Why Social Sciences & Humanities Matter in STEM Projects
From technical performance to real-world impact
Social Sciences and Humanities help STEM projects understand people, behaviours, ethics, governance, regulation, markets, inequalities and trust.
Horizon Europe priority
Around 40% of Pillar II topics funded in 2021–2023 were SSH-relevant.
Societal readiness
SSH assesses user behaviour, social acceptance, organisational change and adoption barriers.
Inclusive design
SSH considers gender, age, socio-economic factors, accessibility, lifestyle and behavioural aspects.
Stronger uptake
SSH supports policy relevance, market adoption, customer understanding and exploitation pathways.
Build the right consortium
Include sociologists, economists, ethicists, lawyers, psychologists, anthropologists, design researchers and gender experts.
Use SSH methods
Apply stakeholder mapping, interviews, surveys, co-design workshops, living labs, ethics assessment and cost-benefit analysis.
Embed SSH in the work plan
Add tasks on user needs, inclusion, ethics, adoption barriers, governance, regulation, policy uptake and market pathways.
Measure societal impact
Track user acceptance, trust, accessibility, affordability, behavioural adoption, inclusion and policy relevance.
AI in health
Patient trust, clinician workflow, bias, explainability, data governance.
Smart energy
Household behaviour, energy poverty, data-sharing trust, fair incentives.
Circular economy
Consumer acceptance, industrial adoption, skills needs, circular business models.
Robotics & digital
Human-machine interaction, workplace impacts, privacy, ethics, accessibility.
Agriculture & food
Farmer behaviour, rural livelihoods, advisory systems, gender, consumer acceptance.
SSH helps STEM projects answer what technology alone cannot: Who needs this? Who may be excluded? Why would users adopt it? What risks could emerge? What governance is needed? How can results create real societal impact?