f&i matt wallace - business intelligence ii: research impact
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CASRAI ReConnect ConferenceOttawa, November 19-21, 2014
Research portfolios in support of societal challenges: concepts, data and analysis
Matthew L. Wallace · INGENIO (CSIC-UPV)Ismael Rafols · INGENIO (CSIC-UPV) · SPRU (University of Sussex)
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Can ‘research portfolios’ help allocate resources to tackle grand societal challenges?
1. What do (and what can) research portfolios mean?
Looking at current practices and moving beyond a ‘financial’ model
2. Case study: avian influenza as a ‘societal challenge’
Understanding a research landscape to inform portfolio design
OUTLINE
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DRIVERS FOR PORTFOLIO-LEVEL ANALYSIS
• Central problem: perceived mismatch between research and desired outcomes
• Responding to current policy demands in grand societal challenges• Tackling large-scale, multi-stakeholder issues
• Transparency, accountability, cost-effectiveness, etc.
• Seeking out alternative research avenues spawning new solutions.
BUT… What ‘baggage’ does the term already have for science policy?
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‘TYPICAL’ R&D PORTFOLIOS
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CURRENT PUBLIC SECTOR PRACTICES
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POLICY “PULL” AND SCIENCE “PUSH”…
Making explicit connections between research options and societal outcomes
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BROAD VIEWS OF OUTCOMES AND OPTIONS…
(Figure adapted from Stirling & Scoones, 2009)
Moving towards a broad set of outcomes and acknowledging high uncertainty
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SYNERGIES, COMPLEMENTARITIES…
Looking for potential positive interactions based on the existing research landscape
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AVIAN FLU AS A CASE STUDYFunding and publications
Avian influenza funding by main funding agencies ($M), from ÜberResearch data
Main avian flu and swine flu strain articles (PubMed)
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AVIAN FLU AS A CASE STUDYDebates on research, outcomes and values
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THE RESEARCH LANDSCAPE
Network of terms and clusters from abstracts of avian influenza publications (2004-2013), mapped according to co-occurrence
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Virology as a WoS subject categoryRESEARCH APPROACHES AND OBJECTS
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“Virology” as a Medical Subject Heading qualifierRESEARCH APPROACHES AND OBJECTS
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MAPPING EXISTING INFLUENZA PORTFOLIOS
Canadian Institutes for Health Research(Influenza A, 2010-12)
GlaxoSmithKline(Influenza A, 2010-12)
Welcome Trust(Influenza A, 2010-12)
Maps generated from overlays of funding data in Web of Knowledge onto the ‘landscape’ of Influenza A research overall
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• Public debates, different research pathways highlight the need for diversity
• We can tentatively identify some dominant lines of research: epidemiology, molecular biology, immunology…
• We can see where connections lie: e.g., very few connections between epidemiology and virology
• We can see how different portfolios reflect (or not) priorities of funders
AVIAN FLU IN THE CONTEXT OF PORTFOLIO DESIGN
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Our (modest) claim: Research portfolio approaches can be useful for better understanding current resource allocation for problem-driven research and for facilitating policy deliberations
• We need to clarify what we mean by “portfolio”• Portfolio lens has the potential to help tackle complex
societal problems: – Move beyond “excellence”, – Inform diversification– Recognize multiple outcomes, promote inclusive policy
process• Mapping from bibliometric (or funding) data can be
useful, – But cannot produce a “one-dimensional”, prescriptive
view– Data remains scarce!
CONCLUSION
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THANK YOU
INGENIO [CSIC-UPV] Ciudad Politécnica de la Innovación | Edif 8E 4º Camino de Vera s/n 46022 Valencia
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