The number of independent think-tank groups around the U.K. continues to grow, but Demos is certainly one of the more compelling, and one that persons with an interest in public policy, governance, and other related topics will want to take a look at. The research at Demos is focused primarily around five themes: democracy, learning, enterprise, quality of life and global change. Along with its...

Billed as "the world's first and longest running electronic journal of sociology", the Electronic Journal of Sociology has been in existence in 1994. The Journal's home is at Athabasca University, and persons with an interest in submitting materials for potential inclusion in a future edition of the Journal will want to take a look at their guidelines straight away. Members of the general public...

Aimed at non-specialists, this site offers insight and news on the latest discoveries and advances by Harvard researchers. The site is divided into six sections, covering broad categories: Mind, Body, Society, Earth, Space, and Technology. Each contains several short abstracts which link to the full story in the Harvard University Gazette, as well as some related links. The site may also be...

The Institute for Social Research (ISR) at the University of Michigan is one of the most well-regarded academic and social research organizations in the world, and has been in existence for more than 50 years. Employing close to one hundred researchers, the ISR informs both theoretical discussions and policy debates with its strong track record of empirical research in the disciplines of...

The International Institute of Social History (IISH) is one of the world's largest documentary and research institutions for social history in general and for the history of the labor movement in particular. Its homepage contains a formidable online catalog of the IISH's 2,000 archival collections which hold over one million printed volumes and about as many audio-visual items. Also included are a...

The Max Planck Institutes are some of the most well-respected academic research institutes in the world, and their Institute for the Study of Societies "builds a bridge between theory and policy by conducting basic research on the self-organization and governance of modern societies". Coordinating their research efforts with several other well-known institutes (such as the Center for European...

Prisoners' Dilemma is a "non-zero-sum" game studied by people in a variety of disciplines, including biology, sociology, and public policy. In this game, "how to maximize one's own payoff depends on the strategy adopted by one's partner." This website offers an interactive cyberspace version of the game -- essentially letting you choose to cooperate or compete with cyber partner known as Serendip...

Based at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), the Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE) "examines different dimensions of social disadvantage and analyses the impact of public policy." Through this broad mission, the Centre focuses primarily on children and families, poverty and exclusion, housing and neighborhoods, and taxation. Visitors can make their way through...

Located at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), the Polis Center is an academic research center that focuses on urban and urban-related issues. Their goal is to "to develop knowledge that will serve the common good and invigorate the sense of community in this city and beyond." To this end, they have placed on the site a great deal of material about their numerous research...

Started in 1981, the World Values Survey is an ambitious worldwide investigation of sociocultural and political change being conducted by an international network of social scientists at universities across the globe. Since its inception, a total of four waves of representative sample research have been conducted producing "evidence of gradual but pervasive changes in what people want out of...