world, we need people who can integrate a variety of different types of knowledge, and that come from different intellectual roots and from a range of institutions to work together.
7- Social science can improve our children’s lives and education. All societies and all governments want to show they are doing the best for children. Yet too often education reform seems to take place without regard for the best interests of the learners. Education research shows that many parents, particularly parents of younger children, are more concerned that their children enjoy school, than that they are academic stars. We just need to listen to children, provide structured opportunities for them to give their views, and prepare adults to really listen.
8- Social science can change the world for the better. We can generally agree that world needs to be a safer place where all people can enjoy basic dignity and human rights. This is the case even when we can’t always agree on what we should do to make this happen. Social scientists working in interdisciplinary teams have made their mark in the area of human welfare and development. They are concerned with the social and economic advancement of humanity at large. They work with government institutions, UN organizations, social services, funding agencies, and with the media. They are influencing the work of strategists, planners, teachers and programme officers in developing and growing economies, to influence development so that it impacts on the lives of the poorest members of society.
9- Social science can broaden your horizons. For debates about feminism, peace, ecology, social movements, and much more, social science offers each of us new perspectives and new ways of understanding. Whether your idea of relaxation is visiting a museum, watching soaps, or chatting online, social science encourages a fresh look at our everyday activities and culture.
10- We need social science to guarantee our democracy. Social science offers multiple perspectives on society, informs social policy and supports us in holding our politicians and our media to account.
Really, in countries like Colombia, no many. In fact, non at all. There are not strong bonds between the academy and the productive sector; no to say between the intelectuals and the common people or the politicians.
The most "first world-third world" contribuiton in the las two decades was
Globalization and the Decolonial Option (Walter Mignolo & Arturo Escobar, Routledge, 2009); and previously "Encountering Development:
The Making and Unmaking of the Third World" (also by Arturo Escobar, first edition in 1995, and the latest in 2012)
A local example of that could be
The technocratic point of view
http://www.revistaarcadia.com/impresa/polemica/articulo/cientificos-vs-literatos-debate-sobre-opiniones-escritas/22451
The humanistic point of view
http://www.revistaarcadia.com/impresa/filosofia/articulo/debate-donde-estan-filosofos/24691
A philosophical point of view
http://www.bdigital.unal.edu.co/1337/9/08CAPI07.pdf
And one liberal answer to that point of view
http://elmalpensante.com/index.php?doc=display_contenido&id=1888&pag=3&size=n
Importance of Social Sciences to a society is what society is to a human being. The relevance & importance of S.Sc is more in the present day world for the fact that humans can not afford to lose the touch of social thought process without which society in general and world is particular is bound to doom.
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