INTEGRATING BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL-SCIENCES RESEARCH AT THE NATIONAL-INSTITUTES-OF-HEALTH, USA

Readers of Social Science & Medicine may find it interesting to know t hat in 1993 the United States Congress established the Office of Behav ioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the belief that scientific research on behavioral a nd social factors in order to facilitate a growth in this important ar ea of research. As is discussed in this paper, the philosophy of the O BSSR is that, although discoveries in the behavioral and social scienc es are as critical for health as those from the biomedical sciences, k nowledge from both areas must ultimately be integrated. Such integrati on will accelerate our understanding and treatment of physical and men tal illnesses in both the developed and the developing world. This pap er briefly presents the scientific evidence supporting this philosophy , outlines the mandated responsibilities of the OBSSR, and discusses s ome of its current and planned activities. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science L td.