Social Sciences Technology Center

 Through the Social Sciences Technology Center (SS-TC), S&T programs will examine the human impact of their programs and technologies early in the planning stages, increasing the probability of successful implementation and transition. SS-TC will also provide insight into the ultimate potential impact and any unintended consequences.

Description & Approach

SS-TC analyzes the social, economic, and behavioral implications of a program’s research, implementation, and diffusion of new technologies, programs, and policies. SS-TC will provide programs with broad research support on technology acceptance and program evaluation.  By matching social science capabilities to program needs, SS-TC is able to provide basic and applied research support to the programs that addresses their human impact.

Key Activities

• Work with S&T programs to identify requirements and apply existing capabilities to meet immediate needs.
• Coordinate with DHS Components, academia, and other S&T elements, such as Human Systems Integration (HSI) and the Privacy Office to address program needs.

Technology Acceptance

• Organizational assessments can help identify facilitators and roadblocks to implantation and diffusion of new technologies or policies.
• Identification of perceptions of the end user community can assist with use case selection and messaging.

Program Evaluation

• Success metrics can be developed into quantifiable metrics used to measure program performance.
• Program evaluation will determine the impact the program has on operations, how well a program meets its success metrics, and any unintended consequences.
• Cost-benefit analysis can help quantify non-monetary benefits that may accrue far into the future.

Basic Research

Experimental design can allow S&T programs to test scenarios, such as measuring cognitive load, in a controlled environment to help answer questions about the field and increase knowledge production.

Through this approach SS-TC will provide support across all S&T programs. For example, S&T programs have the potential need to assess interaction with end-user communities and the general public. Additionally, programs will need clearly defined success metrics, which can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the program on operational outcomes. SS-TC will work with other Technology Centers, HSI, and Privacy to provide social science support and subject matter expertise. This ‘whole-of-enterprise’ approach maximizes investment, capabilities, and subject matter expertise for mission objectives.