Think tank

A think tank, or public policy institute, is a <a href="/facts/Research_institute/h1CjvE4X">research institute</a> that performs <a href="/facts/Research/mo8joeTL">research</a> and <a href="/facts/Advocacy/K0XM1Nnj">advocacy</a> concerning topics such as <a href="/facts/Social_policy/XnjxCY69">social policy</a>, <a href="/facts/Political_strategy/0DtXG95q">political strategy</a>, <a href="/facts/Economics/HYctA2Dn">economics</a>, <a href="/facts/Military/kgNmLUnN">military</a>, <a href="/facts/Technology/9Uav5WVR">technology</a>, and <a href="/facts/Culture/c5JgMqpX">culture</a>. Most think tanks are <a href="/facts/Non-governmental_organizations/qxQSsxsI">non-governmental organizations</a>, but some are semi-autonomous agencies within a government, and some are associated with particular political parties, businesses, or the military. Think tanks are often funded by individual donations, with many also accepting government grants.
Think tanks publish articles and studies, and sometimes draft <a href="/facts/Legislation/yUjkPsgX">legislation</a> on particular matters of policy or society. This information is then used by governments, businesses, media organizations, <a href="/facts/Social_movement/MMt07XNv">social movements</a> or other interest groups. Think tanks range from those associated with highly academic or scholarly activities to those that are overtly ideological and pushing for particular policies, with a wide range among them in terms of the quality of their research. Later generations of think tanks have tended to be more ideologically oriented.

Modern think tanks began as a phenomenon in the <a href="/facts/United_Kingdom/kuPAILt2">United Kingdom</a> in the 19th and early 20th centuries, with most of the rest being established in other English-speaking countries. Prior to 1945, they tended to focus on the economic issues associated with industrialization and urbanization. During the <a href="/facts/Cold_War/spJdJQ3q">Cold War</a>, many more American and other <a href="/facts/Western_world/UQl4e7du">Western</a> think tanks were established, which often guided government Cold War policy. Since 1991, more think tanks have been established in non-Western parts of the world. More than half of all think tanks that exist today were established after 1980. As of 2023, there are more than 11,000 think tanks around the world.

Think tank open-in-new

Think tank