Research Questions (Introduction | Integrated | Politics | Networks | Evidence)

Specific lessons about how different international development policy areas are influenced by research in different coalitions are yet to be learned. Comparative research on different policy areas is needed to understand the differences between political and institution contexts, what is seen as credible research, successful communication strategies, the influence of key actors and the impact of relationships between researchers and policy makers. It is our hypothesis that research is more likely to contribute to evidence-based policy making that aims to reduce poverty, alleviate suffering or save lives if:

• it fits within the political and institutional limits and pressures of policy makers, and resonates with their ideological assumptions, or sufficient pressure is exerted to challenge those limits;
• researchers and policy makers share particular kinds of networks and develop chains of legitimacy for particular policy areas;
• outputs are based on local involvement and credible evidence and are communicated via the most appropriate communicators, channels, style, format and timing.

This hypothesis might be usefully tested by piecing together an historical narrative of policy change. This would involve creating a timeline of key policy decisions and practices, along with important documents and events, and identifying key actors. The next, and more challenging step, would be to explore why those policy decisions and practices took place and assess the role of research in that process. To deal with these research challenges posed by an historical approach it suggested that: various interpretations of the past are critically reviewed by individual and groups of informants; conflicting narratives are cross-checked against documents and observations; and a range of methods, sources of information and theoretical perspectives are used in order to triangulate the findings.

Introduction / Previous

These pages are taken from Bridging Research and Policy: Context, Evidence and Links. by Emma Crewe and John Young. ODI Working Paper No. 173, 2002, Overseas Development Institute, London, UK.