Sociologist Nicholas Christakis created a huge stir (and controversy) last year when he argued that social science should contribute more to biomedical fields like neuroscience, computational science and behavioural science.

What he missed, of course, is that social science has long contributed to these fields and that our pursuit of complex social justice issues remains our strength!

What he outlined beautifully, however, is that our ability to connect individual and collective patterns is an indispensable tool to various fields and industries. He writes:

“For the past century, people have looked to the physical and biological sciences to solve important problems. The social sciences offer equal promise for improving human welfare; our lives can be greatly improved through a deeper understanding of individual and collective behaviour. But to realize this promise, the social sciences, like the natural sciences, need to match their institutional structures to today’s intellectual challenges.”