Evaluation of the
MINERVA
RESEARCH
INITIATIVE
Committee to Assess the Minerva Research
Initiative and the Contribution of Social Science to
Addressing Security Concerns
Allen L. Schirm, Krisztina Marton, and Jeanne C. Rivard, Editors
Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences
Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education
A Consensus Study Report of
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and the Department of Defense (#W911NF-13-D-0002, DO #4). Support for the work of the Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences is provided primarily by a grant from the National Science Foundation (Award No. BCS-1729167). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-49428-1
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-49428-1
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/25482
Additional copies of this publication are available from the National Academies Press, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Keck 360, Washington, DC 20001; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313; http://www.nap.edu.
Copyright 2020 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America
Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Evaluation of the Minerva Research Initiative. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25482.
The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. John L. Anderson is president.
The National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president.
The three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. The National Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine.
Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.nationalacademies.org.
Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.
Proceedings published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine chronicle the presentations and discussions at a workshop, symposium, or other event convened by the National Academies. The statements and opinions contained in proceedings are those of the participants and are not endorsed by other participants, the planning committee, or the National Academies.
For information about other products and activities of the National Academies, please visit www.nationalacademies.org/about/whatwedo.
COMMITTEE TO ASSESS THE MINERVA RESEARCH INITIATIVE AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF SOCIAL SCIENCE TO ADDRESSING SECURITY CONCERNS
ALLEN L. SCHIRM (Chair), Mathematica Policy Research (retired)
BURT S. BARNOW, The George Washington University
KAREN S. COOK, Stanford University
SUSAN E. COZZENS, Georgia Institute of Technology
BARBARA ENTWISLE, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
IVY ESTABROOKE, PolarityTE, Inc.
PAUL A. GADE, U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences (retired)
ROBERT M. HAUSER, American Philosophical Society
STEVEN G. HEERINGA, University of Michigan Institute for Social Research
DANIEL R. ILGEN, Michigan State University
VIRGINIA LESSER, Oregon State University
ARTHUR LUPIA, University of Michigan*
KATHRYN E. NEWCOMER, The George Washington University
MARK L. WEISS, National Science Foundation (retired)
KRISZTINA MARTON, Study Director
JEANNE C. RIVARD, Senior Program Officer
ANTHONY MANN, Program Associate
ADRIENNE STITH BUTLER, Associate Board Director
*Resigned from the committee effective September 1, 2018.
BOARD ON BEHAVIORAL, COGNITIVE, AND SENSORY SCIENCES
SUSAN FISKE (Chair), Eugene Higgins Professor, Psychology and Public Affairs, Princeton University
JOHN BAUGH, Margaret Bush Wilson Professor, Linguistics, Washington University, St. Louis
LAURA CARSTENSEN, Fairleigh S. Dickinson Jr. Professor, Public Policy, Department of Psychology, Stanford University
JUDY DUBNO, Professor, Medical University of South Carolina
JENNIFER EBERHARDT, Director and Research Professor, Institute for Social Research, Stanford University
WILSON S. GEISLER, David Wechsler Professor of Psychology and Director, Center for Perceptual Systems, The University of Texas
MICHELLE GELFAND, Professor of Psychology and Distinguished University Professor, University of Maryland
NANCY G. KANWISHER, Professor, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
JANICE KIECOLT-GLASER, Distinguished University Professor, S. Robert Davis Chair of Medicine, and Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology, Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research, Ohio State University College of Medicine
WILLIAM (BILL) MAUER, Professor of Anthropology, Law and Criminology, and Law and Society; Dean, School of Social Sciences; and Director, Institute for Money, Technology and Financial Inclusion, University of California, Irvine
TERRIE E. MOFFITT, Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University
ELIZABETH A. PHELPS, Pershing Square Professor of Human Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Harvard University
STEVEN E. PETERSEN, James S. McDonnell Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience in Neurology, Washington University
DANA SMALL, Professor and Deputy Director, Yale University
TIMOTHY J. STRAUMAN, Professor, Duke University
BARBARA A. WANCHISEN, Board Director
Acknowledgments
On behalf of the Committee to Assess the Minerva Research Initiative and the Contribution of Social Science to Addressing Security Concerns, we thank the many people who contributed their time and expertise to assist in the committee’s work and the preparation of this report. The study was initiated by the Department of Defense (DoD), under the leadership of then–director of the Basic Research Office, Robin Staffin, and Minerva Research Initiative interim director Lisa Troyer, and has greatly benefited from the input and continued support of DoD’s senior management. We are particularly grateful to Minerva Research Initiative director, David Montgomery, for facilitating the work of the committee.
DoD staff readily assisted the committee through presentations and responses to a large number of requests for background materials about the Minerva Research Initiative. We thank not only David Montgomery and Lisa Troyer, but also Bindu Nair, Kaleb Redden, Benjamin Knott, Gary Kollmorgen, and Martin Kruger.
The committee is grateful for the input provided during our public sessions by Minerva grantees, national security experts, representatives of social science organizations, and staff from other government agencies, including (but not limited to) those who are named in Appendix G of the report. Special appreciation is extended to current and former DoD personnel, principal investigators of Minerva grants, and staff of academic offices of sponsored research who shared their valuable time by participating in interviews and surveys conducted by the committee for this evaluation. The committee also thanks Diana Hicks, Georgia Institute of Technology, for expert consultation on methods for evaluating research outputs.
This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this report: Myron P. Gutmann, Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado, Boulder; Brian Nosek, Center for Open Science, University of Virginia; Sarah M. Nusser, Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology, Iowa State University; Joy Rohde, Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan; C. Matthew Snipp, Department of Sociology and Stanford Secure Data Center, Stanford University; Robert J. Ursano, Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress and Department of Psychiatry, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences; and Alyson Wilson, Department of Statistics, North Carolina State University.
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by report review coordinator Jonathan D. Moreno, Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy, University of Pennsylvania Health System and report review monitor Anita K. Jones, School of Engineering, University of Virginia. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.
Finally, we thank the National Research Council staff who contributed to this study. We are grateful for the guidance and support received from Barbara Wanchisen, director of the Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences (BBCSS); Adrienne Stith Butler, deputy director of BBCSS; Jeanne Rivard, senior program officer; Constance Citro, senior scholar with the Committee on National Statistics; and Brian HarrisKojetin, director of the Committee on National Statistics. Kirsten Sampson Snyder expertly coordinated the review process, and Rona Briere provided thoughtful editorial help. We thank program associate Anthony Mann for his good humor and many skills in providing logistical support for the committee’s meetings. We also thank the staff of the National Academies’ Research Center Library, Colleen Willis and Christopher Lao-Scott, for
research support and assistance with the use of library resources during the evaluation. To conclude these acknowledgments, Allen would like to thank Krisztina for her exceptional contributions as study director. The evaluation would have been far less successful without her hard work and tremendous management and research skills. Collaborating on this study with Krisztina was a pleasure.
Allen L. Schirm, Chair
Krisztina Marton, Study Director
This page intentionally left blank.
Acronyms
AAA | American Anthropological Association |
AFOSR | Air Force Office of Scientific Research |
ARO | Army Research Office |
ASD R&E | Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering |
BAA | Broad Agency Announcement (for funding) |
BRO | Basic Research Office |
DHS | Department of Homeland Security |
DoD | Department of Defense |
FOA | Funding Opportunity Announcement |
IRB | Institutional Review Board |
MOU | Memorandum of Understanding |
MRI | Minerva Research Initiative |
NORC | National Opinion Research Center |
NSF | National Science Foundation |
ONR | Office of Naval Research |
OSD | Office of the Secretary of Defense |
OUSD | Office of the Under Secretary of Defense |
OUSD-Policy | Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy |
OUSD-R&E | Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering |
SJR | Scimago Journal Ranking |
Contents
History of the Minerva Research Initiative and Context for the Study
2 OVERVIEW OF THE COMMITTEE’S INFORMATION-GATHERING ACTIVITIES
Reviews of Department of Defense and Other Public Records
Interviews with Department of Defense Staff
Survey of Administrators of Sponsored Research at Academic Institutions
Public Information-Gathering Sessions
Limitations of the Committee’s Evaluation
4 RESEARCH SUPPORTED BY THE MINERVA PROGRAM: QUANTITY AND QUALITY
Review of Outputs of the Minerva Research Initiative Grants
Stakeholder and Expert Perceptions of the Quality of Minerva Research
5 DIRECTION AND VISION OF THE MINERVA PROGRAM
Making Better Use of Minerva Research and Researchers
Discussion of Minerva’s Vision and Goals
Increasing Social Scientists’ Engagement with the Program
Developing Benchmarks for Continuous Monitoring and Evaluation
B Minerva Research Topics in Grant Announcements Issued between 2008 and 2018
C List of Minerva Grant Awards between 2009 and 2017
F Survey of Administrators of Sponsored Research
G Individuals Who Provided Input during the Committee’s Public Meetings
H Output Categories and Coding Notes
I Publications and Presentations by Year (rounded to nearest whole number)
J-1 Impact Metrics of Journals in Which Minerva Principal Investigators Reported Publishing