Social, Political, and Economic Inequality
Submission Deadlines: See upcoming deadlines
The Russell Sage Foundation’s (RSF) program on Social, Political, and Economic Inequality supports original research on the factors that contribute to social, political, and economic inequalities in the U.S., and the extent to which those inequalities affect social, political, psychological, and economic outcomes, including educational and labor market opportunities and consequences, social and economic mobility within and across generations, and civic participation and representation.
We seek innovative investigator-initiated research that will expand our understanding of social, political, and economic inequalities and the mechanisms by which these inequalities influence the lives of individuals, families, communities, and the country. We welcome projects that explore the relevance of socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses for the distribution of social, political, and economic outcomes within and across different status groups.
RSF prioritizes analyses that make use of newly available data or demonstrate novel uses of existing data. We support original data collection when a project is focused on important program priorities and conducts surveys, survey experiments, field experiments or qualitative studies. RSF encourages methodological variety and inter-disciplinary collaboration. Proposed projects must have well-developed conceptual frameworks and rigorous research designs. Analytical models must be well-specified and research methods must be appropriate.
RSF priorities do not include analyses of health or mental health outcomes or health behaviors as these are priorities for other funders. For the same reason, RSF seldom supports studies focused on educational processes or curricular issues. RSF does however, support research that examines the causes and consequences of inequalities in student achievement or educational attainment.
The kinds of questions that are of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
Economic Wellbeing, Equality of Opportunity, and Intergenerational Mobility
- To what extent has increased economic inequality (e.g., in income, wealth, consumption) affected equality of opportunity and mobility within and across generations? How have these effects varied by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- What are the causes and consequences of disparities in income, wealth, and consumption and do these vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- How has equality of opportunity changed over time or across groups, and what historical or contemporary factors are likely to change its future trajectory?
- What are the implications of differentially distributed economic rewards and constrained safety net resources for the socio-economic wellbeing of families and children, both during everyday life and when they experience significant economic shocks or hardships?
Inequality and Policymaking
- What policies are effective at breaking the association between parental educational and economic status and the next generation’s outcomes? How do the effects of these policies vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- How have social, political, and economic inequalities affected political participation, support for and the stability of democracy, the responsiveness of elected officials to public opinion, or the development of public programs?
- How have federal, state, or local policies and changes in these policies affected the opportunities and wellbeing of economically or socially disadvantaged people?
- How do administrative burdens or other barriers limit access to and uptake of public benefits by individuals who need them? How do these effects vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration and other statuses?
- How does access to democratic institutions, democratic practices and political power and influence vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration, or other statuses?
Political Institutions and the Democratic Process
- What social, political, and economic factors have contributed to partisan polarization and what are the consequences of this polarization? Have these effects varied by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- What social, political, and economic factors contribute to the development of pro- or anti-democratic attitudes among citizens and political leaders?
- To what extent have disparities in access or exposure to political information or misinformation influenced political participation and attitudes and trust in institutions? How do these effects vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
Climate Change and Natural Disasters
- To what extent is climate change associated with changes in the level and distribution of social or economic wellbeing through dislocation, migration, availability of resources, disruption of occupations or employment, or other mechanisms?
- How do the effects of climate-related disasters like wildfires, floods, drought, heat, hurricanes, and their recoveries vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- To what extent does the political rhetoric around climate change affect political participation and attitudes, and trust in institutions? How do these effects vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- To what extent do both public and private policies, such as the withdrawal of private insurance from geographic regions, or the provision of flood insurance for coastal and flood-prone communities, have disparate effects by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- To what extent do extreme weather conditions related to climate change, such as rising temperatures, affect inequalities in employment, earnings, income, and wealth?
Neighborhoods and Communities
- What are the long-run consequences of growing up in economically or racially segregated neighborhoods or communities?
- What are the causes and consequences of declining geographic mobility from areas experiencing economic distress and how do they differ by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- What are the legacies of policies such as redlining and exclusionary housing ordinances for the opportunity and mobility of African Americans and others affected by these policies?
- To what extent have zoning, environmental, and housing policies created or limited economic mobility and opportunity and does this vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- How do investments in local public resources, such as transportation or schools, affect social and economic wellbeing?
Crime, Criminal Justice & the Legal System
- What has been the impact of crime and criminal behavior, especially violence, on neighborhoods and communities, and on the socio-economic wellbeing of families and children? How do these effects vary by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- What effect does policing have on a community and its residents? How do individuals and communities perceive police and efforts to control crime and how do these differ by socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
- How does the experience of incarceration affect opportunities in domains such as housing, civic participation, employment, education and income and long-run mobility?
- To what extent does incarceration of family members affect young people’s opportunities regarding housing, education, employment, or income?
- How have Supreme Court (federal or state) and other legal decisions lessened or exacerbated social, political, or economic inequality? Have there been disparate social, political, or economic effects across socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, gender, geographic, immigration or other statuses?
Psychological and Cultural Changes
- To what extent has increased social, political, or economic inequality affected values, beliefs, and behaviors, including young adults’ career or educational attainment?
- How do social, political, or economic inequalities affect perceptions of risk or threat, cultural biases, or stereotypes? How might such perceptions or biases affect inequalities in decision-making, such as the behaviors or decisions of landlords, employers, or police?
- Has increased social, political, or economic inequality affected attitudes and values about the roles and responsibilities of social institutions, businesses, and governments, and how?
- What are the psychological consequences of income scarcity and other forms of economic distress, on decision-making regarding education, housing, or employment?
Educational Achievement and Attainment
- How has increased economic inequality affected educational choices, opportunities, achievement, or attainment? What policies or interventions can reduce disparities in these educational outcomes?
- To what extent does school diversity (i.e., teachers, staff, students) or teacher attitudes, behaviors, and bias affect student achievement and educational attainment?
- How might linking educational administrative data to employment, tax or other records provide new insights about life trajectories and factors relevant to educational attainment and labor market outcomes?
Application Information
Funding can be used for research assistance, data acquisition, data analysis, and investigator time for conducting research and writing up results for publication. Trustee Grants are capped at $200,000, including 15% indirect costs, over a two-year period. Presidential Awards are capped at $50,000 (no indirect costs) over a two-year period. However, when research projects have special needs for gathering data (e.g., qualitative research or survey experiments), gaining access to proprietary or restricted-use data, or when the proposal budget includes salary support for multiple assistant professor PIs, applicants may request up to $75,000 (no indirect costs).
A brief letter of inquiry (LOI; four-page maximum excluding references) must precede a full proposal to determine whether the proposed project is in line with the Foundation's program priorities and available funds. All applications must be submitted through the Foundation's online submission system, Fluxx. Questions should be addressed to James Wilson, Program Director, at programs@rsage.org.