Volume 19: No. 1, January 2005

Awards in the Behavioral Sciences:
Think About Nominating Someone
by Suzanne S. Wandersman, Director for Governance Affairs

There are several scientific organizations and federal government agencies that bestow awards for contributions to the behavioral sciences in addition to APA’s Distinguished Scientific Contribution Awards. A list of these awards appears below. Behavioral scientists can only receive these honors and awards if they are nominated. If there are any honors and awards that should be added to the list, let us know so we can publish an updated list later this year.

National Science Foundation and the National Science Board

National Medal of Science: This Presidential Award is given to individuals who deserve special recognition for their outstanding contributions in the social and behavioral sciences, biological, engineering, mathematical and physical sciences. Nomination guidelines and information about recipients can be found at: http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/awards/nms/medal.htm. The following psychologists received the National Medal of Science: Neal Miller (1964), H.F. Harlow (1967), B.F. Skinner (1968), Herbert Simon (1986), Anne Anastasi (1987), Roger Sperry (1989), Patrick Suppes (1990), John McCarthy (1990), George A. Miller (1991), Eleanor Gibson (1992), Allen Newell (1992), Roger N. Shepard (1995), and William K. Estes (1997).

Alan T. Waterman Award: This award recognizes an outstanding young researcher in any field of science or engineering supported by the National Science Foundation. The recipient receives a medal and a grant of $500,000 over a three-year period for scientific research or advanced study in the social, mathematical, physical, medical, biological, engineering, or other sciences at the institution of the recipient’s choice. Nomination guidelines and information about recipients can be found at: http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/awards/waterman/waterman.htm#information.

Public Service Award: This award recognizes people and organizations who have increased the public understanding of science or engineering. The award may be given to an individual and to a group (company, corporation, or organization), but not to members of the U.S. government. Nomination guidelines and information about recipients can be found at: http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/awards/public/public.htm.

Vannevar Bush Award: This annual award recognizes an individual who, through public service activities in science and technology, has made an outstanding contribution toward the welfare of mankind and the nation. Nomination guidelines and information about recipients can be found at: http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/awards/bush/bush.htm.

National Academy of Sciences
(http://www4.nationalacademies.org/nas/nashome.nsf/(leftnav)/Awards_Overview?OpenDocument)

NAS Award for Behavioral Research Relevant to the Prevention of Nuclear War: Recognizes basic research in any field of cognition or behavioral science that has employed rigorous formal or empirical methods, optimally a combination of these, to advance our understanding of problems or issues relating to the risk of nuclear war. Established by a gift from William and Katherine Estes.

NAS Award for Scientific Reviewing: Recognizes authors whose reviews have synthesized extensive and difficult material, rendering a significant service to science and influencing the course of scientific thought.

Troland Research Award: Young investigators are recognized for their unusual achievement and further empirical research in psychology regarding the relationships of consciousness and the physical world. Funds are to be used by the recipient to support his or her research within the broad spectrum of experimental psychology.

NAS Award in the Neurosciences: Recognizes the extraordinary contributions towards progress in the fields of neuroscience, including behavioral neuroscience, clinical neuroscience, developmental neuroscience, neuropharmacology, neurophysiology, neuroanatomy, and neurochemistry.

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
(http://www.aaas.org/aboutaaas/awards)

Philip Hauge Abelson Prize: The prize is awarded to a public servant in recognition of sustained exceptional contributions to advancing science, or to a scientist, whose career has been distinguished both for scientific achievement and for other notable services to the scientific community.

AAAS Award for International Scientific Cooperation: Many scientists and engineers contribute time away from the established career paths of research, teaching, and publishing to foster activities and develop programs of an international nature. AAAS recognizes individuals working together in the scientific or engineering community for making an outstanding contribution to furthering international cooperation in science and engineering.

AAAS Award for Public Understanding of Science & Technology: Recognizes scientists and engineers who make outstanding contributions to the “popularization of science.” The Award is given to scientists, who, while working in their fields, have also contributed substantially to public understanding of science and technology. The types of activities to be considered include books, magazines, and newspaper articles; broadcasting; lecturing; museum presentation and exhibit design; and other public outreach activities, local, national, or international. Only materials produced for general audiences, as opposed to professional or trade associations, will be considered.

AAAS Mentor Awards: The Lifetime Mentor Award and the Mentor Award honor individuals who during their careers demonstrate extraordinary leadership to increase the participation of underrepresented groups in science and engineering fields and careers. Both the awards recognize an individual who has mentored and guided significant numbers of students from underrepresented groups to the completion of doctoral studies or who has impacted the climate of a department, college, or institution to significantly increase the diversity of students pursuing and completing doctoral studies.

AAAS Newcomb Cleveland Prize: The prize is awarded to the author or authors of an outstanding paper published in the Research Articles, Reports, or Reviews sections of Science. Each annual contest starts with the first issue of June and ends with the last issue of the following May. An eligible paper is one that includes original research data, theory, or synthesis; is a fundamental contribution to basic knowledge or is a technical achievement of far-reaching consequence; and is a first-time publication of the author’s own work.

AAAS Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award: The award honors scientists whose exemplary actions have served to foster scientific freedom and responsibility. The award recognizes scientists who have acted to protect the public’s health, safety, or welfare; or focused public attention on important potential impacts of science and technology on society by their responsible participation in public policy debates; or established important new precedents in carrying out the social responsibilities or in defending the professional freedom of scientists.

AAAS Science Journalism Awards: The awards represent the pinnacle of achievement for professional journalists in the science writing field. The awards recognize outstanding reporting for a general audience and honor individuals for their coverage of the sciences.

Grawemeyer Awards
(http://www.grawemeyer.org)

The University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Psychology highlights outstanding ideas in the science of psychology and makes them available to a wide audience. Submissions may address a wide range of topics in psychology. The University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Education is intended to stimulate the dissemination, public scrutiny and implementation of ideas that have potential to bring about significant improvement in educational practice and advances in educational attainment. The award is intended not only to reward the individuals responsible, but also to draw attention to their ideas, proposals or achievements. The award is designed to recognize a specific recent achievement rather than a lifetime of accomplishment.