1. Research with Impact in the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Jennifer Chubb, Research and Innovation Officer, The University of York, UK

2. Aims of today
Define impact in the context of what it means to funders, stakeholders and researchers
Explore who the beneficiaries of research might be, how they might benefit and strategies for ensuring they benefit
Develop a deeper understanding of how researchers have made an impact with their research
Help you unpack some of the issues to consider in relation to measuring and predicting potential research impact

3. Outline of the day The impact agenda – UK policy Academic case study
Review and critique live UK and ARC grants
Lunch
Pathway to impact planning and presentations
Lots of opportunity for questions and discussion!

4. Thanks to our speakers and organisers
Krystyna Haq – Graduate Education Officer, Graduate Research and Education Team, UWA
UWA’s Institute of Advanced Studies
Winthrop Professor Alan Dench, Dean of the Graduate School, UWA
Winthrop Professor Susan Broomhall, History and ARC Centre for Excellence in the History of Emotions

5. The University of York

6. About us
In less than 50 years, York has become one of the top ten universities in the UK for teaching and research – and is ranked in the top 100 universities in the world.
There are now over 30 academic departments and research centres and the student body has expanded to 13,000.

7. Research at York
Virtually all our research is "internationally recognised" and over 50% is "world-leading" or "internationally excellent" (RAE 2008)
York is consistently a top 10 UK research university and attracted over £200 million of funding last year
The University works with public, private and third sector organisations across its research activities
Our research income exceeds our teaching income

8. Researcher Development in the UK

9. Framework of the knowledge, behaviour and attributes of successful researchers
Enables self-assessment of strengths and areas for further development
Common framework across institutions in the UK
Universal language for communicating researcher capabilities

10. Why are you doing your research?
What motivates you?
Does impact matter?
Instructions:
- Get into pairs
- Ask your partner what motivated them to choose a career in research
- Each pair should come up with 6 post-it notes of things which motivate them (3 per person)
After ten minutes, bring the group back together ask each person to bring up one post it and add to flip chart paper, going round the group until all the different points have been covered. (any duplicates can be added at the end)
Comment on any themes arising. Do people have similar motivations?
Other resources:
There are a series of short ‘researcher stories’ video clips you could use in this section if required, e.g. to highlight a different discipline,

11. Research with Impact

12. The UK impact agenda
The impact agenda has ignited much debate in the academic community in the UK and elsewhere due to the required inclusion of a ‘pathways to impact’ statement in research council grant funding applications
Return on public investment

13. The impact agenda: assessment
In addition to this, HEFCE have introduced a 20% weighting on impact in the Research Excellence Framework exercise calling for evidence that the research that has been funded has made an impact

14. Future and potential impacts
AHRC and ESRC ask for explicit answers to:
Who will benefit from this research?
How will they benefit from this research?
What will be done to ensure that they have the opportunity to benefit from this research
So we’ve agreed that you are doing research because of the benefits it will bring to a range of circumstances, but asked by AHRC to document what these benefits might be in more and more explicit terms.
Impact summary, impact plan and academic beneficiaries all part of application.
Must write an impact plan as part of AHRC application. Describes how potential impacts will be realised – specific to beneficiaries outside academic research community.
Impact plan addresses latter point – communications and engagement, collaboration, exploitation and application, capability

15. Australian Research Council and NHMRC
The ARC asks applicants to outline the potential innovative economic, environmental, social and/ or cultural benefit of proposed research and whether there are adequate strategies to encourage dissemination, commercialisation, if appropriate; and promotion of research outcomes.
NHMRC requires information about applicants’ involvement in community engagement activities and the translation of research into policy and practice.
Focus on national research priorities
Outcomes, innovation and impact ( subtle differences)

16. The aspiration
“Our most direct and urgent message must be to the [researchers] themselves: learn to communicate with the public, be willing to do so and consider it your duty to do so” Royal Society Statement The Public Understanding of Science (or Bodmer Report)1985 “The duty of intellectuals in society is to make a difference” Sir Thomas More ...(Shortly before his execution in 1535) 3

17. The reality

18. Who is interested in research?

19. Mapping engagement The public Public sector Community and 3rd sector
The media
Schools, colleges and lifelong learning
Communities of interest
Cultural and leisure services
Communities of place
Health and well being agencies
Non Governmental Organisations
Policy community
Community and 3rd sector
RESEARCH
Quangos and govt agencies
Community organisations and societies
Local / regional / national govt
Voluntary organisations and charities
Local authorities / strategic bodies
Businesses and industry
Social enterprises
International community
Business community

20. Knowledge exchange
“The UK Research Councils seek to accelerate the two-way flow of people and ideas between the research environment and wider economy, and thereby contribute to national prosperity, the quality of life of UK citizens, and cultural enrichment of our society. Knowledge Transfer encompasses the systems and processes by which knowledge, expertise and skilled people transfer between the research environment (universities, centres and institutes) and its user communities in industry, commerce, public and service sectors.” Research Councils UK

21. What’s the process? E KT I Enterprise
You do novel research, you have an idea about ways in which the research could be useful to the outside world KT
Knowledge transfer/ exchange
That idea is translated to beneficiaries through a range of activities with external collaborators I
Impact
There is an influence or effect on society/ economy enabled through effective knowledge exchange

22. But what constitutes impact?

24. Economic, societal and cultural impact
“The research councils define impact as the demonstrable contribution that excellent research makes to society and the economy”
Impact is increasingly being defined as the influence or effect of research outside the university on the economy, society, and culture
Taking research to non-academic users
This description has been agreed on a cross-council basis a year ago
Since then, much discussion about how to handle `academic impact` so…

25. Broadly defined for a reason?
Impact embraces all the extremely diverse ways in which research-related knowledge and skills benefit individuals, organisations and nations by:
fostering global economic performance, and specifically the economic competitiveness of the United Kingdom
increasing the effectiveness of public services and policy, and
enhancing quality of life, health and creative output

26. Impact of social science research can be further categorised as:
Instrumental – influencing the development of policy, practice or service provision, shaping legislation, altering behaviour
Conceptual – contributing to the understanding of policy issues, reframing debates
Capacity building – through technical and personal skill development

27. How might benefits be translated to end users?

28. Commercialisation
In the UK, researchers are encouraged to think about the commercial potential of their work through activities such as:
CPD activities
Business creation (spin out/ license)
Knowledge transfer partnerships/ collaboration with industry
Consultancy

29. Research into policy and practice
Politicians want research to back up their ideas
Academics want politicians to consider their research

30. Royal Society Statement
Public engagement
“ Our most direct and urgent message must be to the [researchers] themselves: learn to communicate with the public, be willing to do so and consider it your duty to do so”
Royal Society Statement

31. How does this affect grant writing?
1. Academic beneficiaries
2. Impact summary (4000 characters)
3. Pathway to impact (up to two sides of A4)
Since April:
Two summaries
Impact plan – soon to be renamed – up to 2 pages
Also, can ask for resources to do these activities
Will address each

32. What is the difference between the summaries and the pathway to impact?
The summaries may well appear in the public domain (e.g. grants on the web)
non-technical language
focus on beneficiaries and how they will be impacted
The pathway expands on the information in the summaries
what you are actually going to do
networking events, workshops, publications, public engagement, training…
This was not clear in the original guidance:
Summaries need to be written in non-technical language and be suitable for public domain
Focus on beneficiaries, and what the impacts will be for them
Plan (Pathways to impact) is part of the case for support, so will be used by reviewers.
Needs to cover what you will actually do – activities

33. Write an Impact Summary
Summarise your research for a lay audience in no more than half a page ( we will use these later)
Tips:
Lose the jargon
Sell the benefits of your research not the features
Think about your audience, how can you make your research accessible?

34. Impact is also understood in the UK in different contexts
Maximising impact of current research
Reporting on impact of previous research
Academic impact
Have seen that A/H research has a wide range of impacts.
On a more personal level, when might you have to think about some of these benefits and scenarios in your day to day life as an academic, given the changing climate for funding etc.
Impact can mean different things in different contexts, and it is confusing that sometimes impact on academia counts, and sometimes not, etc. but there are basically three areas where impact is important – covering the whole of the research life-cycle!
Before – During - After

35. 1. Maximising current research
Dissemination
Publications (open access), conferences, media, web, public engagement
Widening collaborations
Knowledge transfer/exchange (inc funded)
Partnering across disciplines/non-academic organisations
Tracking of impacts
START recording!
Note that non-academic orgs includes government (and other public and private sector) e.g. giving advice to gov committees
Probably not covered everything here – but gives you an idea of the activities that can be done.
KTP – again advice on funding available from REO – Rukmal Abeysekera
Capturing impact – hard, hard question to answer, but in light of the final point on reporting on impact, it is a good idea to think about capturing proxies of activity or impact if possible (the dreaded survey!)

36. 2. Past impacts: external assessment
Research Excellence Framework (REF)
20% assessment = ‘Impact’
Structured narrative (case studies), backed by indicators
Examples must be underpinned by excellent research undertaken at submitting institution
Assessed at level of Unit of Assessment
Pilot was carried out in 2008

37. This is different to academic impact!
“The demonstrable contribution that excellent research makes to academic advances, across and within disciplines, including significant advances in understanding, methods, theory and application”
Research Councils UK
This description has been developed

38. IMPACT: AIMS NOT to change the type of research
To encourage you to think about the possible impact of your research at the time of planning it
`Impact` does not equal `applied`
`Impact` does not equal `industry`
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council UK
Reiterate the key messages about our aims:
We want to say to govt `look how fantastic EPS is – so give us more money!` Need their help.

39. Impact can happen at different times...
Also aware that impact may happen at different times, depending on the type
So need to think about WHEN a particular impact might happen
0 – 5 Years
Years
Years
Years

40. What is a pathway to impact?
What will be done to ensure that they benefit from this research?
Detail how the proposed research project will be managed to engage users and beneficiaries and increase the likelihood of impacts:
Communication and engagement plans
Collaboration arrangements
Plans for exploitation, where appropriate
Relevant experience and track record

41. What resources might you request to carry out your impact plan/activities?
Extra time allocated to impact activities
Training (e.g. public engagement or communications)
Workshops, seminars, networking events
Communicating to the public
Publication costs
Employment of consultants etc

42. Measuring public engagement

43. Evaluating impact
Determining the impact of research is not straightforward
This is particularly the case in social science where policy and service development is not a linear process, and decisions are rarely taken on the basis of research evidence alone

44. Challenges of measurement
It can be difficult to pin down the role that an individual piece of research has played
The timing of evaluation also presents challenges. Too soon after the research ends may mean that any impact has yet to fully develop, too late and the impact may no longer be traceable as people involved have moved on

45. Advice from UK funding councils?
If you build impact in from the start then evaluation will become more part and parcel of the process
User involvement will feed in throughout the whole process
Tracking and monitoring progress against targets will help keep track of evidence
Research upon research? Work in progress

46. Reviewing impact EXCELLENCE
Novelty, relationship to the context, and timeliness
Ambition, adventure, and transformative aspects
Appropriateness of the proposed methodology
IMPACT
Extent to which the proposal shows the potential impact
Relevance/appropriateness of any beneficiaries or collaborators
Appropriateness of dissemination and knowledge exchange routes and resources
ABILITY TO DELIVER
Appropriateness of the track record of the applicant(s)
Balance of skills of the project team, including academic collaborators
PLANNING AND RESOURCES
Effectiveness of the proposed planning & management
Appropriateness of the requested resources – justified?
These are the four criteria that are on the peer review form

47. Discussion: review impact in grants
Extent to which the proposal shows the potential impact
Relevance/appropriateness of any beneficiaries or collaborators
Appropriateness of dissemination and knowledge exchange routes and resources

48. Group work – draft a pathway
Discuss your summaries – work in groups and choose one research project
Using the flip chart outline:
the chosen lay summary of the project
non-academic beneficiaries/partners
how will they benefit
activities which will help to produce impact ( consider ways this might be evaluated?)

49. Tips for better impact Say what you are going to DO
Be clear and precise including names and details
Use and maximise existing links
Encourage ‘active participation with’ and ‘people exchange’
Use new media routes to engage others
Be creative, enjoy it!
Use public engagement
Think ‘outside the box’
Remember impact is broader than commercial exploitation

50. In summary It is about maximising the impact of activities
It is about showing our value
The activities funded are not changing

51. Further information
UK All 7 UK Research Councils: RCUK Pathways to Impact: National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement: Australia Australian Research Council: Australian Academy of the Humanities:

52.
University of York