Behavioral and Systems Sciences

Studies in the behavioral and systems sciences at the National Academies are under the direction of the Board on Behavioral, Cognitive and Sensory Sciences, the Board on Human-Systems Integration and the Board on Children, Youth, and Families. These boards and their committees apply the behavioral and systems sciences to the increasingly complex questions that face government, foundations, and corporations. Their span is broad and includes brain development, cognition, learning, vision and hearing, behavior, addiction, social and community support, parenting and child care practices, human performance, workforce issues, deception detection, aging, and human factors in technology development.

The behavioral and systems sciences are increasingly important in addressing the complex questions that face government, foundations, and corporations. The span of these sciences includes brain development, cognition, learning, vision and hearing, addiction, social and community support, parenting and child care practices, human performance, workforce issues, deception detection, aging, and human factors in technology development.

Systems science is, broadly speaking, an interdisciplinary approach to understanding basic and applied research questions in many fields, including psychology, engineering, and physics.  Key to work in this area is viewing humans as part of a system (e.g., the workplace) that often involves the use of complex technology or complicated rules and requirements for success.  Modeling and designing new systems and environments needs to incorporate human limitations and capabilities as well as the structure of systems in which people will operate.  This approach is being used in such fields as medical care coordination and aviation safety.

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The Board on Behavioral, Cognitive, and Sensory Sciences oversees studies in how to assess sensory and cognitive abilities and disabilities, improve learning environments, and better equip agencies involved in issues of national security. It develops priorities for research in a wide range of areas, including behavioral health, drug abuse, cancer treatment and prevention, aging, and other issues in the behavioral, cognitive, and sensory sciences.

The Board on Children, Youth, and Families, a joint activity of the Division and the Institute of Medicine, applies the knowledge and analytic tools of the behavioral, health, social, and biological sciences to the development of policies and programs for children, youth, and families.

The Board on Human-Systems Integration studies the relationships of individuals and organizations to technology and the environment. It investigates the design, testing, evaluation, and use of human-centered technologies and identifies the research needed to make new technologies more effective in meeting the needs of their users. As new systems are developed and existing systems are adjusted to meet new needs, there is a need to consider safety as well as efficiency.

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