Maximizing the Policy Impacts of Public Engagement

A European Study

Datos Bibliográficos

ID5337677
AutoresSteven B Emery (Newcastle University), Henk A J Mulder (Science and Society Group, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands), Henk Mulder (0000-0003-4739-2665, University of Groningen), Lynn J Frewer (0000-0002-6494-3492, Newcastle University, autor de correspondencia)
Año2015
Volumen40
Número3
Páginas421-444
Fecha de publicación2015-05-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaScience Technology & Human Values (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0162-2439 • E-ISSN: 1552-8251
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0162243914550319
OpenAlexW2136950867
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas25
Referencias citadas23

There is a lack of published evidence which demonstrates the impacts of public engagement (PE) in science and technology policy. This might represent the failure of PE to achieve policy impacts or indicate a lack of effective procedures for discerning the uptake by policy makers of PE-derived outputs. While efforts have been made to identify and categorize different types of policy impact, research has rarely attempted to link policy impact with PE procedures, political procedures, or the connections between them. In this article, we propose a simple conceptual model to capture this information, based on semistructured interviews with both policy makers and PE practitioners. A range of criteria are identified to increase the policy impact of PE. The role of PE practitioners in realizing impacts through their interactions with policy makers in the informal "in-between" spaces of public engagement is emphasized. However, the potential contradictions between the pursuit of policy impacts and the more traditional conceptualizations of PE effectiveness are discussed. The main barrier to the identification of policy impacts from PE may lie within policy processes themselves. Political institutions have responsibility to establish formalized procedures for monitoring the uptake and use of evidence from PE in their decision-making processes

Business · Categorization · Economics · Impact assessment · Management science · Policy analysis · Policy studies · Political science · Politics · Public economics · Public engagement · Public involvement · Public policy · Public relations · Climate Change Communication and Perception · Computer Science · Innovative Approaches in Technology and Social Development · Public Administration · Sustainability and Climate Change Governance