Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is an emerging discourse at national and European level for the governance of science, which includes public engagement, science education, gender dimension, and ethics, open science. RRI is targeted as a process devoted "to align research and innovation with the values, needs and expectations of society" (EC 2011), to produce a 'right impact', to make the motivations and the intentions for actions in research and innovation more democratic. In November 2014, the Rome Declaration addressed directly governments, research funding organizations and research performing institution to actions toward RRI. The discussion with stakeholder specifically pointed out the need to change the perspective of evaluation in order to understand how far RRI is progressing in research organizations (Reale, 2014) The paper assumes that responsible research challenges research organizations, Universities first and foremost, and research evaluation with new questions, which are related to the progress toward integrating the RRI dimensions in the university governance, and require new criteria and indicators (Kuhlman et al, 2016; Owen et al. 2012). In fact, RRI cannot be assessed under a performance-based approach based on efficiency and effectiveness. RRI asks for reflexivity that universities and research communities should adopt as normal component of their research practice, about the ultimate goal of their efforts and the role they are playing in society. We argue that research evaluation shall improve the formative approach to assess opportunities and characteristics of the stakeholders' engagement in research. It means that activity indicators, rather than performance indicators of actual implementation can provide a useful approach (Lepori and Reale, 2012). The university internal governance and the decision-making shall evolve toward including the new dimension of responsibility; evaluation can have a strong role, supporting the debate, providing evidences about results achieved and open challenges, feeding up learning processes and rethinking about research aims and directions. The paper has an explorative aim to discuss how responsible research is challenging evaluation at university and consequently concepts and methods to be mobilized to address this change. Beyond the policy rhetoric, RRI concepts need to be refined both in terms of their contribution to the evidence-based policy, and their effects on the concrete life of the actors -organizations and individuals - involved. The mentioned items are at the moment largely unexplored.
Ricerca responsabile e innovazione: implicazioni per la valutazione della ricerca nelle università
Reale E
2019
Abstract
Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is an emerging discourse at national and European level for the governance of science, which includes public engagement, science education, gender dimension, and ethics, open science. RRI is targeted as a process devoted "to align research and innovation with the values, needs and expectations of society" (EC 2011), to produce a 'right impact', to make the motivations and the intentions for actions in research and innovation more democratic. In November 2014, the Rome Declaration addressed directly governments, research funding organizations and research performing institution to actions toward RRI. The discussion with stakeholder specifically pointed out the need to change the perspective of evaluation in order to understand how far RRI is progressing in research organizations (Reale, 2014) The paper assumes that responsible research challenges research organizations, Universities first and foremost, and research evaluation with new questions, which are related to the progress toward integrating the RRI dimensions in the university governance, and require new criteria and indicators (Kuhlman et al, 2016; Owen et al. 2012). In fact, RRI cannot be assessed under a performance-based approach based on efficiency and effectiveness. RRI asks for reflexivity that universities and research communities should adopt as normal component of their research practice, about the ultimate goal of their efforts and the role they are playing in society. We argue that research evaluation shall improve the formative approach to assess opportunities and characteristics of the stakeholders' engagement in research. It means that activity indicators, rather than performance indicators of actual implementation can provide a useful approach (Lepori and Reale, 2012). The university internal governance and the decision-making shall evolve toward including the new dimension of responsibility; evaluation can have a strong role, supporting the debate, providing evidences about results achieved and open challenges, feeding up learning processes and rethinking about research aims and directions. The paper has an explorative aim to discuss how responsible research is challenging evaluation at university and consequently concepts and methods to be mobilized to address this change. Beyond the policy rhetoric, RRI concepts need to be refined both in terms of their contribution to the evidence-based policy, and their effects on the concrete life of the actors -organizations and individuals - involved. The mentioned items are at the moment largely unexplored.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
