The social sciences are already relevant [Correspondence]

Abstract

Luk Van Langenhove argues that the social sciences should be made more relevant (Nature 484, 442; 2012). But the problem is rather that society remains largely unaware of the thousands of social-science studies produced every year that are relevant to global challenges such as climate change. Efforts should focus on increasing the societal use of scientific knowledge instead of producing more, starting with better communication of research findings to the public.