The missions of small publishers and university presses are not just big at heart—they are ambitious, impactful, and play a huge role in shaping trusted humanities and social sciences (h/ss) scholarship. From flagship journals published in university departments and societies to award-winning books from university presses, small publishers are contributing to publishing on a mighty scale. These publishers bring a wealth of history, editorial experience, and top authors but also take on financial risks. How do small publishers maintain the value of their content amidst shrinking budgets and the devaluing of h/ss research? This panel will explore how small publishers create and distribute content through community collaborations and strategic partnerships. Panelists will discuss the value of h/ss content and how partnerships can amplify groundbreaking ideas, reflect DEIA priorities, and enhance discoverability. Attendees will leave with strategies for building impactful partnerships that increase the reach and influence of h/ss scholarship.

A recent survey of more than 1,000 social and behavioral scientists reveals to what extent researchers are motivated to make their work impactful outside of academia and how the leadership at their institutions incentivize and reward (or not) that kind of effort. In a highly interactive presentation, we will reveal the responses to this survey, polling audience members and comparing audience expectations with the survey responses from researchers. A discussion amongst panelists and audience members that follows will address: How researchers feel about making impact on society and what they think their peers feel How publisher metrics may or may not reflect the aims of researchers and where this use and its motivations might be misaligned The role that others in the scholarly ecosystem play in motivating researchers to make impact What technologies exist to support publishers who want to enable the creation of impactful research