Ontologies in the Behavioral Sciences Accelerating Research and the Spread of Knowledge (2022) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 1-8
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From page 1... ...
Yet despite these advances, the behavioral sciences -- the social and biological sciences concerned with the study of behavior -- face substantial challenges. Inconsistent use of terms and classification systems makes it challenging to integrate findings from individual studies and in turn to cumulatively build bodies of knowledge even in domains that are consistently studied.
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The committee appointed to conduct the study -- which included experts in medicine, population health, psychology, psychiatry, biobehavioral sciences, biomedical informatics, neural and cognitive science, library and information science, the history and philosophy of science, computer science, and bioengineering -- was directed to review the relevant literature, as well as example ontologies, to identify advantages and obstacles to the further development of behavioral ontologies, to identify recommended approaches to strengthening ontologies, and to offer conclusions and recommendations for advancing behavioral ontologies. The committee focused its attention on one segment of the very broad terrain of the behavioral sciences, the domain of mental health, in order to look deeply at the literature, example ontologies, and issues in context.
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In addition to offering scientists the direct benefits of formal specifications of entities and relationships, ontologies support scientific work indirectly, providing a foundation for scientists' efforts to develop cumulative knowledge bases, make predictions, and develop causal explanations. STRENGTHENING EXISTING ONTOLOGIES IN THE BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES The committee identified numerous valuable efforts to bring ontological clarity to behavioral science but found comparatively few welldeveloped behavioral ontologies.
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Computer tools can bring extremely valuable efficiency to the development, maintenance, and editing of ontologies, but they can never stand in for the human understanding, ingenuity, and social perceptions that go into the development and use of ontologies. Taking advantage of opportunities to strengthen ontologies in the behavioral sciences will require attention to the practical challenges of supporting the work required.
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Yet, although existing ontological systems have served valuable purposes, taken together they have not exploited the large potential for ontologies to accelerate advancement and application of behavioral research. It may be that some domains of the behavioral sciences have more to gain from a focus on ontology development than others.
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From page 6... ...
should develop formal agendas for accelerating behavioral science research through the development and use of semantically formal ontologies. These agendas should draw on ideas generated within other scientific domains and the international scientific community and should include a range of activities: • NIH should use its convening authority to engage experts and to develop a plan for ontology development across NIH institutes and centers.
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RECOMMENDATION 3: The Office of Science and Technology Policy should develop a report on how an explicit formal specifi cation of a shared conceptualization for behavioral science can be implemented across federal science agencies, based on review of ontologies developed by other agencies, including, but not limited to, the National Science Foundation; the Departments of Health and Human Services, Defense, Transportation, Agriculture, Labor, and Justice; the Environmental Protection Agency; the National Institute of Standards and Technology; the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Professional organizations and publishers also have a key role to play, and we direct three recommendations to such organizations.
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From page 8... ...
Ultimately, better communication within the scientific community and between scientists and knowledge consumers will improve the science of behavior, the way it is disseminated, and its capacity to ameliorate and prevent suffering. This report is focused on the behavioral sciences, but most of the issues discussed here would apply in other domains as well.
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