This paper seeks to synthesize some of the main conclusions a of those who have thought about or studied the uses and limitations of social science research for public policy. The paper is designed to provide some background for a discussion of social science and public policy by government officials, social scientists, and others who are interested in policy research. We deal with the following factors which appear to have influenced the utilization of social science research results: (1) the

more »

... alidity of the scientific approach to social questions, (2) the individual researcher and policy maker and their attitudes toward each other, (3) the communication between researcher and policy maker, (4) the type of research conducted, (5) the type of research organizations involved, (6) the motivation for the research effort, and (7) the nature of the topic being studied.