Jim Pass

• Ph.D.
• Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Astrosociology Research Institute

Archaeology might be defined simply as the study of 'the human altered world'. Until recently, traces of humanity's past could have only been found on Earth. But, as our influence continues to expand beyond, we must consider human activities and human-made objects in space and how they—as extensions of ourselves—impact other worlds and the spaces b...

The field of astrosociology, founded by this author in 2004, examines the relationship between outer space and society. Sociologists, other social scientists, and humanists have failed to recognize the impact of space on daily social life - a relationship that requires attention and serious scientific analysis. In the area of social problems, astro...

Dr. Albert A. Harrison’s sudden and untimely death in February 2015 ended an extremely productive and influential career as a rare social scientist – specifically a social psychologist – who focused on space issues such as SETI, astrobiology, planetary defense, space-based folklore, behavioral health, the human elements associated with spaceflight,...

Discussions concerning science and technology convergence too often ignore the social sciences. This is not the case here, as the focus is on a relatively newly emerging and increasingly relevant social science field. Astrosociology is an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary field that promotes and represents convergence of the physical/natural...

The movement toward an astrosociological curriculum has slowly made headway since the incorporation of the Astrosociology Research Institute (ARI) in May 2008. Much of the effort during the first two or three years involved the continued articulation of the definition and relevance of the field, which still continues to some extent, but the shift i...

The introduction of the field of astrosociology in 2004 by author Pass focuses on the study of astrosocial phenomena (that is, social, cultural, and behavioral patterns related to outer space). As such, astrosociology exists as a multidisciplinary field to fill a vacuum that covers several space-related subfields from social and behavioral science...

Discussions concerning science and technology convergence too often ignore the social sciences. This is not the case here, as the focus is on a relatively newly emerging and increasingly relevant social science field. Astrosociology is an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary field that promotes and represents convergence of the physical/natural...

Human migration into outer space will most likely involve the transplantation of cultural and institutional elements familiar to the participants that they left behind on Earth. To the extent that they plan to regulate social life in a similar manner, the settlement of a space environment must involve planning and construction of social institution...

This paper discusses, analyzes, and contrasts some of the terminologies used in sociological, ecological, and environmental literatures as they relate to the astrosociological paradigm. Astrosociology is concerned with the two-way relationship between outer space and human society. This relationship includes the vitally important interplay among ec...

It is easy to take a well-functioning complex system for granted, even when we do not quite understand how it will work in great detail before starting it up for the first time, or exactly how it works thereafter (given its complexity). At the system level, the normal operation of the space habitat can result in accidents. On the personal level, co...

As with any academic field, astrosociology allows for an endless number of competing theoretical models and hypotheses. One possible theoretical model is presented here that starts with the premise that even the most advanced societies today are extremely far from achieving a spacefaring status. The most advanced nation states are, in fact, space-c...

] Astrosociology has emerged during the last decade to focus on the relationship between outer space and society. The focus here is mostly on the micro level of analysis which involves human social interaction on the personal level. Human factors analyses applied to space-related issues may be broken down into three types, which will receive substa...

A void has existed within the social sciences for over fifty years since the launch of the first Sputnik satellite in October 1957. This void delineates the boundaries of a missing field, a discipline capable of focusing on the relationship between social life and outer space. It is true that social scientists have pursued space issues over the las...

A void has existed within the social sciences for over fifty years since the launch of the first Sputnik satellite in October 1957. This void delineates the boundaries of a missing field, a discipline capable of focusing on the relationship between social life and outer space. It is not that surprising that many may interpret a discussion of how ou...

Supporters of astrobiology continue to organize the field around formalized associations and organizations under the guise of the so‐called “hard” sciences (e.g., biology and the related physical/natural sciences). The so‐called “soft” sciences—including sociology and the other social sciences, the behavioral sciences, and the humanities—remain lar...

]. One of the key areas within the emerging subfield of medical astrosociology involves research concerning the ethical dilemmas that space travelers and settlers will face as humanity spreads itself out into the solar system. Those that touch on the medical domain can be especially difficult to reconcile, and they often result in disagreement and...

As we move beyond the fiftieth anniversary of the dawn of the space age, a curious question looms in the background. Why has the discipline of sociology, and the other social sciences, formally ignored the study of social, cultural, and behavioral patterns related to space exploration (i.e., astrosocial phenomena)? There is a void, reminiscent of t...

Astrosociology is a relatively new multidisciplinary field that scientifically investigates astrosocial phenomena (i.e., social, cultural, and behavioral patterns related to space exploration and related issues). The "astrosociological frontier" represents an analogous framework to that of space as the "final frontier," as both territories are quit...

The space age marches on. Following President Bush's Vision for Space Exploration (VSE) and our recent celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of spaceflight on October 4, 2007, we should now take time to contemplate where we have been as it relates to where we are going. Space exploration has depended most strongly on engineers and space scie...

(Abstract). As human beings increasingly participate in outer space through their efforts dedicated to exploration, habitation, recreation, and exploitation of resources - in terms of the frequency of missions, the distance travelled, and the number of human beings participating - the importance of coping with their health needs will increase propo...

(Abstract) As contemporary post-industrial societies advance, a most interesting question arises: What will be the social structures and cultures of tomorrow? The changes that initiated and sustained the space age may provide the roots for our own future. We present a model of a spacefaring society in which all major social institutions, the larger...

[Abstract]. The STEM acronym emphasizes the renewed desire by space professionals (including NASA) and others involved in education to focus more strongly on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Based on the precipitous decline in the number of students choosing these areas for their future careers, this emphasis seems reasonable. NAS...

As we prepare to go back to the Moon on a permanent basis, it behooves us to take advantage of our return to the Moon by increasing our knowledge base so as to make all aspects of survival possible. The standard approach remains fixed on meeting the challenges related to power, physical habitat, and others associated with the physical environment a...

(Abstract) From the time human beings could adequately comprehend their view of the stars in the heavens, they sought to understand what existed beyond the Earth and their own place in the universe. Early in the history of humankind, the longing for traveling to distant worlds accompanied our determination to understand the universe, perhaps starti...

Astrosociology represents a distinctive emergent field within the sociological discipline and outside of it, inclusive of the other social sciences and a strong connection to the natural sciences. It provides a heretofore absent focus that partly serves to complement the work of space scientists and engineers, including the space policy issues that...

For a number of reasons, the construction of a single space colony represents a future social reality strongly likely to play itself out repeatedly as the twenty-first century advances. As early plans are considered, we must take into account that societies on Earth serve to carry out a variety of life functions and, in so doing, must meet the soci...

With the end of the shuttle era approaching, the space program continues to utilize engineering and space-science approaches oriented toward solving relatively simple problems related to near-Earth missions. Achievements in the future will involve much more complex objectives related to the various facets of engineering, the space sciences, and, in...

From the time human beings could adequately comprehend their view of the stars in the heavens, they sought to understand what existed beyond the Earth and their own place in the universe. Early in the history of humankind, the longing for traveling to distant worlds accompanied our determination to understand the universe, perhaps starting with a v...

The criticisms identified in the discussions that follow illustrate a curious fact. The study of social patterns related space from a sociological perspective remains non-existent as an organized and mainstream subdiscipline even as the space age continues (Pass 2004a; Pass 2004b). Space is sociology's forsaken frontier in the sense that the discip...

As we near the fiftieth anniversary of the dawn of the space age, a curious question looms in the background. Why has the discipline of sociology formally ignored the study of social and cultural patterns related to space exploration (i.e., astrosocial phenomena)? There is a void, reminiscent of the false view of outer space as an empty vacuum, rep...

Throughout the space age, t he social sciences, a nd especially so ciology, demonstrated a strong reluctance to address human behavior and societal issues related to space. The American larger culture supports space exploration though an u ndercurrent exists that questions its legitimacy. SETI represents a good example of a substantive area support...

The recent scientific furor over astrobiology, while indeed justified, continues to assemble formalized associations and organizations to support it under the guise of the so-called "hard" sciences (e.g., biology and the related physical sciences). The so-called "soft" sciences - including sociology and the other social sciences, the behavioral sci...

As a discipline, sociology has largely refused to address astrosocial phenomena (i.e., social/cultural patterns related to "outer" space). A large element of this self-imposed indifference/resistance relates to the general assumption that this neglected area of social life is not legitimate and thus not worthy of sociological inquiry. This essay ta...

When officials in the space community speak about utilizing space as a teaching tool to encourage students to become the new scientists and engineers of the future, they inevitably narrow their scope of attention to the natural sciences. They rarely, if ever, think about the growing importance of training social scientists to fulfill their importan...