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NIH Opportunity Network to Expand Basic Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OppNet)
November 18, 2009
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D., today announced the launch of the Basic Behavioral and Social Science Opportunity Network (OppNet).
NIH’s Role in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)
NIH is well positioned to fund the best science in pursuit of improving the length and the quality of the lives of our citizens, while at the same time stimulating the economy.
May 3-8, 2009
OBSSR Holds First Institute on Systems Science and Health
OBSSR and CDC teamed up to produce the first Institute on Systems Science and Health (ISSH) which was held May 3-8, 2009.
March 06, 2009
OBSSR Hosts Conference on Dissemination, Implementation
Harvard Medical School’s
Dr. Jim Yong Kim
As a way to improve public health in a battered world, understanding poverty counts as much as knowing how proteins fold.
More News >>
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November 20, 2009,
3:00 PM to 4:00 PM
The Challenges and Opportunities of Interdisciplinary Research: The Case of Genetics and Demography
December 2, 2009,
8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m
SYMPOSIUM #2: EDUCATION
March 15 – 16, 2010
3rd Annual NIH Conference on the Science of Dissemination and Implementation: Methods and Measurement
Registration now open until February 12, 2010
July 11-23, 2010
9th Annual Summer Institute on Design and Conduct of Randomized Clinical Trials (RCT) Involving Behavioral Interventions,
Application Deadline: January 15, 2010
More Events >>
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Home > Scientific Areas > Methodology > Systems Science
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Systems Science |
Background
There is a growing recognition that most major threats to the public’s health - including cardiovascular disease, pulmonary disease, cancer, diabetes, mental health problems, HIV, substance abuse, violence, emerging infectious diseases, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, poor diet, sleep disorders, and more—are complex in the sense that each one arises from an intricate mix of behavioral, economic and social factors interacting with biological factors, as well as each other, over the lifespan and across an array of settings (e.g., home, school, workplace, neighborhood, etc.). For example, tobacco use and successful cessation are influenced by a host of interrelated factors, including: the tobacco product itself (e.g., percent free-base nicotine content, presence or absence of menthol/other flavoring, and other product constituents), the person (e.g., genetic predisposition), influences on the person (peer influence, media exposure - both tobacco promotion and health messages, cultural norms, prior tobacco exposure, availability and usage of pharmacotherapy, history of quit attempts, presence of workplace smoking bans), and the tobacco industry (product design, marketing, pricing; for a discussion of the myriad of factors in tobacco control, see NCI, 2007).
Such problems have typically been approached using correlation-based analytic methods (e.g., regression), which are useful for identifying linear relationships but are limited because of their inability to set up and test a web of causal relationships. While such methods can be valuable in providing detailed information about various aspects of the problem, used alone they are insufficient for addressing complex problems that are dynamic (i.e., change over time) and complex in terms of the large number of relationships in the system. Moreover, these methods are not designed to put all the pieces together for a big picture view.
Systems science methodologies provide a way to address complex problems, while taking into account the big picture and context of such problems. These methods enable investigators to examine the dynamic interrelationships of variables at multiple levels of analysis (e.g., from cells to society) simultaneously (often through causal feedback processes), while also studying the impact on the behavior of the system as a whole over time (Midgely, 2003). They are also useful for making implicit assumptions about complex phenomena explicit, which exposes gaps in knowledge about the problem. Moreover, simulation modeling can be used to generate “alternative futures” allowing decision makers (e.g., policy makers) to simulate the impact of various policy decisions and how they play out over time before actually putting them into practice (Sterman, 2006). For example, insights gained by the use of simulation models can help policy makers choose the most effective option among competing strategies when resources for combating the problem are limited. Systems science methodologies are also extremely useful for understanding why programs and interventions fail to have their intended effects (and in the worst cases magnify the problem; Sterman, 2000).
Systems science methodologies can also be used to refine and reform systems of care to enable planners to identify impediments to implementing proven innovations in everyday treatment and prevention practice. Dynamic models can facilitate the adoption of proven new therapeutic and business practices to ensure effective interface within existing complex systems of care. Decision tools and models can be developed to discover unanticipated effects of change on barriers to treatment and prevention services access, gaps in resource allocation, new training requirements, insufficient inter-organizational linkages, and numerous other factors affecting healthcare systems improvements.
Specific examples of systems science methodologies include, but are not limited to: systems dynamics modeling (Sterman, 2000), agent based modeling (Epstein, 2006), discrete event simulation (Banks et al., 2005), network analysis (Wasserman & Faust, 1994; Scott, 2000), dynamic microsimulation modeling (e.g., Mitton, Sutherland & Weeks, 2000), and Markov modeling (Sonnenberg & Beck, 1993). These techniques (among others) are particularly well-suited for understanding connections between a system’s structure and its behavior over time; anticipating a range of plausible futures based on explicit scenarios for action or inaction in certain areas; identifying unintended or counter-intuitive consequences of interventions; evaluating both the short- and long-term effects of policy options; and guiding investments in new research or data collection to address critical information needs. Such tools have proven heuristic power, typically integrating data from multiple prior studies and surveillance systems, and can offer innovative solutions to seemingly intractable problems. For example, systems modeling can enhance decision making and policy decisions by showing how to strike a more effective balance between treatment and prevention approaches.
Many system modeling methodologies are not new and indeed are now used routinely in fields such as corporate management, economics, engineering, physics, energy, ecology, biology, and others precisely because these methods add value compared with alternative techniques or unaided decision-making. System-oriented methods have been slower to diffuse in health-related behavioral and social science. Not surprisingly, as the appreciation for the complexity of many problems in the public health sphere has grown, there have been calls recently to address public health problems with systems science (Gerberding, 2007; Homer & Hirsch, 2006; Mabry, et al. 2008; Madon, et al., 2007; Milstein, 2008).
Partnerships in Systems Science
OBSSR has worked closely with numerous NIH Institutes and Centers as well as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention to build and stimulate a strong program systems science research across NIH and CDC. To date, these efforts have taken the form of educational outreach and generation of relevant funding opportunity announcements. The work in this area is ongoing with a week-long training course planned for the summer of 2009 (details forthcoming on this website) and other activites in the planning stages. To keep informed of OBSSR systems science activities, join the listserv (see below).
Developmental Science meets Systems Science
Opportunity to participate in an OBSSR-sponsored event at the biennial meeting of the Society for the Study of Human Development (SSHD) designed to bring systems scientists together with developmental scientists. Travel scholarships for a limited number of accepted posters in the systems science poster session track are available. For more information and to apply see http://www.sshdonline.org/SSHD%20Call%20for%20Proposals%20-%202009%20-%205-1-09.doc
Systems Science Funding Opportunity Announcements
Using Systems Science Methodologies to Protect and Improve Health
Methodology and Measurement in the Behavioral and Social Sciences – systems science is mentioned as a target area for applications
Technological Innovations for Interdisciplinary Research Incorporating the Behavioral and Social Sciences (STTR[R41/R42])
Health Disparities PARs
Systems Science and Health Resources
Hygeia’s Constellation: Navigating Health Futures in a Dynamic and Democratic World
This work is published as a monograph from CDC and is authored by Bobby Milstein. The full text can be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/syndemics/monograph/index.htm.
Greater Than the Sum: Systems Thinking in Tobacco Control. Tobacco Control Monograph No. 18. Bethesda, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute. NIH Pub. No. 06-6085. http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/tcrb/monographs/18/
Awards
The CDC-NIH System Dynamics Collaborative for Disease Control and Prevention recently received the inaugural Applied Systems Thinking Prize awarded by the Applied Systems Thinking Institute (ASysT). The nine-member winning team includes Dr. Patricia Mabry of NIH’s Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research. The ASysT prize is awarded for a significant accomplishment achieved through application of systems thinking to a problem in national security, energy, environment, health care or education.
For more information on the prize, please go to http://nihrecord.od.nih.gov/newsletters/2008/10_03_2008/milestones.htm.
Training in Systems Science
A summer course for training Ph.D. level investigators in systems science methodologies is planned for summer 2009. STAY TUNED FOR A CALL FOR APPLICATIONS TO BE ANNOUNCED. If you wish to be notified when this call comes out, be sure to join the listserv (see instructions below).
Behavioral and Social Sciences (BSSR) Systems Science Listserv
BSSR_Systems_Sci-L@list.nih.gov: The BSSR Systems Science listserv is a communication tool for keeping members apprised of relevant news and events; it is not a discussion board. The messages disseminated on this list are focused on those related to the intersection of behavioral and social sciences with systems science, particularly as this intersection relates to matters of health. For example, the listserv is used to announce lectures of interest, training opportunities, and funding announcements. If you or a colleague would like to subscribe to this list, simply email Patty Mabry at mabryp@od.nih.gov with full contact info, including name, title, degree, institutional affiliation, department, discipline, email address, and phone number, and she will be happy to add you to the listserv.
To become a member of any NIH Listserv:
Send e-mail to listserv@list.nih.gov with the following text in the message body: add listname user@host Firstname Lastname
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