An academic or researcher’s career is often guided by key principles. You must strive to be intellectually honest, innovative and curious. Searching for and producing knowledge requires rigour and passion.
But between publishing papers, teaching obligations, conference attendance, grant applications, networking and all the rest it can sometimes be difficult to keep focus on what is perhaps the central tenet: to move the needle. To advance understanding on the issue on which you’re an expert and affect change.
In many countries, a growing focus on ‘real world research impact’ is becoming embedded into the culture, reflected in assessment criteria and funding requirements (and for all the justified criticism of the ‘metrification’ of impact, we think this is broadly a good thing….). In Australia, one of the first countries to pursue research impact assessment in a formalised way, this culture is firmly cemented through the ERA and EIA; while UK institutions now routinely consider research impact in their strategic planning due to the regular REF exercises.
In other countries, the pursuit of impact or policy engagement is less formalised in the academic structures and therefore receives less focus from researchers and administrators. Using the US as an example, in her interview with Overton NYU Professor Dorothee Baumann Pauly expressed frustration that policy engagement is not built into the hiring or promotion structure in the United States. However, in the last decade or so the call for collaboration between scientists and decision makers does seem to be on the increase in the US – for instance through the Evidence Act and the launch of evaluation.gov – even if it hasn’t yet translated into formalised structures within academia.
Regardless of whether a country’s academic institutions have a formalised impact assessment culture, there are often benefits for researchers and institutions in being proactive about disseminating their research. We think there are some fundamental reasons researchers should consider engaging with policymakers - regardless of the prevailing political winds.
Here’s five reasons we think all researchers should care about policy engagement.
That being said, there should always be space for ‘blue sky research’. We believe it’s hugely important for people to do work that has no obvious application in the world right now - not least because that’s how we innovate and drive society forward! But also because the pursuit of knowledge is its own reward. This list is for academics who are doing policy-relevant research, but who aren't yet convinced of the benefits of engaging with decision-makers!
Either way, our goal at Overton is to support better decision-making by facilitating the easy exchange of quality insights from the right researchers. Get in touch to find out how we're working towards this, and look out for an exciting announcement from us soon...!