This year, the Fall Research Conference sessions will be divided across 14 broad policy areas. Below you can find each of these areas as well as examples of issues included in each.
Crime and Drugs
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Drug use and legalization, incarceration effects, prisoner outcomes, police and court processes, international crime, black markets, corruption, rehabilitation programs, recidivism, human rights abuses, etc. May overlap with Employment and Training Programs on prisoner re-entry and job training.
Education
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Head Start, pre-K, kindergarten, elementary education, high school, college, student loans, school and teacher accountability, disadvantaged students, charter schools, grants and financial aid, teacher evaluation and effectiveness, curriculum, student achievement and attainment, class size and composition, after school and summer programs, Veterans (GI Bill), arts and culture programs in schools, etc.
Employment and Training Programs
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Unemployment, underemployment, re-training programs, veterans transition to civilian careers, workplace accommodation for persons with disabilities, earned income tax credit (EITC), the Child Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit, unemployment insurance, internships, apprenticeships, outsourcing, etc. May overlap with Social Equity on affirmative action and diversity hiring programs. May overlap with Crime and Drugs on prisoner re-entry and job training.
Family and Child Policy
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Marriage and marriage education, child support enforcement, child care access, child care subsidies and quality, infants and toddlers, child wellbeing, parental education and employment, vulnerable children and families, school readiness, intergenerational mobility, childhood hunger, family resource and income management, familial immigration concerns, single parent and child custody issues, family planning, etc.
Health Policy
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), barriers to health care access, wellness programs for aging populations and persons with disabilities, rehabilitation programs for veterans, obesity and nutrition (exclusive of SNAP and WIC), reproductive health, health care costs, physician behaviors, health literacy, alcohol, drug and tobacco use, arts programs as rehabilitation, etc.
Housing and Community Development
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Housing stipends, Section-8 housing, community development plans to alleviate crime and poverty, foreclosures, home ownership, relocation assistance, Federal Housing Assistance Loans (FHAs), mortgage assistance, home owner and rental insurance, veterans housing programs, etc.
Impact of Politics on the Policy Process
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Implementing policy, policy reform, policymaking, policy procedures, political participation in policy, policy analysis, accommodating changing attitudes, grant policies, policy across all levels of government: federal, state and local, government efficiency, participation in governance, bureaucracy, intergovernmental relations, budget allocations, the effect of politics on policy, elections, global politics, etc.
Natural Resource Security, Energy, and Environmental Policy
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Energy options and use, research for new sources of energy, pollution, waterways, conservation efforts, protected land and species, natural resource scarcity and management, green economies, land reform, climate change, sustainability, etc.
Population and Migration Issues
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Immigration trends, culture, population growth and decline, aging populations, policy reactions to demographic changes, minority and immigrant migration, labor migration across borders, etc.
Poverty and Income Policy
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Food insecurity, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs (SNAP), the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, Home Energy Assistance Programs (HEAP), welfare, school breakfast and lunch programs, personal retirement planning and income, the Great Recession outcomes, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), poverty reduction programs, savings and asset accumulation, disaster assistance, veterans assistance, disability programs including Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income, etc.
Public and Nonprofit Management and Finance
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Performance management, citizen assessments of public performance, measuring efficacy of federal, state and local programs, block grants, intergovernmental finance, nonprofit management and finance, program implementation, citizen engagement, tax policy, knowledge management, public information sharing, budget cuts, government priorities, etc.
Social Equity
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Gender (including transgender and non-binary gender identification), race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, immigration and LGBT issues, affirmative action and diversity programs, etc. May have overlap with Employment and Training Programs on affirmative action and diversity hiring programs.
Science and Technology
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Science as evidence in policymaking, resource allocation related to science, technology, innovation and economic development; knowledge management within and across organizations national borders, etc.
Tools of Analysis: Methods, Data, Informatics, and Research Design
This policy area includes, but is not limited to, research on the following issues: Methods of analysis, big data, data collection and structuring, research design, policy informatics, computational modeling, system dynamics, data visualization, applications of analytic methods, evidence-based decision making, estimating causal effects, assessing bias, etc.