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Research
Research covers a wide range of activities – from basic scientific
experimentation, social science research and technological development
to policy analysis and action research. Research occurs in governments,
firms, NGOs and international organizations as well as universities
and think tanks. It is difficult, and many argue unhelpful, to provide
an overly specific definition of research since the exact meaning
will depend on the context. For this project, therefore, we define
research as any systematic effort to increase the stock of knowledge.
This includes therefore any systematic process of critical investigation
and evaluation, theory building, data collection, analysis and codification
related to development policy and practice. Action research is self-reflection
by practitioners oriented toward the enhancement of direct practice.
Research products based on such processes could therefore include
data-sets, reports, books, working papers, briefing documents, training
programmes, conceptual models, web-sites, meetings and seminars.
A key point is that research products can include knowledge that
is codified (e.g. documented) and tacit (i.e. based on individual
or organizational experience as long as they are a product of systematic
analysis).
Policy
Policy also has a wide range of definitions including: “policy
which affects the public” (Davis, 1988), or “the allocation
of values and resources - politics" or "whatever governments
choose to do or not to do" (Dye, 1984). Dye’s definition
implicitly includes written or stated declarations of intent or
plans, and actions, which may turn out to be very different to what
was intended in the plans, or may, in fact happen without any explicit
declaration or plan. Within the RAPID Programme we define policy
broadly as a “course of action” to include both plans
and actions on the ground. However, breaking policy change into
components and measuring any policy change across situations poses
a number of conceptual challenges (and empirical challenges discussed
on the methods page). In addition, bridging
research and policy often takes a long time and this needs to be
considered in the discussion.
How research can influence policy development and implementation
can include:
Expanding Policy Capacities
- Developing new talent for research
- Improving the knowledge of certain actors
- Providing support to develop innovative policy ideas
Broadening Policy Horizons
- Providing opportunities for networking/learning (locally and
internationally)
- Introducing new ideas on the agenda, or stimulating public
debate
- Stimulating quiet dialogue among decision-makers
Affecting Public Policy Regimes (i.e. strategy documents,
work-plans, budgets, legislation, regulation, legal precedents)
- Modification of existing policies
- Fundamental re-design of policies
- Initiation of new policies
Affecting Practice (i.e. programs, approaches, funding
levels, communication)
- Modification of existing practice
- Fundamental re-design of practice
- Initiation of new practice
(Expanding policy capacity and broadening policy
horizons is from Lindquist
1998)
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