Comprehensive Listings

• Conservative Think Tanks (Heritage Foundation)
  • Extensive list of conservative think tanks
  • Searchable by name, issue or location
  • Contact information and links to web sites if available
• International Relations Think Tanks
  Annotated list of international affairs think tanks in the U.S. and abroad
• Liberal Think Tanks
  • Previous lists which appeared on this site have been taken off the internet; no replacement yet found
  • Twentieth Century Fund, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Economic Policy Institute, and Center for Law and Policy are examples of generally-accepted liberal research organizations
  • A description of problems identifying a think tank's individual bent are described in Rodney Carlisle's Encyclopedia of Politics: The Left and the Right, v. 1, p. 447-449 (Grad Ref. JA 61 .E541 2005 v.1)
• NIRA World Directory of Think Tanks
  • Extensive links of think tanks arranged by country
  • Issued by the National Institute for Research Advancement (Japan) and published in English
• Public Policy Institutes (Yahoo)
  • Brief annotations include political bent
• Public Policy Organizations (Yahoo)
  • Brief annotations include political bent

Individual Think Tanks

• American Enterprise Institute
  • Economic and foreign policy think tank
  • Full text of selected periodical articles and economic outlooks appears until AEI Research/Online Library

• American Foreign Policy Council
  • Issue briefs and articles since 1995, primarily on U.S. relations with Russia and China

• Baker Institute of Public Policy
  • Sponsored by Rice University in honor of James A. Baker
  • Speeches and executive summaries on foreign and domestic policy issues

• Brookings Institution
  • Private, non-profit, independent institute analyzing U.S. government policy and international relations
  • Summaries of position papers on "hot topics" and selected Congressional testimony
  • Table of contents for the Brookings Review and selected articles
  • Publications catalog and information about the organization

• Bureau of Governmental Research
  • Non-profit research institute analyzing public administration in New Orleans but affecting all metropolitan areas
  • Bibliography of publications and links to university public policy institutes

• Carter Center
  • Center founded by Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter to counter world hunger, disease, poverty, conflict, and oppression
  • News and annual reports on projects
  • Searchable by keyword

• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
  • Reports and working papers, primarily on US-Russian relations and nuclear non-proliferation
  • Economic development and democratization efforts around the world

• Cato Institute
  • Philosophy of limited government, free market, and individual liberty
  • "Hot Topics" has the text of Cato Institute position papers, arranged by subject and searchable by keyword
  • Congressional testimony by institute representatives

• Center for Budget and Policy Priorities
  • Non-partisan think tank focused on policy issues affecting lower and moderate-income citizens
  • Extensive, full text analyses on such subjects as welfare reform, medicaid, food stamps, and block grants
  • Includes search engine

• Center for Defense Information
  • Arms Trade Data Base provides the text of news articles on arms trade, arranged by country
  • Weekly Defense Monitor includes position papers
  • U.S. military spending clock

• Center for International Governance
  • Articles and position pages on international issues, such as UN Reform, safe drinking water, environment

• Center for Strategic and International Studies
  • Papers on Russian, Asian, and Middle East relations
  • National and international employment and social issues
  • Catalog of publications

• Center for Media and Public Affairs
  • Nonpartisan research organization on the news media
  • Its Newswatch is a daily magazine that analyzes the accuracy of daily news from media critics
  • The full text is searchable

• Center for Public Integrity
  • Non-partisan organization promoting ethics in government
  • 50 States Project rates states on public disclosure laws
  • Research reports on financing presidential and Congressional elections

• Center for Responsive Politics
  • Non-partisan research group monitoring campaign reform
  • Congressional campaign finance filings
  • Open Secrets
    • Lobby group campaign contributions to Members of Congress arranged by industry and separately by member
    • Web version in Adobe Acrobat format corresponds to paper version in Documents Center (JK 1991 .M261)

• Coalition to Reduce Nuclear Dangers
  • Extensive coverage of the Indian/Pakistani nuclear tests, chemical weapons convention, ballistic missile defense, nuclear weapons reduction and disposal
  • Articles, government documents, and web sites reflecting various viewpoints

• Commonwealth Institute
  • Progressive think tank on defense and economic issues
  • Numerous on-line analyses of U.S. defense posture, the Quadrennial Defense Review (federal government), and capitalism

• Economic Policy Institute
  • Nonprofit, non-partisan think tank on U.S. economics
  • Press releases and executive summaries of working papers on such subjects as school funding, living standards, and the budget
  • Links to government economic data including archived material

• Employment Policies Institute
  • Research on entry level jobs and the minimum wage
  • Includes press releases and research reports, including youth and welfare employment

• European Policy Institutes Network
  • Association of 40 member think tanks in 28 European countries
  • Web site has working papers on various aspects of the European Union and on individual country positions about the EU

• Foreign Policy Association
  • Membership organization geared toward debate and education on foreign policy
  • Briefing papers on foreign policy issues from its own sources and those of other think tanks

• Free Market Net
  • Libertarian think tank
  • Current news and links to opinion pieces on libertarian issues

• Heritage Foundation
  • Dedicated to limited government, individual freedom, a free market, and strong defense
  • Text of public policy papers on various topics, including crime, education, foreign policy, health care, and trade
  • Index of Economic Freedom for countries in the world
  • Extensive list of conservative think tanks
  • Numerous statistics in support of its positions

• Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace
  • Description of programs, research, and archival holdings
  • Text of press releases

• Hudson Institute
  • Conservative think tank on domestic and international policy issues
  • Summaries of its briefings and current periodicals

• Interhemispheric Resource Center
  • Promotes internationalism in U.S. foreign policy and U.S.-Mexico relations
  • Numerous periodicals and issue briefs

• International Center for Economic Growth
  • Non-profit think tank on international economics
  • Full text of newsletter articles since 1998
  • Catalog of publications

• Jerome Levy Economics Institute
  • Nonprofit, nonpartisan institute for economic forecasting and its relation to public policy
  • Web site describes the organization, its research projects, and publications
  • Summary of its Policy Briefs and text of its latest bimonthly newsletter

• John M. Ashbrook Center for Public Affairs
  • Conservative think tank focused on constitutional, educational, and economic issues
  • Full text of current editorials, current issue of On Principle and Right from the Center
  • Catalog of publications

• Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
  • Non-profit organization providing public policy information on issues affecting black Americans
  • Summaries of selected papers include public opinion polls on such topics as race relations, children, black participation in the Republican Party
  • Full text of annual report

• Kennedy School of Government
  • Working papers of the Political Research Group
  • Includes the abstract, full text, and information about the author

• Milken Institute
  • Economic think tank focused on global economy, capital markets, education and the workforce, U.S. regional economics and demography
  • Web site contains substantial working papers in pdf format

• Morrison Institute for Public Policy (Arizona State University)
  • Research projects on state and local governance with emphasis on Arizona
  • Economics, education, environment, government, effect of tax cuts
  • Full text of Arizona Policy Choices and selected other publications available online

• National Bureau of Economic Research
  • Full text of working papers in Adobe Acrobat format since 1973
  • Description of economic, labor, and health research
  • Several historical on-line economic data bases and a description of historic U.S. business cycles

• National Center for Economic and Security Alternatives
  • Models, bibliographies and case studies
  • Focus on community development; forthcoming guides on non-profit institutions and security affairs
  • Annotated web links in all three areas

• National Center for Policy Analysis
  • Non-profit, non-partisan public policy think tank
  • Pro and con issue papers on health care, taxes, Social Security, welfare, education, and environment
  • Background papers on high school debate topics supplemented by statistics
  • Includes text of relevant bills and opinions of other think tanks

• National Priorities Project
  • Lobby group on federal budget priorites
  • Data on previous budgets and the impact of current budget proposals on state and local areas
  • Subjects include jobs, education, hunger, health care, taxes, and children

• Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government
  • Public policy institute focusing on the role of state governments
  • Issue papers, grants, and on-going projects

• Pioneer Institute
  • Public policy think tank for Massachusetts issues
  • Includes policy briefs and white papers
  • Focus on charter schools, deregulation and contracting

• Progressive Policy Institute
  • Think tank sponsored by the Democratic Leadership Council
  • Numerous papers and briefs on domestic and international issues

• Public Agenda
  • Nonpartisan, issue-oriented think tank
  • Presents eighteen issues, including abortion, crime, gambling, immigration, internet privacy, social security, and welfare
  • For each issue provides background, links to lobby groups, a digest of news stories, basic statistics, and a variety of state laws
  • Numerous public opinion polls

• Rand Corporation
  • Non-profit research organization
  • "Research Areas" includes a subject bibliography of RAND publications since 1985 with abstracts of the reports and articles in the RAND Research Review since 1994
  • "Hot Topics" has the full-text of current policy papers

• Resources for the Future
  • Research projects on the environment, natural resources, weapons cleanup
  • Includes the full text of completed reports

• Russell Sage Foundation
  • Liberal think tank focused on research in the social sciences
  • Describes organization

• Rockridge Institute
  • Progressive think tank "committed to the democratization of knowledge about politics"
  • Studies values behind conservative and progressive discourse
  • Includes positions on economics, health, environment, family values, and religion
  • Text of George Lakoff's Thinking Points

• Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
  • Promotes international disarmament
  • Summaries of the SIPRI Yearbook, beginning 1993, cover major armed conflicts, military spending, and disarmament developments
  • Describes SIPRI research areas, such as its Chemical and Biological Disarmament program

• Twentieth Century Fund
  • Progressive think tank
  • Position papers on economics, government, foreign policy, and health care

• United States Institute of Peace
  • Promotes the resolution of international conflict without violence
  • Describes the organization's work, internships and grants
  • Bibliography of free printed publications

• Urban Institute
  • Non-profit policy research organization on U.S. social and economic problems
  • Hot Topics includes position papers and testimony on such subjects as block grants, civil rights, education, health, medicare, and taxes

Working Papers

• Columbia International Affairs Online (UMich Only)
  • Search engine indexes current world politics journals, books, conference proceedings, and think tank working papers
  • Full text primarily of working papers

Quick Jumps:

Grace York, Political Science Librarian
University of Michigan Library
Graphics by Sherry Piontek and Barbara Perles

http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/psthink.html

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