The Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) is an advocacy organization that promotes attention to and Federal funding for the social and behavioral sciences. It serves as a bridge between the academic research community and the Washington policymaking community. Its members consist of more than 100 professional associations, scientific societies, universities, and research centers and institutes.
In its many activities, COSSA:
- Represents the needs and interests of social and behavioral scientists;
- Educates federal officials about social and behavioral science;
- Informs the science community about relevant federal policies; and
- Cooperates with other science and education groups in pursuit of common goals.
“Every major issue facing modern society and every major issue facing our economic competitiveness will ultimately be multidisciplinary in nature…[requiring] the integration of the physical sciences or biological sciences with the social and behavioral sciences.”
AAAS Chief Executive Officer Alan Leshner
testifying before the Senate Science and Space Subcommittee, May 2, 2006“Perhaps the most important role of the social sciences, among their many roles, is to provide this basic fund of knowledge about ourselves and our institutions – a foundation of reality for the thinking and decision making of legislators, managers, both governmental and corporate, and all of us as citizens, householders, and employees.”
Nobel Prize and National Medal of Science Recipient Herbert Simon
before the House Committee on Science and Technology September 17, 1985