Social research in Greece, in an organized manner, started in the 1960s with the foundation of the National Centre for Social Research (EKKE). For the following 30 years, both the advancement and problems of social research in the country have depended on the development of the centre. The most significant characteristic of the centre has been its delay in advancing research, in terms of both quantity and quality, when compared to western countries. The actual state of the social sciences and the level of the country's development in general, as well as the lack of demand for applied research has resulted in this delay. Over the past few years, however, more research centres - apart from EKKE - have been founded and research has been promoted in the country especially by the research centres of universities and by funds provided by the European Community for social studies. Finally, social research has been recently promoted because it is increasingly acknowledged that both economic and social problems can be effectively solved with better information and knowledge of the social conditions prevalent in each country.