Is social science 'science'? Or, in more blunt terms, what are the
merits of social science given its 'fuzzyness'? These are question
that I've mulled over for over ten years, starting in CEGEP, when
social science, health science, and pure and applied science were
presented as distinct disciplines in the course catalogue. No one
really talked about it, but it was pretty clear that some students in the
pure and applied and health science realms perceived themselves to be
enrolled in the 'important' and 'concrete' disciplines - destined
to be engineers, doctors, and computer scientists. Indeed, amongst the
'scientists', social science courses were viewed as easy courses taken
to boost ones GPA. Beyond that, the merit of humanities courses was
often discounted or ignored. Starting CEGEP, I was a 'scientist'
taking 'real' science and math courses in the hopes of becoming an
engineer.
 
The most important thing I learned in CEGEP was that I don't like pure
science enough to pursue it as a career. Sure, physics was interesting
(I especially liked astrophysics and waves/modern physics) and
chemistry was alright, but I despised calculus. I didn't get it and I
didn't really want to. Seeing as calculus is an integral (no pun
intended) component of an undergraduate degree in engineering, I
started reconsidering my career path. Realizing that I really enjoyed
my biology courses, I shifted gears from pure and applied science to
health science. I also found that I quite enjoyed the social science
courses I was taking to boost my GPA and compensate for my dismal
grades in calculus.
 
That's why I ultimately enrolled in the McGill School of Environment
for my undergrad. The curriculum at the MSE was diverse, allowing
students to take courses in a variety of disciplines. My transcript
includes biology, anthropology, geography, economics, and religious
studies courses. Most of the courses I completed had an environmental
science focus and I graduate with a B.Sc.. Still a 'scientist'. A
memorable debate with my mother (a social scientist) reminds me that,
at that point in time, I remained stubbornly sure that, albeit being
interesting, social sciences were 'fuzzy' and, as such, not really as
worthy as 'science'.
 
This debate continued through my Master's, where students from a
variety of science and social science backgrounds converged to study
Resource & Environmental Management. There were many heated
discussions in my courses about the worth of social science as
compared to pure science. I found myself in a new, slightly awkward
position: My supervisor was an economist and - gasp! - I was
conducting social science research. My graduate studies provided me
with new perspective. With most of the 'scientists' conducting
research based on imperfect models (models tend to rely on assumptions
and incomplete data), I realized that 'science' can be pretty 'fuzzy'
too. The quantification of the 'fuzziness' is the most important part.
Uncertainty, error, risk, and sensitivity analyses help to anchor the
findings of research in all realms.
 
My views of social science and its merits have certainly evolved over
the past ten years and, as an environmental manager, I am more aware
of the importance of social science today than I ever have been in the
past. Human behaviour counts for a lot. My favorite example: risk vs.
uncertainty. So long as the risk, uncertainty, and discounting are
misunderstood or ignored, decisions related to environmental issues
will be misinformed. So many environmental issues are low probability,
high magnitude, and long-term. If probability and risk are treated as
synonymous and discount rates are too high (which they typically are),
appropriate action is unlikely to be taken. Social science plays a key
role in understanding how environmental issues are perceived and how
these perceptions shape decision making. With this understanding,
positive progress can be made more efficiently.
 
This post was inspired by a recent article in the NY Times Magazine:
"Why Isn't the Brain Green?". The author explains that "the [social science]
research ... has the potential to improve environmental messages, policies
and technologies so that they are more in tune with the quirky workings of our minds."