Bylaws

Name of the section

Bayesian Social Sciences, abbreviated as BSS

Purpose of the section

The primary purpose of the Section is to promote the research, application and dissemination of Bayesian inference for problems in the Social Sciences and Humanities. For the purpose of the Section, the Social Sciences are to be defined broadly, including fields such as (but not limited to) Anthropology, Archaeology, Demography, Economics, Geography, History, Linguistics, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology.

To this end, the Section shall: facilitate interactions between Bayesian Statisticians operating in the Social Sciences; promote research in Bayesian methods in the Social Sciences by organizing conferences, workshops, webinars, and sessions in other meetings; promote education in Bayesian methods in the Social Sciences by developing short courses for students and for researchers and practitioners from the Social Sciences; promote interactions between Statisticians and researchers in the Social Sciences; foster the availability of Bayesian methods, via the development of software packages and publications in field-specific journals.

Offices, duties, and terms of offices

The offices are those of Chair, Chair-elect, Past chair, Program chair, Treasurer, and Secretary. These officers form the Executive Committee of the ISBA/BSS Section.

The Program chair, Treasurer, and Secretary are elected by the membership for two year terms. The Chair-elect is elected by the membership for a one year term, followed by a one year term as Chair, followed by a one year term as Past chair.

Procedure for electing section officers

Officers are elected concurrently with the annual ISBA elections.

The Section Nominating Committee has five members: the Past chair, one other Section Executive Committee member whose office is up for election that year, and three Section members; these three members are chosen by the Section Executive Committee following solicitation of names and consultation with the Section membership. The Chair of the Section Nominating Committee will be appointed by the Section Executive Committee. The term for all officers starts on January 1 following the election.

Procedure for making decisions

The Section Chair chairs meetings of the Executive Committee and the Section Membership. The duties of the secretary, treasurer and program chair are as described in item 4.B through D of the ISBA constitution, but restricted to the section.

The ISBA/BSS Executive Committee shall report to the ISBA Board at each Board meeting. The report can be in writing. The Section Secretary is responsible for submitting reports.

Procedure for modifying dues

Any change to membership dues is to be approved by the Board by 15 November in any year in order to have effect from the following January.

Method of amendment of the bylaws

The Section Bylaws may be amended by majority vote in two successive Board meetings, with at least a two-week interval between the meetings.

How membership in the section is defined

Any ISBA member who pays the section membership fee is a member of the Section.