1. John Young: ODI, London j.young@odi.org.uk
Making Knowledge Count Maximising the value of Research for Development
John Young: ODI, London

2. Overview Part 1: Introduction to ODI & RAPID Definitions
Policy processes & the role of research
Policy-makers perspective
An Analytical framework
Part 2:
A Practical framework
Some tools for researchers, policy-makers and donors + some examples of their use.
Some conclusions
Sources of further information.

3. Overseas Development Institute
Development Think Tank
60 researchers
Research / Advice / Public Debate
Rural / Humanitarian / Poverty & Aid / Economics / Policy Processes
DFID, Parliament, WB, EC
Civil Society
For more information see:

4. RAPID Group Promoting evidence-based development policy & practice
Through
Research
Advice
Public Affairs
Capacity-building
Working with:
researchers
policymakers
parliamentarians
southern think tanks
for further information see: /

5. Definitions
Research: “any systematic effort to increase the stock of knowledge”
Policy: a “purposive course of action followed by an actor or set of actors”
Evidence: “the available information supporting or otherwise a belief or proposition”
Evidence-based Policy: “public policy informed by rigorously established evidence”.

6. Policy Processes Identify the problem Commission research
Analyse the results
Choose the best option
Establish the policy
Implement the policy
Evaluation

7. Monitoring and Evaluation Policy Implementation
Policy Processes
Cabinet
Donors
Monitoring and Evaluation
Agenda
Setting
Decision
Making
Policy Implementation
Policy Formulation
Parliament
Civil Society
Ministries
Private Sector

8. Chronic Poverty in Uganda
Kate Bird et al, Fracture Points in Social Policies for Chronic Poverty Reduction, ODI WP242, 2004 (

9. …in reality…
“The whole life of policy is a chaos of purposes and accidents. It is not at all a matter of the rational implementation of the so-called decisions through selected strategies 1”
“Most policy research on African agriculture is irrelevant to agricultural and overall economic policy in Africa2”
“Research is more often regarded as the opposite of action rather than a response to ignorance”3
1 Clay & Schaffer (1984), Room for Manoeuvre; An Exploration of Public Policy in
Agricultural and Rural Development, Heineman Educational Books, London
2 Omamo (2003), Policy Research on African Agriculture: Trends, Gaps, and Challenges,
International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) Research Report No 21
3 Surr (2003), DFID Research Review

10. But Policy makers are…
…practically incapable of using research-based evidence because of the 5 Ss…
Speed
Superficiality
Spin
Secrecy
Scientific Ignorance
Vincent Cable – Lib. Democrat MP & Shadow Minister of Finance
More at:

11. Factors influencing policy making
Experience & Expertise
Pragmatics & Contingencies
Judgement
Evidence
Lobbyists & Pressure Groups
Resources
Habits & Tradition
Values and Policy Context
Source: Phil Davies Impact to Insight Meeting, ODI, 2005

12. Different Notions of Evidence
‘Scientific’ (Context free)
Proven empirically
Theoretically driven
As long as it takes
Caveats and qualifications
Researchers’ Evidence
Colloquial (Contextual)
Anything that seems reasonable
Policy relevant
Timely
Clear Message
Policy Makers’ Evidence
Source: Phil Davies Impact to Insight Meeting, ODI, 2005

13. Existing theory X Linear model Percolation model, Weiss
Tipping point model, Gladwell
‘Context, evidence, links’ framework, ODI
Policy narratives, Roe
Systems model (NSI)
External forces, Lindquist
‘Room for manoeuvre’, Clay & Schaffer
‘Street level bureaucrats’, Lipsky
Policy as social experiments, Rondinelli
Policy Streams & Windows, Kingdon
Disjointed incrementalism, Lindquist
The ‘tipping point’, Gladwell
Crisis model, Kuhn
‘Framework of possible thought’, Chomsky
Variables for Credibility, Beach
The source is as important as content, Gladwell
Linear model of communication, Shannon
Interactive model,
Simple and surprising stories, Communication Theory
Provide solutions, Marketing I
Find the right packaging, Marketing II
Elicit a response, Kottler
Translation of technology, Volkow
Epistemic communities
Policy communities
Advocacy coalitions etc, Pross
Negotiation through networks, Sebattier
Shadow networks, Klickert
Chains of accountability, Fine
Communication for social change, Rockefeller
Wheels and webs, Chapman & Fisher

14. Existing theory – a short list
Policy narratives, Roe
Systems of Innovation Model, (NSI)
‘Room for manoeuvre’, Clay & Schaffer
‘Street level bureaucrats’, Lipsky
Policy as social experiments, Rondene
Policy streams and policy windows, Kingdon
Disjointed Incrementalism, Lindblom
Social Epidemics, Gladwell
The RAPID Framework

15. An Analytical Framework
External Influences
Socio-economic and cultural influences,
donor policies etc
The political context – political and economic structures and processes, culture, institutional pressures, incremental vs radical change etc.
The links between policy
and research communities – networks, relationships, power, competing discourses, trust, knowledge etc.
The evidence – credibility, the degree it challenges received wisdom, research approaches and methodology, simplicity of the message, how it is packaged etc

16. Case Studies Detailed: Summary Sustainable Livelihoods
Poverty Reductions Strategy Processes
Ethical Principles in Humanitarian Aid
Animal Health Care in Kenya
Dairy Policy in Kenya
Plant Genetic Resources
Summary
GDN x 50
CSPP x 20
Good news case studies x 5
Mental health in the UK

17. Animal Healthcare in Kenya
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
Professionalisation of Public Services.
Structural Adjustment → collapse of services.
Paravet projects emerge.
ITDG projects.
Privatisation.
ITDG Paravet network.
Rapid spread in North.
KVB letter (January 1998).
Multistakeholder WSs → new policies.
Still not approved / passed!
Professionalisation of Public Services.
Structural Adjustment
Privatisation
ITDG Paravet network and change of DVS.
KVB letter (January 1998).
Multistakeholder WSs → new policies.
International Research
ITDG projects – collaborative research.
The Hubl Study
Dr Kajume
Shortly after setting up its first decentralised animal health projects, ITDG organised the first, of what were to become annual “vets workshops” which became the focus of a network of people involved in paravet projects. A conscious effort was made at the start to invite senior government veterinary staff to participate to convince them of the value of the approach. Many NGO and bilateral project staff who were already involved in, or wanted to start decentralised animal health projects, were keen to join the network, and it increasingly focused on practical issues. While this contributed to the rapid spread of the approach across northern Kenya, it neglected to involve senior government policy makers.
Dr Kajume, then Provincial Head of Veterinary Services heard about one of these workshops by accident, checked with the Director of Veterinary Services in Nairobi, and was instructed to attend the workshop, tell the participants it was illegal, and close it down. But instead, he became convinced of the value of the approach and persuaded the Director to allow the projects to continue.
So paravet projects continued to spread across northern Kenya, deliberately ignored by the Director of Veterinary Services, until the publication of the Kenya Vet Board letter brought matters to a head, and he was forced to do something about it. At which point, Dr Kajume, now Deputy Director of Veterinary Services persuaded him to support the process of multi stakeholder workshops and commission the Hubl study which led to the development of a new policy framework.

19. A Practical Framework External Influences political context evidence
Politics and Policymaking
Campaigning, Lobbying
Policy analysis, & research
Media,
Advocacy, Networking
Scientific information exchange & validation
Research, learning & thinking
evidence
links

20. What you need to know The external environment:
Who are the key actors?
What is their agenda?
How do they influence the political context?
The evidence:
Is it there?
Is it relevant?
Is it practically useful?
Are the concepts new?
Does it need re-packaging?
The political context:
Is there political interest in change?
Is there room for manoeuvre?
How do they perceive the problem?
Links:
Who are the key actors?
Are there existing networks?
How best to transfer the information?
The media?
Campaigns?

21. What you need to do What need to know What need to do How to do it
Political Context:
Evidence
Links
Get to know the policymakers.
Identify friends and foes.
Prepare for policy opportunities.
Look out for policy windows.
Work with them – seek commissions
Strategic opportunism – prepare for known events + resources for others
Who are the policymakers?
Is there demand for ideas?
What is the policy process?
Establish credibility
Provide practical solutions
Establish legitimacy.
Present clear options
Use familiar narratives.
Build a reputation
Action-research
Pilot projects to generate legitimacy
Good communication
What is the current theory?
What are the narratives?
How divergent is it?
Get to know the others
Work through existing networks.
Build coalitions.
Build new policy networks.
Build partnerships.
Identify key networkers, mavens and salesmen.
Use informal contacts
Who are the stakeholders?
What networks exist?
Who are the connectors, mavens and salesmen?

22. Policy entrepreneurs Storytellers Networkers Engineers Fixers
Doing all of these things requires a wide range of skills. Researchers who want to be good policy entrepreneurs also need to be:
Storytellers: Practitioners, bureaucrats and policy-makers often articulate and make sense of complex realities through simple stories. Though sometimes profoundly misleading there is no doubt that narratives are incredibly powerful.
Networkers: Policy-making usually takes place within communities of people who know each other and interact. If you want to influence policymakers, you need to join their networks.
Engineers: There is often a huge gap between what politicians and policy-makers say they are doing and what actually happens on the ground. Researchers need to work not just with the senior level policy-makers, but also with the 'street-level bureaucrats'.
Fixers: Policy making is essentially a political process. Although you don’t need to be a Rasputin or Machiavelli, successful policy entrepreneurs need to know how to operate in a political environment - when to make your pitch, to whom and how.
Try ODI’s Policy Entrepreneur Questionnaire to find out whether you tend to favour, or to avoid any of these activities. If so, you may need to develop new skills in these areas, or work with others who have these skills.

23. Supply-side Tools Overarching Tools Context Assessment Tools
- The RAPID Framework
- Using the Framework
- The Entrepreneurship Questionnaire
Context Assessment Tools
- Stakeholder Analysis
- Forcefield Analysis
- Writeshops
- Policy Mapping
- Political Context Mapping
Communication Tools
- Communications Strategy
- SWOT analysis
- Message Design
- Making use of the media
Research Tools
- Case Studies
- Episode Studies
- Surveys
- Bibliometric Analysis
- Focus Group Discussion
Policy Influence Tools
- Influence Mapping & Power Mapping
- Lobbying and Advocacy
- Campaigning: A Simple Guide
- Competency self-assessment

24. RAPID Framework

25. Policy Process Mapping
General Context issues – domestic and international.
Specific Policy Issues (i.e. the policy cycle)
Stakeholder analysis
Arena: government, parliament, civil society, judiciary, private sector.
Level: local, national, international
What is their Interest and Influence?
Process matrix + political matrix
Political and administrative feasibility assessment
[Sources: M. Grindle / J. Court ]

26. Policy Process Mapping
Formulation
Implementation
Politicians
Cabinet
Government
Bureaucrats
Civil Society
International
Identify key actors that influence SME policy
Create Matrix: Organizations and Key Steps of the Policy Process
Describe Organizations’ formal position in the policy process
Describe Organizations’ informal influence on the policy process
Give a number rating (1=low; 5=high) for the influence each organization has on different parts of the policy process.

27. Stakeholder Analysis Why: Steps:
To understand who gains or lose from a policy or project.
To help Build Consensus.
Steps:
Identify Stakeholders
Analysis Workshop
Develop Strategies
Keep Satisfied
Engage Closely
Monitor (minimum effort)
Keep Informed
High
Power
Low
Interest

28. Forcefield Analysis Identify what you want to achieve
Identify forces for and against change
Identify which are most important
Develop strategies to reinforce those for and overcome those against

29. Groundwater in India
to maximise impact of DFID forest/ ground water research project in India
Researchers, policy makers and activists
Used framework to analyse factors in water sector in India
Developed strategy for final phase:
Less research
More communication
Developing champions in regional and national government
Local, Regional & National advocacy campaign

30. Communications strategy
Identify the audience(s)
Identify the message(s)
Promotion
Evaluate impact and
change as necessary
Clear Strategy
Interactive
Multiple formats
How?
Who?
What?
Audience
Promotion
Message
In terms of the communications, there are a set of issues which seem to come out most clearly and which make a big difference to whether research is taken up.
Communication is crucial in both directions: in terms of researchers listening to policy-makers and in terms of engaging policy-makers in the research right from the beginning and of keeping them involved or in touch with that process.
The first step is to identify who you want to influence – the audience. A key aspect of this is to identify what you want them to do differently. Assess their specific information needs, likes and channels (Official / unofficial & Personal / impersonal & empirical data vs stories.)
The second step is to clarify your messages – brevity, clarity, what form, language.
The third step is promotion – there are many ways, but interactive communications works best; seeing is believing; multiple formats / media are better than one.
OSI has been working on Writing Effective Policy Papers – really useful book
The policy community & The policy process
Structural elements of a paper - Problem description / Policy option / Conclusion
Key issues: Problem oriented, targeted, multidisciplinary, applied, clear, jargon-free.

31. Writing Policy Papers Providing a solution to a policy problem
The policy community
The policy process
Structural elements of a paper
Problem description
Policy options
Conclusion
Key issues: Problem oriented, targeted, multidisciplinary, applied, clear, jargon-free.
[Source: Young and Quinn, 2002]

32. Organisational development
Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices:
The entrepreneurship questionnaire
Training & mentoring etc
Knowledge Management
Organisational development
Finance, admin & personnel systems
Strategic (action & business) planning
Fundraising & reporting
Building an organisational profile
Communications, Public Affairs and the Media
Struyk, 2002, Local Governance Institute, Open Society Network, Budapest

33. Tools for Policymakers
Increasing the pull for evidence
Require the publication of the evidence base
Require spending bids to provide evidence base
Submit government analysis to external expert scrutiny
Provide open access to information
Facilitating better evidence use
Encourage better collaboration across analytical services
Co-locate policy makers and internal analysts
Integrate analytical staff at all stages
Link R&D strategies to departmental business plans
Cast external researchers more as partners than as contractors
Second more university staff into government
Train staff in evidence use
Source: Abstracted from PIU 2000, Bullock et al (2001)

34. UK Government “Tools” Overview and Checklist
1. Impact Assessment and Appraisal: guidance checklist for policy makers.
Strategy and Policy Evaluation
2. Strategy Survival Guide
3. Magenta Book: Guidance notes on Policy Evaluation
4. Green Book: Appraisal and evaluation in Central Government
5. Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA)
Ensuring Key Perspectives are Included
6. Incorporating regional perspectives into policy making toolkit (Subnational)
7. International Comparisons in Policy Making Toolkit
8. Gender Impact Assessment: a framework for gender mainstreaming
9. Managing risks to the public: Appraisal Guidance
Testing Policy Ideas
10. Policy Pilots
Public-orientated Tools
11. Concern Assessment Tool
12. Community Engagement How to Guide
13. Connecting with Users and Citizens
Getting Better Advice and Evidence
14. Expert Advisory Bodies for Policymakers
15. Improving Standards of Qualitative Research

35. Regulatory Impact Assessment
Aims to improve causality between evidence and advice
A process that must be completed for all proposed policy changes:
Purpose / intended effect
Policy problem
Options & evidence
Impact & evidence
Results of consultation
Published
More at: office.gov.uk/regulation/ria/ria_guidance/index.asp

36. Using Qualitative Research
A framework developed by the Cabinet Office / National Centre for Social Research
Based on review of 29 existing frameworks (esp from medical/health)
Four principles. Research should be:
contributory;
defensible in design;
rigourous in conduct;
credible in claim.
18 Questions, with criteria
Recognises need for:
Policymakers to have necessary expertise
New approaches to research

37. Using Qualitative Research
How credible are the findings?
How has knowledge or understanding been extended by the research?
How well does the evaluation address its original aims and purpose?
How well is the scope for drawing wider inference explained?
How clear is the basis of evaluative appraisal?
How defensible is the research design?
How well defended are the sample design/target selection of cases/documents?
How well is the eventual sample composition and coverage described?
How well was the data collection carried out?
How well has the approach to and formulation of analysis been conveyed?
How well are the contexts of data sources retained and portrayed?
How well has diversity of perspective and content been explored?
How well has detail, depth and complexity of the data been conveyed?
How clear are the links between data, interpretation and conclusions - i.e how well can the route to any conclusions be seen?
How clear and coherent is the reporting?
How clear are the assumptions/theoretical perspectives/values that have shaped the form and output of the evaluation?
What evidence is there of attention to ethical issues?
How adequately has the research process been documented?
More at:

38. “Tools” for donors… Funding mechanisms Funding communications etc
Competition vs Support
Academic rigour vs Policy relevance
Individual Organisations vs Partnerships
Project vs Programme
Outputs vs Outcomes
“Home” capacity vs Southern capacity-building
Funding communications etc
Funding networks
Evaluation

39. Evaluation Classical case studies… Episode Studies… IFPRI, IDRC
Can capture depth and diversity
Overestimate role of research
Episode Studies…
ODI
Focus on policy change
Historical
Underestimate role of research

40. Other Approaches Outcome Mapping RAPID Outcome Assessment
Social Network Analysis
Most Significant Change
“Impact Box”
Peer review
Expert review

41. Outcome Mapping
OUTCOME MAPPING: Building Learning and Reflection into Development Programs Sarah Earl, Fred Carden, and Terry Smutylo

42. RAPID Outcome Assessment
Combining
Case Study
Episode Study
Retrospective Outcome Mapping
Involving all stakeholders
With ILRI / CGIAR

43. Policy process ranking
What works in DFID?
Small workshop with 7 staff.
Participatory pair-wise ranking of factors in key policy processes.
Worked quite well.
Policy processes work if they are:
at the right time
championed by a senior person
based on good theory & evidence
solve a problem
have budget for implementation

44. Conclusions To improve research impact you need: Clear intent
A systematic approach
The right incentives / culture
The right systems
To spend more on communications
To engage, engage, engage
To produce the right products for the right people at the right time
To look to the long term

45. Further Information ODI – www.odi.org.uk RAPID - www.odi.org.uk/rapid
Publications
Working Papers
Briefing Papers
Books
Case Studies
Workshops and Seminars
Tools and Toolkits
Contact: