social science 
noun [mass noun]
1The scientific study of human society and social relationships.Ives said any efforts to tackle the problems must be linked to human sciences such as anthropology, social science, and human geography....
- However, in 1911 he gave up the idea of training for the priesthood and embarked on the study of philosophy, social science, and natural science.
- All of this work had the same aim as his first study - to better human life through social science.
1.1 [count noun] A subject within the field of social science, such as economics or politics.Major social sciences today are economics, political science, anthropology, and sociology....
- Other social sciences such as Economics, Sociology, and Anthropology were demarcated in similar fashion.
- Of all the social sciences, economics most closely resembles the natural sciences.
Derivatives
social scientist
- Much of his work requires an interdisciplinary approach involving social scientists and researchers in various fields.
- The family has been dissected and defended from as many points of view as there are articulate social scientists or imaginative writers.
- Let the best comparative studies of our top social scientists expand our knowledge of what works best and why.