What happened, and who cared? Evidencing research impact retrospectively

TL;DR

This paper discusses methods for retrospectively measuring the impact of research, especially in terms of public engagement, using strategies that can evaluate long-term effects and behavioral changes.

Contribution

It introduces new strategies for retrospective evidence gathering of research impact, focusing on public engagement and behavioral change over several years.

Findings

Effective retrospective evidence strategies demonstrated on real research cases.

Methods can identify genuine behavioral changes in target audiences.

Applicable for impact assessment in academic and policy contexts.

Abstract

Higher Education Institutions in the UK and elsewhere are under increasing pressure to measure the impact of their research, which can include how the research has increased scientific engagement amongst the general public. For various reasons, the need for evidence can arise months, or even years, after a particular research discovery has been made. Furthermore, the right kind of evidence is needed to indicate genuine behavioural change amongst a given target audience, which can be difficult to obtain after time has passed. In this article, we present a number of strategies for retrospective evidencing of research engagement, and illustrate their use on example discoveries from up to five years ago.