Can Agents Work?

Jobs / Science and research / 19-3041.00

Sociologists

Study human society and social behavior by examining the groups and social institutions that people form, as well as various social, religious, political, and business organizations. May study the behavior and interaction of groups, trace their origin and growth, and analyze the influence of group activities on individual members.

US jobs
2,260
Median wage
$106,030 a year
Job family
Science and research

Can agents do the work of sociologists?

We read the evidence at the level of the job family, Science and research:

  • Task levelPartialThin evidence. CORE-Bench asks agents to reproduce the results of published papers in computer science, social science, and medicine from the authors' code and data. Princeton's HAL team declared it solved in December 2025: Claude Code with Claude Opus 4.5 scored 95.5% after manual regrading. No benchmark in our collection tests new experiments or lab work.
  • Project levelNot yetThin evidence. On PaperBench, where agents replicate machine learning papers from scratch, the best official result is 26.0% (o1, April 2025). On a small subset, ML PhDs scored 41.4% against o1's 26.6%. No newer official results exist, and no benchmark tests research projects in other sciences.

Benchmarks for the job family

These cover work in science and research, not always this occupation's tasks.

  • CORE-Benchby Princeton UniversityTask level · CORE-Bench-Hard accuracy (public test set)
    95.5%Claude Code + Claude Opus 4.5 (after manual regrading) · 3 Dec 2025
    Solved
  • PaperBenchby OpenAIProject level · Average replication score
    26%IterativeAgent o1-high (36h limit) · 2 Apr 2025
    Emerging

Typical tasks

From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.

  • Analyze and interpret data to increase the understanding of human social behavior.
  • Prepare publications and reports containing research findings.
  • Develop, implement, and evaluate methods of data collection, such as questionnaires or interviews.
  • Collect data about the attitudes, values, and behaviors of people in groups, using observation, interviews, and review of documents.
  • Teach sociology.
  • Plan and conduct research to develop and test theories about societal issues such as crime, group relations, poverty, and aging.
  • Present research findings at professional meetings.
  • Explain sociological research to the general public.
  • Develop problem intervention procedures, using techniques such as interviews, consultations, role playing, and participant observation of group interactions.
  • Consult with and advise individuals such as administrators, social workers, and legislators regarding social issues and policies, as well as the implications of research findings.
  • Direct work of statistical clerks, statisticians, and others who compile and evaluate research data.
  • Collaborate with research workers in other disciplines.
Other job titles for this occupation (21)

Demographer · Evaluation Specialist · Medical Sociologist · Policy Analyst · Research Associate · Research Coordinator · Research Scientist · Research Specialist · Social Scientist · Sociologist · Clinical Evaluator · Clinical Sociologist · Criminologist · Family Sociologist · Penologist · Policy Advisor · Policy Officer · Program Evaluator · Rural Sociologist · Social Welfare Research Worker · Urban Sociologist