The ICS, an Associate Laboratory, is a university institution devoted to research and advanced training in the social sciences.

The mission of the ICS is to study contemporary societies with a special emphasis on Portugal and the societies and cultures with which Portugal has an historical relationship, either in Europe or in other regions of the world. Linking researchers from several different disciplines, the ICS currently focuses its research on five main subject areas: the formation of the contemporary world; the study of citizenship and democratic institutions; the problem of sustainability, combining the environment, risk and space; social changes and individual action in the context of the family, lifestyles and schooling; and issues concerning identity, migration and religion. The main subject areas represented at the Institute are: Social and Cultural Anthropology, Political Science, Economics, Human Geography, History, Social Psychology and Sociology.