UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON ARCHIVES
ORAL HISTORY PROJECT

Interview #352
ORCUTT, GUY

ORCUTT, Guy (1917- )
Professor of Economics
At UW: 1958-1970

Interviewed: 1988	
Interviewer: Laura Smail
Length: 1 hour 51 minutes

Reasons for coming to UW; Work on microanalytic model of social systems; Climate for social science research at UW; Economics Department; Organization of SSRI; Poverty Institute; Tax returns study; Growing need for fund raising; Decision to leave UW for World Bank; Effect of new Social Science Building on expectations of research organizations; Allocation of space; Survey Research Laboratory; Loss of SSRI staff.

Tape 1

00:00:03	Edwin Young primarily responsible for bringing Orcutt to UW.  Young said Orcutt could control WARF grant if he came to UW.  Substantial grant, helped build institute.

00:04:52	Given attractive appointment and salary, considered big for the time.  Bigger than those of older colleagues.

00:05:35	People he found to work with at UW.  Had small teaching load, but still active.  

00:06:54	Moved to UW in fall of 1958.

00:07:29	Microanalytic model of social systems idea.  What was needed to make it work.

00:08:37	Micro model different from other models of the time.

00:09:19	SSRI supported well by UW.  Elvehjem's perception of Orcutt.

00:10:00	Issue of WARF support for social sciences.

00:13:13	How Orcutt saw the economics department upon his arrival.

00:15:20	Orcutt's years at the UW the best of his life.

00:15:38	Easy inter-departmental communication and cooperation at UW.  Better than other universities.

00:19:01	Poverty Institute, with independence, competed with SSRI.

00:22:27	UW's focus on Poverty Institute led to Orcutt's departure.

00:25:45	Orcutt's dream of a social science research organization spanning all social sciences.  Budget constraints.

00:27:08	Young and William Sewell helpful.

00:27:48	NSF grant, with matching state grant, used to build Social Science building.

00:32:33	University of Michigan's research institute model for UW.

00:33:18	Emphasis on computers.

00:34:31	Ford Foundation and NSF.

00:37:40	Effort to get more WARF money.

00:39:17	Change in administration helpful to SSRI.

00:40:21	Reasons SSRI didn't get maximum grants.

00:44:28	Arnold Zellner to University of Chicago.  Hurt fund raising efforts.  Staff beginning to break up.

00:54:47	Quality of older staffers.

00:55:59	End of Tape 1

Tape 2

00:00:03	Future of SSRI cloudy after Zellner left.

00:01:15	Orcutt worried over SSRI.  Didn't want to work mainly as a fund raiser.

00:02:00	Orcutt fretted about effects of money problems at SSRI.  Questioned his own role at SSRI.

00:06:53	Studies on state tax returns.  Lasted years.

00:11:44	Splitting of social science research organizations led Orcutt to leave.

00:13:39	1961 offer to return to Harvard rejected.  Later regretted.

00:17:35	Low point in summer 1964.  Effort to learn French.

00:19:30	Feared French lessons affected his speech.

00:20:43	Accepted offer to spend a year at Harvard as visiting professor.  Enjoyed year.

00:22:40	Would have stayed at Harvard if asked.  Never was.

00:24:49	Returned to UW, decided to resign.  Didn't know what was in his future.

00:25:34	Accepted job at World Bank.  

00:28:01	Move to Urban Institute.

00:30:19	Charles Holt's memo on social science research. 

00:33:20	Roles and expectations of research organizations in the wake of construction of Social Science building.

00:35:40	Allocation of space in building.

00:39:27	Lost Survey Research Lab and Poverty Institute.  Use of space in Social Science building.

00:41:30	Differences in research models between Economics and Sociology.

00:46:49	Survey Research Lab decline.

00:48:09	Outside research helped SSRI.

00:49:07	The computer expertise of Martin Greenberger. 

00:52:44	Lack of strength in computers after Greenberger left harmed SSRI.

00:55:20 	End of Tape 2

END