Margaret Olivia Sage Grants - Request for Proposals

Democracy
The scope of American democracy and the vitality of civic life have shown great historical variability. Recent research has examined threats to civil liberties, and the erosion of norms that underpin democratic institutions. Researchers also observe that struggles for inclusion and transformation by marginalized communities are longstanding and foundational to American political development. In short, research highlights the fragility of American democracy, while also examining the central role of historically marginalized groups in reimagining and shaping its trajectory.

The MOS initiative welcomes proposals on the health of American democracy and the conditions under which it succeeds or falters. We are particularly interested in work examining “democracy from the margins” – that is, research on how marginalized communities experience, contest, and shape democratic institutions. We also welcome research on threats to electoral participation and civic engagement, as well as the influence of concentrated wealth and power on elections and policy.

Some questions that this research may address include:

• How do marginalized communities – defined, for example, in terms of race, ethnicity, class, immigration status and/or geography – experience, contest, and shape American democratic institutions?
• How are institutions structured in ways that have disproportionate (positive or negative) effects on marginalized communities?
• How are changes in election administration, voting access, and information environments affecting individuals’ political participation and civic engagement?
• How does the concentration of wealth affect electoral competition, the formation of policy agendas, and/or the responsiveness of public officials to different constituencies?
• How do local or state public actors, civil society, and/or ordinary citizens shape norms, civil liberties, and institutional checks that underpin democratic functioning?

Societal Impacts of Artificial Intelligence
A growing body of research examines the effects of artificial intelligence technologies on work, workers, and workplaces. Current research finds only modest aggregate labor market effects of AI, thus far, but studies also find displacement and wage effects in specific industries, for certain occupations and worker experience levels. Research also suggests that the manner of AI deployment (substituting for or complementing workers) will likely influence the workplace.

Rapid technological change is also influencing politics, culture, and social interaction. Whether through misinformation and disinformation, finely personalized political messaging, biased decision-making in consequential domains (employment, lending, health care, incarceration, etc.), or embedding cultural bias in content generation, AI may be changing the balance of who benefits from the resources, opportunities, and rewards that American society has to offer.

The MOS initiative welcomes proposals that address how AI is being adopted across or within sectors and communities, the consequences for societal inequality, and/or the policy and social responses that could sustain democracy, advance economic fairness, and protect the public interest.

Some questions that this research may address include:

• How do AI technologies affect job security, mobility, and bargaining power among workers in clerical, administrative, and customer service roles?
• Under what conditions do AI tools enhance or diminish the productivity, autonomy, and job satisfaction of workers across blue- and white-collar occupations?
• What public policies or organizational practices could promote a positive use of AI technologies that augment workers rather than replace them?
• How does AI affect people’s interactions with political and social institutions and how do those interactions impact the provision of goods and/or trust in government, corporations, or other institutions?
• What is the impact of disparate access to AI and to what extent does it exacerbate group inequalities?
• How do AI infrastructure needs such as data centers positively or negatively impact the economic and/or social wellbeing of communities?

Inequality and Affordability
The causes and consequences of economic inequality have been a longstanding interest of the Russell Sage Foundation, and these issues take on special significance today. Changes in inequality may reflect changes in social structure, and the shifting roles of market and non-market institutions in economic life. Additionally, high levels of income and wealth inequality may be closely connected, for example, to inertia and capture of political decision-making, diminished civic engagement across the population, and distrust and isolation among young people.

Related to high levels of inequality, the “affordability crisis” refers to the difficulty many low- and middle-income households face in meeting the costs of everyday necessities, including housing, food, healthcare, childcare, and education. Research has also explored alternative measures of material wellbeing and economic security that aim to capture the everyday experience of economic life that may be overlooked by standard economic indicators.

The MOS initiative welcomes proposals that examine the expansive impact and conceptual understanding of inequality and affordability. We are particularly interested in variation over time, across groups, and across regions of the country, as well as innovative measurement, data designs and strategies for analysis. Successful research projects will be a resource for communities and policymakers in responding to the economic challenges facing American households.

Some questions that this research may address include:

• How is the gap between household incomes and the cost of everyday necessities changing across groups, regions, and over time?
• What is driving the rising costs of housing, healthcare, and childcare?
• How do households absorb and adapt to affordability pressures, and with what consequences for economic security and mobility?
• How can new measures of material wellbeing and economic security better capture the everyday experience of economic life?
• How different is the experience of and adaptation to the affordability challenges across demographic groups, including age, gender, race, or citizenship?
• How do individuals and communities adapt to increasing challenges of food and water insecurity and with what consequences for resources and other dimensions of inequality?

Data Infrastructure for Social Science Research
Over the last few years, federally-funded data collections and statistical series that monitor social and living conditions in the U.S. population have become less accessible, delayed in release, and in some cases discontinued. At the same time, researchers have explored new kinds of data based on digital traces, data linkage, online platforms, proprietary databases, and administrative records. Efforts have also proliferated to disseminate, visualize, and analyze data for audiences beyond the academic research community.

The MOS initiative welcomes proposals for the building and sharing of data collections that illuminate patterns of social and living conditions across groups, over time, and across geographic regions. MOS grants will support efforts to maintain and extend critical public data resources that have been under threat. It also will support projects that develop innovative approaches to data collection and dissemination. We are especially interested in projects that help create informational public goods for researchers, the general public, organizers, advocates and policymakers. We also particularly welcome data projects focused on the substantive priority areas of democracy, AI, and inequality and affordability. Maintaining large-scale data collections remains crucial for tracking social and living conditions and sustaining scientific integrity in policy development. These challenges also provide an opportunity to rethink and improve what data are being collected, and how and why they are collected.

Some questions that this research may address include:

• How can data resources better track patterns of social and living conditions across groups, regions, and over time?
• How can novel data sources (e.g., administrative records, digital traces, or platform data) be used to measure and track social and living conditions?
• How do limitations in current public data infrastructure shape what can be known about inequality?
• How can data infrastructure best serve researchers, policymakers, and the public?