"Mainstream social science has come under fierce criticism in recent decades for failing to have more impact on public policy. Critics say the social sciences are incapable of generating knowledge that can solve social problems. Others contend that partisan politics and university administrations are the problem. Politicians are more concerned about special interests than scientific research, and administrators care more about scholarly publications than solving social problems. Are the social sciences failing to live up to their promises? Have they outlived their usefulness? Have they become an Ivory Tower of Babel?

The primary goal of these scholars - anthropologists, communication scholars, economists, political scientists, sociologists and social psychologists - has been to solve problems of social integration. The Babylonian tower was designed in part to unite people to one geographical area. Similarly, social scientists see their tower of knowledge as a means for solving social problems - such as poverty, crime, drug abuse, inequality, unemployment, abuse of power - that alienate people and groups from modern society."--Pub. desc.