Collections

The ISR Publications contains publications of the Institute for Social Research and several sub-units, especially the Survey Research Center. The publications include annual reports, histories, bibliographies, newsletters, brochures and research reports.

The ISR Publications include annual reports, bibliographies and book catalogs, brochures, histories, lectures, newsletters, such as FYI and Open Channel, and reports such as Perceptions of safety and security at the University of Michigan. Contains annual reports, bibliographies, brochures, bulletins and course catalogs, manuals, newsletters, and reports from the Center for Political Studies, Center for Research on Utilization of Scientific Knowledge, CIEL Project: Computers in Early Literacy, Inter-university Consortium for Political Research, National Archive of Computerized Data on Aging, Research Center for Group Dynamics, Survey Research Center, and the Population Studies Center.

The Publications series (6.5 linear feet, 477.9 KB) consists of three subseries: Unit Publications, Sub-Unit Publications, and Topical Publications.

The Institute for Social Research (ISR), an interdisciplinary center for social science research, was created in 1949 when the Research Center for Group Dynamics (founded at Massachusetts Institute of Technology) joined the university's Survey Research Center. ISR houses the Center for Political Studies (CPS), Interuniversity Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR), Population Studies Center (PSC), Research Center for Group Dynamics (RCGD), and the Survey Research Center (SRC). Records document the founding and development of ISR and its related centers and programs and include audiovisual materials, minutes, correspondence, topical files, reports, and proposals. Administrative records include governance committees and director's files. Records of the Program for Research on Black Americans (PRBA) consist of grant proposals, survey instruments, focus group transcriptions, correspondence, bulletins, and internal governance records created under the auspices of PRBA and its various projects. Records of the Research Center for Group Dynamics are primarily the papers of director Kurt Lewin, including manuscripts and talks. Survey Research Center records consist largely of proposal and project files, although they also include faculty oral histories. The records of the Population Studies Center consist of lectures from its founder, Dr. Ronald Freedman, while the Center for Political Studies contains one binder of material from the American National Election Survey conducted in 1980.

The Institute for Social Research (ISR) records are dated from 1936-2017 (scattered) and consist of 143.8 linear feet (in 146 boxes) and digital files (online). Materials in this record group include audiovisual material, committee files (which include minutes and agendas), correspondence, directors' files, oral histories, publications, reports, and topical files. These records document the founding and subsequent development of ISR as well as its centers and programs, particularly the Program for Research on Black Americans (PRBA) and the Survey Research Center (SRC). The records also provide an overview of ISR's administration and the evolution of social science survey research methodology.

There are gaps in the records, which can be addressed in part through the papers of Rensis Likert, Angus Campbell, Dorwin P. Cartwright, and Philip E. Converse—all of which are held at the Bentley Historical Library (BHL). When viewed in conjunction with other ISR-related personal papers in the Bentley Historical Library, a rich and detailed picture of the growth of ISR as a center and the social science research discipline emerges.

Includes annual reports, brochures and pamphlets, course bulletins, calendars, and the newsletters Humanities and Notes from the Institute for the Humanities at the University of Michigan.

The Publications includes annual reports, brochures and pamphlets, course bulletins, calendars, and the newsletters Humanities and Notes from the Institute for the Humanities at the University of Michigan. The publications are organized into three series: Unit Publications, Sub-Unit Publications, and Topical Publications.

The Unit Publications series includes annual reports, brochures and pamphlets, and bulletins describing course offerings from the Institute. This subseries also contains calendars and flyers describing the various programs, presentations, and events sponsored by the Institute for the Humanities. These are arranged chronologically and broken down by the Institute's annual themes. There are two newsletters Humanities and Notes, which cover the activities of the unit from 1989 to the present.

The Sub-Unit Publications series contains brochures from the Humanities Camp. The Humanities Camp is an event which brings together alumni and supporters with University of Michigan faculty to discuss and explore current issues and themes in the humanities.

The Topical Publications series includes Development brochures.

The Institute for the Humanities, founded in 1987, was developed in response to a recognized need for renewed dialogue across disciplines. Originally oriented around the humanities and the arts, the center soon evolved into a widely recognized venue for international scholarship. The records are largely comprised of video and sound cassettes documenting a diverse range of events.

There are two series in the Institute for the Humanities record group: Administrative Records and Audio-Visual Material. The records, largely comprised of videotapes and cassette tapes, provide dynamic evidence of the steady growth and refinement of an initiative that greatly enriched teaching and scholarship in the humanities at the University of Michigan.

Administrative files, conference proceedings, project proposals, research files, records, and photographs relating to continuing education conferences and workshops.

The records of the Institute consist of forty-nine linear feet of manuscripts and printed materials. The records date form 1965 to 1983. The record group is divided into four broad Series: Administrative Files (boxes 1-7), Research Files (boxes 8-18), Continuing Education (boxes 19-48), and Photographs (box 49). Of these, only the Administrative Files have been closely processed. The Administration Files are divided into several subseries, the most substantive of which are History of ISMRRD, Committees, Institute Reviews, and Projects, Proposals and Reports.

Interdisciplinary institute at the University of Michigan and Wayne State University for the study of aging. Records include administrative files relating to the activities, research, publications and conferences of the Institute's University of Michigan program; audio-visual material, and photographs.

The records of the Institute of Gerontology cover the period 1948 to 1987. They are composed of the office files of several staff members at the University of Michigan. (Not included are the records of that part of the IoG housed at Wayne State University.) Included are the scattered files of four of the institute's co-directors, the chairman of the Executive Board, the editor of the Occasional Papers series, the annual conference coordinators, and the directors of certain projects. Also included are correspondence and memos, financial information, grant proposals and reports, minutes, and printed matter. The programs for the Annual Conferences on Aging provide a "who's who" for many of the individuals represented in the collection.

The records provide an overview of the activities, policies, and personnel of the IoG from its inception. Some substantive and seminal memos and reports exist which throw light on the development of programs and on the value of certain projects. Most of the documents are routine, however, and serve primarily to introduce the researcher to the various units and activities of the institute. For details and insights into particular aspects of the IoG, the researcher should consult the separate collections of the various co-directors, directors of research, and project directors, as well as the institute's publications.

Organization founded jointly by the University of Michigan and Wayne State University to encourage practical education and research in all areas of industrial relations. Files from the University of Michigan office, including executive board records, unpublished papers, and miscellaneous topical files; and photographs.

The Institute's records measure one linear foot and date from 1949 to 1975. They consist of a scattering of materials, arbitrarily arranged into a single topical file. Of most interest are the executive board records (1957-1960; 1966-1969) and a few unpublished papers regarding aspects of labor relations in Michigan.

Transcripts of interviews conducted with Michigan labor leaders by staff of University of Michigan and Wayne State University Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations.

The topics covered in these 129 interviews ranged from working conditions, reasons for interest in union, the interviewees' concept of management's reactions to collective bargaining, the strategy of union growth, sit-down strikes, the personalities of union leaders, the role of left wingers, the function of worker education, factional fights, work and production techniques, conversion to wartime production, political action, equal employment opportunities, the growth of various union functions, to the development of present-day auto contracts and Canadian labor relations. Overall the interviews give an intimate look into the development of unions and labor relations from the union's standpoint.

University of Michigan scientific research center. Office files relating to the activities of the unit, and to the research divisions that IST administered, notably the Willow Run Laboratories, the Great Lakes and Marine Waters Center, the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, and others.

The records of the Institute of Science and Technology of the University of Michigan cover the period 1959 to 1987, from the establishment of the unit to the year of its regentally-approved reorganization. Scattered documents prior to 1959 and after 1987 will be found, but not in great quantity.

The record group consists of thirteen series. Except for some modifications and combining of similar materials, these are series that were maintained by the institute office. Types of documents present within these series include memoranda, reports, minutes of meetings, budgetary and financial papers, correspondence, proposal and grant documents, subject files, and photographs. The researcher should note that much material was retained by the IST office at the time of the 1989 transfer of records to the library. Thus, records for expected areas of interest might still be in the possession of IST. Periodic additions to this record group are expected.

Although of obvious value for its documentation of the history and activities of IST, the records of the institute have prime interest for the researcher interested in the study of research at a major educational institution. In particular, the records of IST document the development of the relationship between a university and state and national governments for the purpose of fostering research in areas deemed mutually advantageous. On the national level, especially in the 1960s, this research centered on areas of national defense and environmental study. On the state level, research was intended to improve the economy: to develop the state's technological and industrial base, thereby reducing the debilitating consequences of depression and unemployment that had periodically plagued Michigan's one-industry economy.

Of some value for the study of the content of research undertaken under IST auspices, the records here are of greater importance for the study of the environment required for research programs to be successful. The specifics of research will be found in scientific notebooks, laboratory experiments, and published studies. The IST records document a different story: the need to search out, administer, and balance competing requests for funding, space, equipment, and trained personnel. The IST files, in effect, document the management of research.

Beyond these research possibilities, the records of IST are illustrative of the changing patterns of technological research over the past thirty years. Founded with specific economic goals in mind, IST (with the administrative transfer of Willow Run Laboratories) managed programs having national defense implications. With the completion of these programs, and especially as the university ceased its responsibility for Willow Run, IST turned to areas of new research or areas of special significance to Michigan (perhaps the most notable examples being in the areas of highway safety and water-related research).

Formerly the Institute of Traffic Engineers. Organizational documents, administrative files, membership materials, newsletters, correspondence, district materials, and record books of secretary and treasurer.

The records of the Michigan Section of the Institute of Transportation Engineers date from 1946 to the present. The record group has been divided into the following series: Early organizational records, 1944-1976; Officers' Record Books; and Topical Files.