About
The Center
Since its creation in 1954, researchers associated with the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS) at Stanford University have explored some of our world’s most challenging questions and problems. Drawing on disciplines across academia and insights have created and extended knowledge of our world, and continue to do so. The Center’s annual mix of distinguished thinkers of proven accomplishment facilitates advanced thinking and research. They study contemporary societal problems and contribute to evidence-based policy and solutions.
With its own campus sitting on a hill above Stanford University, CASBS is renowned for providing a home for scholars engaged in pioneering research. In the 20th century, this was undertaken largely through individual projects. The nurturing of such pursuits endures. In the 21st century, progress on theoretical, empirical, and societally important questions increasingly requires multiple perspectives and cross-disciplinary teams engaging academia but reaching beyond it to civil society, government, and the private sector. Today, the Center is an epicenter for short- and long-term research networks, projects, and workshops. This reimagining of CASBS supports both individual research and creative collaboration.
The Mission
The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences is a place where great minds confront the critical issues of our time, where boundaries and assumptions are challenged, where original interdisciplinary thinking is the norm, where extraordinary collaborations become possible, and where innovative ideas are in pursuit of intellectual breakthroughs that can shape our world.
CASBS @ Stanford brings together deep thinkers from diverse disciplines and communities to advance understanding of the full range of human beliefs, behaviors, interactions, and institutions. A leading incubator of human-centered knowledge, CASBS facilitates collaborations across academia, policy, industry, civil society, and government to collectively design a better future.