The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations is an independent outgrowth of the Tavistock Clinic, which was founded in 1920 in Tavistock Square in London. The Institute was founded in 1946. Both institutions were originally entirely private, supported by private donors. The Clinic now part of a National Health Service trust, while the Institute is a charity.

The Institute engages in educational, research and consultancy work in the social sciences and applied psychology. Its clients are chiefly public sector organisations, including the European Union, several British government departments, and some private clients. The Institute has its own publishing house, and owns and edits Human Relations, the international social sciences journal. The Institute also edits the journal Evaluation.

It offer a masters degree in Advanced Organisational Consultation, jointly with City University, London.

A history of the Institute can be found in The Social Engagement of Social Science: A Tavistock Anthology published by the University of Pennsylvania Press in three volumes between 1990 and 1997.