Commissioned public R&D publications in the social sciences. A document analysis of societal impacts of research

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of social sciences, a recent field for considering the societal impacts of science. It is based on a purposeful selection of R&D publications, commissioned by Norwegian ministries, governmental agencies, and public bodies, aimed for the application for public sector. The concept societal impact is here defined as active and potential influential, and interactions between public research organisations (PRO) and governmental agencies and other public bodies in the areas of education and social welfare. We argue that the interactions lead to favourable outputs. We examine interactions, i.e., exchanges between researchers and stakeholders from governmental agencies and public bodies, in which scientifically robust and societally relevant knowledge is constructed and valued. In investigating interactions, we focus on qualitative and quantitative indicators of direct social interactions and indirect interactions through texts (see e.g., Spaape & van Drooge, 2011).