May 2025, Nicky Agate, Taylor Goulding, Samantha Green, Camille Gamboa
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
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