UC Berkeley’s flagship institute for social science research

Our purpose is captured in our name: we provide an organizational framework—a “matrix”—that supports cross-disciplinary research pursued by social scientists across the University of California, Berkeley campus and beyond.

Matrix On Point

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Event Date: February 3rd, 2026
4:00pm-5:30pm

Matrix on Point: Corruption in America

This panel will bring together leading scholars from business, political science, and law to examine the many facets of corruption in the United States and the ways it is identified, constrained, and addressed. The panel will feature Sarah Anzia, Ernesto Dal Bó, and Erwin Chemerinsky, with Sean Gailmard moderating.

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Matrix News

News

Published June 9, 2021

Matrix Announces 2021-2022 Research Teams

How are digital technologies re-shaping property and development? How are unionized employees in the energy sector experiencing climate change? What are the impacts of Chinese surveillance systems deployed across the Global South? These are among the diverse questions that will be addressed by the eight Matrix Research Teams to be funded by Social Science Matrix during the 2021-2022 academic year.

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Interview

Podcast

Published June 9, 2021

Matrix Podcast: Interview with Youjin Chung

In this episode of the Matrix Podcast, Professor Michael Watts interviews Youjin Chung, Assistant Professor of Sustainability and Equity, with a joint appointment in the Energy and Resources Group and the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management.

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Matrix On Point

Recap

Published May 21, 2021

Matrix on Point: America’s Pursuit of Racial Justice

A "Matrix on Point" panel on the long (and continuing) struggle for racial justice in America led to a thought-provoking conversation among Professors Monica Bell, from Yale Law School; Leigh Raiford, from UC Berkeley; and Brandon M. Terry, from Harvard University. Moderated by UC Berkeley's Christopher Muller.

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Affiliated Centers

Recap

Published May 19, 2021

President Biden’s First 100 Days: An Assessment

Recorded on April 22, 2021, and presented by UC Berkeley's Citrin Center for Public Opinion Research, an online panel evaluated the first 100 days of the Biden Administration.

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Matrix Book Salon

Recap

Published May 11, 2021

Matrix Book Salon: “Race to the Bottom: How Racial Appeals Work in American Politics”

Recorded on May 7, 2021, this UC Berkeley Social Science Matrix Book Salon featured the book, "Race to the Bottom: How Racial Appeals Work in American Politics," by LaFleur Stephens-Dougan, Assistant Professor in the Department of Politics at Princeton University, who was joined in conversation by Taeku Lee, Professor of Political Science and Law at UC Berkeley.

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Matrix On Point

Recap

Published May 4, 2021

Truth & Denial: Searching for Information in the Digital Era

On April 22, 2021, a "Matrix on Point" panel discussion focused on questions of objectivity, disinformation, and the construction of truth from a media-consumption (rather than media-production) perspective, focusing on how internet users find information, how algorithms play a deterministic role in search results, and how lies propagate and solidify.

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