Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences

The Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, known as CASBS, is an independent research institute at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, where it is part of the Policy and Social Sciences Academic Units. It began operations in 1954 with a founding grant from the Ford Foundation and a stated purpose of increasing knowledge of the factors that influence human conduct for the benefit of individuals and society. The Center hosts fellows from around the world, organizes multi-year projects on societal challenges and research methods, and spreads knowledge of social and behavioral science. Its fellows come mainly from anthropology, economics, political science, psychology and sociology, and in recent decades also include legal scholars, humanists, philosophers, medical researchers and technology experts. Fellows over the years include more than 30 Nobel laureates. The Center belongs to the Some Institutes for Advanced Study consortium and works from a hilltop campus of ten buildings.