Making a difference: Impact, relevance and value in the social sciences and humanities
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Making a difference: Impact, relevance and value in the social sciences and humanities
Prof Alan Irwin
Abstract
Alan Irwin (Professor, Copenhagen Business School; former Dean of Research) invites participants to join him in reflecting on how research in the social sciences and humanities “makes a difference”, and how impact, relevance and value are defined, contested and assessed. Drawing on two recent publications (below), he explores how universities, research assessment practices, and funding and evaluation arrangements shape what counts as relevance and impact, and what may be gained, and what may be overlooked, when plural and contested ideas of public value are translated into evaluation criteria and institutional strategies.
• Irwin, A. and Horst, M. (2025). Always Relevant? Finding a Place for the Social Sciences in the Technical University and the Business School. Minerva, 63, 281–300. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11024-024-09553-z
• Bloch, C., Irwin, A., Kalpazidou Schmidt, E., Pedersen, A. V., and Svendsen, A. D. (2025). The Impact and Value of Research in the Arts and Humanities: A Systematic Literature Review. Danish Centre for Studies in Research and Research Policy, Department of Political Science, Aarhus University. https://ps.au.dk/fileadmin/CFA/Dokumenter/user_upload/Arts_and_Humanities_Impact_-_report.pdf
Location: 2.35 Edinburgh Futures Institute
1 Lauriston Place
Edinburgh, EH3 9EF
And online - STIS Seminar Zoom Link:
https://ed-ac-uk.zoom.us/j/82140544359?pwd=Eoxde3Vj_00WiBRxOt47aCdJ0Dy3CITi.T-3gLpgTSI0MkJAy
Passcode:RJxn7F5R
Key speakers
- Prof Alan Irwin, Copenhagen Business School
Location
2.35 Edinburgh Futures Institute1 Lauriston Place
Edinburgh, EH3 9EF