DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH AND IMPACT: A FEW THOUGHTS Rachel M. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH AND IMPACT: A FEW THOUGHTS Rachel M. Gisselquist, Research Fellow

What is impact? Impact on whom? Towards what end? What are the routes to impact? How do we know – and show – impact?

Impact* as • the contribution of research ‘to society and the economy, and its benefits to individuals, organizations, and/or nations’, which can be: – Instrumental – direct influence on policy, practice – Conceptual – in understanding, reframing debates – Capacity building (*adapted from ESRC)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPMzEkz0wAc

‘Applied’ research Impact is direct & concrete

• Government/IO commissioned research, advising • (Randomized) impact evaluations • Evidence-based policy-making • Technical assistance & capacity-building

R. Glennerster on ‘evidence in policy - making’ (2018 CSAE keynote): From: https://www.csae.ox.ac.uk/materials/conference/CSAE2018_Keynote-19Mar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n2beBUADNKQ

Basic research Impact is not the point, but possible

Impact could be concrete, direct, & game-changing … or not.

Basic Applied Research Research

Engaged frontier research Impact is probable, but may be diverse, diffuse, and difficult to measure

Impact* as • the contribution of research ‘to society and the economy, and its benefits to individuals, organizations, and/or nations’, which can be: – Instrumental – direct influence on policy, practice – Conceptual – in understanding, reframing debates – Capacity building (*adapted from ESRC)

In the (uncomfortable) middle… (1) We balance between research and practice, doing our best to stay ‘on top’ of both.

(2) We have to learn some new skills (in communications, advocacy, programme management...)

(3) We wrestle with how to conceptualize, measure, evaluate, and demonstrate impact. Chart 1: Share of Working Papers (co-) authored by … 66 59 40 53 62 51 61 19 30 51 28 2014 30 2015 2016 2017 Developing Female Female country researcher researcher researcher from developing country

Part 2: Engaged frontier research in practice

📍 Foreign aid

🔎 Aid to fragile states

📍 Inequality

🔎 Group-based Inequality

www.wider.unu.edu Helsinki, Finland