1 B.J. Koubaroulis 2009-07-02T13:39:08Z 30 false false false true false false true true <p>Clemson professor James Witte will leave Clemson to join Mason&rsquo;s Sociology and Anthropology Department and head the Center for Social Science and Research. Witte, who earned his Ph.D. from Harvard in 1991, has been a professor at Clemson University and Northwestern University. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the Carolina Population Center and a lecturer in sociology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His ongoing research focuses on ways to use the world wide web to collect survey data and on the similarities and differences between online and offline societies. CHSS recently caught up with Witte in a question and answer session, here&rsquo;s what he had to say.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong>Why did you decide to come to George Mason University?</strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Opportunity, pure and simple. When I first read the position description, I was not seriously thinking about leaving Clemson. But the opportunities available at the Center for Social Science Research and in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology truly grabbed my attention. The Center for Social Science Research is positioned to bring a whole new perspective on a series of important social and policy debates in the coming decade. The perspective comes from its interdisciplinary background, particularly in fields like sociology, anthropology and communications that have not been particularly effective in these discussions for a number of years. I saw the opportunity not only at the Center for Social Science Research but also in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, with its newly created Ph.D. in Public and Applied Sociology, which affords the opportunity to train a new cohort of sociologists with the requisite skills to play active public and academic roles.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong>What are your expectations?</strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal">My short term expectations (1-2 years) are to continue existing grant and contract projects and identify and pursue stimulus trickle down funds (community based projects that include an evaluation component but the community does not have the resources to perform). Also, to define the Center for Social Science Research&rsquo;s objectives and begin to build the brand on and off campus. My medium term expectations (3-5 years) are to expand proposal writing efforts with a focus on federal programs as well as private foundations, to establish the Center for Social Science Research as &ldquo;the vendor of choice&rdquo; for social science oriented research across Mason&rsquo;s campus and to create a small grant competition for faculty affiliates (research services and/or limited summer funding to support proposal preparation).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">My long-term expectations (5 years) are to continue to work with faculty on externally funded research and contracts, to establish a portfolio of recurring or franchise (similar study for different clients) projects to ensure regular revenue stream with the startup costs associated with each project being a new project. Also, to secure a large scale graduate student training grant and to develop the Center for Social Science Research&rsquo;s signature project.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong>What do you see as the values and goals of the Center for Social Science Research?</strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal">As a university-based social science research center, the Center for Social Science Research should:</p> <ul> <li>be a resource supporting the academic research -- methodological as well as substantive -- of faculty and students</li> <li>secure enough funded research to be self-sustaining</li> <li>generate sufficient 'profit' to support faculty and student projects that are too novel, too esoteric or too specific to attract external funding</li> <li>provide a virtual and a physical space for collaboration and exchange of ideas on social science research</li> <li>create training opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students</li> <li>offer research support and services (some on a pro bono basis) for community groups, non-profits and government agencies at all levels</li> <li>perform contract work as necessary to support the activities above</li> </ul> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong>What new directions or perspectives do you bring to the Center for Social Science Research?</strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Along with maintaining the Center for Social Science Research activities in traditional methods of social science research, for example surveys, focus groups and neighborhood assessments, I do hope to bring some new methodological directions to the center. In today&rsquo;s world, more and more social interaction leaves electronic footprints. Web pages, blogs, Facebook pages and Twitter feeds are not just side phenomena confined to cyberspace. But, as recent events have shown, they are an essential of how we lead our lives. For social scientists they are an essential part of how we lead our lives. For social scientists they are particularly interesting because of the digital tracks they leave. Offline interaction leaves traces that are far more ephemeral and sporadic. As social scientists, we often have to actively observe and record this behavior. In the digital world, behavior is recorded as it happens. The challenge for a digital social science will be to determine methods to collect, manage and analyze the growing mass of digital data. I would like to see Center for Social Science Research be the recognized leader in this new side of social science.</p> false 529 image/jpeg Witte.jpg 2642 2009-07-02T13:39:08Z false false false false 1 Published Clemson professor brings digital perspective to Mason Clemson professor James Witte will leave Clemson to join Mason’s Sociology and Anthropology Department and head the Center for Social Science and Research. CHSS caught up with Witte in a question and answer session, here’s what he had to say. Witte to Head Mason’s Center for Social Science Research image/jpeg Witte_small.jpg 1987 2009-09-16T19:12:54Z