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Assessing the societal impact of publicly funded research

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  • Irwin Feller

    (The Pennsylvania State University)

Abstract

The paper offers a critical overview of recent conceptual and methodological endeavors to elevate the policy saliency of societal impacts as a criterion for formulating and assessing societal impacts. Beginning with an overview of the historical context for the contemporary rise to prominence of societal impacts as a criterion for allocating and assessing public research funds, it unpacks embedded, compound propositions that connect the governance of science to the design and implementation of assessment methodologies that satisfy the joint criteria of policy relevance and technical rigor. In doing so, it highlights analytical and methodological differences between ex ante rationales for increased attention to societal impacts and ex post assessments of the character and magnitude of these impacts. It next appraises the utility of different modes of evaluation, singling out those it deems best suited to the tasks at hand, while questioning the soundness of other contemporary approaches. It closing section calls attention to the problematic, indeed at points chimerical, character of endeavors to endeavor to link the political and normative elements embedded in calls for increased attention to societal impacts with structured program evaluations.

Suggested Citation

  • Irwin Feller, 2022. "Assessing the societal impact of publicly funded research," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 632-650, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jtecht:v:47:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1007_s10961-017-9602-z
    DOI: 10.1007/s10961-017-9602-z
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Michael J. Hall & Albert N. Link & Matthew Schaffer, 2022. "An economic analysis of standard reference materials," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 47(6), pages 1847-1860, December.
    2. Albert N Link & Christopher A Swann & Martijn van Hasselt, 2022. "An assessment of the US Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program: A study of project failure [On the Failure of Scientific Research: An Analysis of SBIR Projects Funded by the U.S. Nationa," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 49(6), pages 972-978.
    3. Maribel Guerrero & Albert N. Link & Martijn Hasselt, 2024. "The transfer of federally funded technology: A study of small, entrepreneurial, and ambidextrous firms," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(3), pages 1009-1023, March.
    4. Siegel, Donald & Bogers, Marcel L.A.M. & Jennings, P. Devereaux & Xue, Lan, 2023. "Technology transfer from national/federal labs and public research institutes: Managerial and policy implications," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(1).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Societal impacts; Performance measurement; Assessment methodology; Evaluation design; Distributive justice; Ex ante resource allocation; Ex post assessment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A13 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Relation of Economics to Social Values
    • D04 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Microeconomic Policy: Formulation; Implementation; Evaluation
    • H11 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Structure and Scope of Government

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