Interviews with 180 federal agencies that conduct social research and development (R&D) were conducted and documents were examined to determine: (1) what types of social R&D are supported, and what levels of support are provided; (2) who defines the problems to be researched, who decides the level of support to be provided, and how investigators are selected and monitored; and (3) how potential users are involved in research decision making, and how the research results are disseminated. Major emphasis was on social R&D in the major policy areas of income security, health, early childhood, and the living environment (i.e., policy area that encompasses the patterns of growth and change in agricultural, urban, and metropolitan areas). One central insight revealed in the agency studies, all of which are summarized in this report, is that there is an enormous diversity of practices in all areas studied. In the concluding sections of the report, key conclusions, generally critical of current practices, are discussed, and a framework in which to analyze the actions of the social R&D managers is developed. (RM)