Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Transformation of American Think Tanks, 1960-2002

University Of California-Berkeley, Berkeley CA

Investigators

Abstract

The Transformation of American Think Tanks, 1960 to 2002 Abstract Using a mixed-method research design, this dissertation evaluates the historical spread and transformation of American policy research organizations ("think tanks") in the context of changing intellectual and political orders. While think tanks have contributed to national, state, and local politics for nearly a century, their recent history is marked by a number of important changes, both quantitative and qualitative, organizational and strategic. These changes include a dramatic increase in the number of American think tanks, from fewer than 35 in the 1960s to over 300 today, as well as notable shifts in their character, composition, tactics, and funding. The study's central aim is to investigate the causes and consequences of these changes. What caused the transformation of American think tanks? What role have think tanks played in the conservative movement? How have the growth and transformation of the think tank sector affected the overall system of relations through which intellectuals participate in American politics? Based on research conducted in Washington, DC, New York City, and Madison, Wisconsin, the study takes as its anchor the field analysis method devised by Pierre Bourdieu. It draws empirical evidence from a mixture of archival records, statistical data, 'segmented' ethnographic observation at several think tanks, and in-depth interviews with representatives from policy research organizations and related institutions. The study will contribute to two areas of sociological knowledge - political sociology and the sociology of knowledge and intellectuals - by using the history of think tanks as a context for evaluating and extending theories of the political role of intellectuals in the United States. The study will also expand our knowledge about the history of the American conservative movement. The results of the proposed research will be disseminated through a series of scholarly journal articles and one monograph published by a university press.