Social Sciences and HumanitiesResearch Council of Canada

Conseil de recherches ensciences humaines du Canada

How did KE/KMb evolve and why does it matter?

Implementing a Knowledge Exchange/Knowledge Mobilisation Practice June 10, 2010, University of St Andrews

Craig McNaughton

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada

Outline of presentation

4 key value-ideas on KMb currently in play

trace the roots of these ideas

give you an idea of SSHRC‟s approach

propose an integrated model of KMb

review a couple of applications of the model

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Confluence of KMb value-ideas at SSHRC

1. Communication of SSH research

2. Application of SSH research results

3. Promotion of the value of SSH knowledge

4. Co-Construction of SSH knowledge

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KM: Communication of research results

• focus: value effective dissemination – e.g., via

information technologies – as way of maximizing return

• 1998: Research Data Centres proposed (data

liberation initiative)

• 2004: Open Access policy

• 2004: Clusters launch: networking of dispersed

academics

• 2005: International Policy & International Opportunities

Fund program

• 2006: Open Access journals program

• Aid to Research Workshops & Conferences

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KMb: Application of SSH research results:

• focus: value KMb as way of securing specific socio-

economic solutions or innovations

• knowledge transfer model (like tech transfer)

• counterfoil is the “Ivory Tower”

• strategic grants & joint initiatives (e.g., Metropolis)

• 2001: Initiative on the New Economy

• 2001 to present: Public Outreach

• 2005: “Knowledge Fair” at Chateau Laurier

• 2005: Knowledge Impact in Society (KIS) program

• 2007: MBF call: KIS, Clusters & Public Outreach

competitions

• York (ResearchImpact), University of Victoria (CBR) &

Memorial (Yaffle)11/30/2010 5

KMb: Promotion of the value of SSH research

• focus: value KMb as way of demonstrating the

value of SSH research

• 2005: Knowledge Fair at Chateau Laurier

• 2008: special call for 17 impact studies

• follow-up workshops by SSHRC evaluation shop

• work on impact metrics

• Results for Canadians (2000)

• SSHRC Web site: success stories, Dialogue

• program evaluations (e.g., case studies)

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KMb: Co-Construction of SSH knowledge

• focus: value intellectual advancement, experimentation, cross-fertilization, challenge

• 1999: CURA launched: roots of “knowledge co-production” (partnered research)

• 2004: Aboriginal Research pilot launched (First

Nation, Métis, Inuit knowledge traditions in the

lead)

• 2010: Knowledge Commons initiative

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SSHRC definition of KMb

Knowledge mobilization is about ensuring that all

citizens benefit from publicly funded research.

It can take many forms, but the essential objective is

to allow research knowledge to flow both within the

academic world, and between academic researchers

and the wider community.

By moving research knowledge into society,

knowledge mobilization increases the intellectual,

economic, social and cultural impact of that

knowledge.

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SSHRC KMb strategy - objectives

1. facilitate and enable the accessibility and impact of

research by increasing and enhancing the flow of

research knowledge among researchers, and

between researchers and knowledge users;

2. improve research connections by facilitating

reciprocal relationships between researchers and

knowledge users for the (co-)creation and use of

research knowledge; and

3. enhance the quality of knowledge mobilization by

developing networks, tools and best practices.

11/30/2010 9

KMb strategy - deliverables

• improved guidelines, adjudication criteria &

program design (e.g., program architecture

renewal, follow-up on Blue-Ribbon Panel report on

peer review, performance & evaluation objectives)

• use & development of KMb infrastructure & tools

(e.g., Synergies, CRKN, on-line and open access,

data access, online reporting on awards, use of

social media)

• integration and expansion of a community of

practice both internally and externally (e.g.,

workshops, website resources)

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111111/30/2010 11

Inclusive definition of KMb

SSHRC programs in KMb

Aid to Scholarly Journals

Aid to Research Workshops & Conferences

Public Outreach

Knowledge Impact in Society

Strategic Knowledge Clusters

Community-University Research Alliances

Major Collaborative Research Initiatives

Research grants (strategic & standard)

11/30/2010 12

13

Public Outreach – Summary Table

Year Awarded#

GrantsSelected Topics

2001 (INE) 5 Sustainable development, higher education, e-commerce

2004 (INE) 8 Privacy, literacy, popularizing academic research

2005 ( INE) 42 Equity, auto industry, community theatre

2007 (INE) 5 Cyber atlas, immigration and settlement

2007 (MBF) 10 Risk management, corporate social responsibility, regional

innovation and policy, developing indigenous commercial code

2008 (MBF) 15 Commercialization of a product (resistant concrete), improving

medication safety, corporate social responsibility

2008

(Environment)

18 Environmental health atlas, oceans management, global citizen

consultation on climate change

2008 (North) 13 Pipeline development, arctic policy

14

Strategic Knowledge Clusters – Summary Table

Year Awarded#

GrantsSelected Topics

2004 – 2005

(Development)

31 Child welfare / development / school reform(x3), sustainability,

philosophy of time, media governance, immigration, Aboriginal

communities and communication technologies

2005-2006

(Development)

23 Immigration, bullying, healthy communities, environmental

vulnerability

2005-2006

(Completion)

23 Canadian labour market, early child development, Time and

universe, Disability policy, Science and technology studies

2006-2013 7 Justice system, business ethics, science and technology studies,

Aboriginal economic development, Canadian history and

environment, population change

2007-2014 11 Refugees, early childhood development, Canada- Europe dialogue,

homelessness, childhood and violence prevention, Canadian

literature, heritage, international entrepreneurship, sustainable

prosperity, history and education, business sustainability, refugee

research network

15

Knowledge Impact in Society – Summary table

Year

Awarded# Grants Topics

2005-

2008

10

(5 extended)

Child development and care (x2), Community

care / community capacity, Montreal heritage and

public history, public policy, rural economy /

agriculture, violence against women, sustainable

regions, rural community development / tourism

2007-

2010

9 Business sustainability, rural economy,

Immigration and labour markets, Urban

Aboriginal economic development, regional

business networks, energy industry and change,

responsible investing, public policy and

governance, business sustainability, rural

economy

SSHRC‟s new program architecture

• 3 basic programs:

– Talent (fellowships etc.)

– Insight (research grants)

– Connection (supplementary KMb grants)

• Partnership Fund applies to all three

• Talent, Insight & Connection overlap:

– e.g., KMb elements in each award/grant

• KMb evaluation criteria across all programming:

– as appropriate

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KMb: application of results (external impact)

University Society

Impact

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11/30/2010 18

KMb: reciprocal benefits

Social

Impacts

University Society

Academic

impacts

(quality)

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Value of KMb to scholarship

1. provides an opportunity to test theory against

practice

2. invites new or supplementary data and knowledge

resources

3. draws in financial, human and material resources

in support of research

A focus on internal knowledge

International Institute for Sustainable Development –definition of KMb:

“Knowledge mobilization addresses how external knowledge (outside of the organization) is sought out and combined with internal knowledge to create new knowledge that meets the needs of target users/clients….

… It recognizes that organizing one's own intellectual capital does not necessarily lead to innovation or change; implicit in the concept is the need for working relationships with others.”

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KMb: importance of a strong scholarly foundation

Impacts

University

researchers

University

researchers

Quality

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Peer review and KMb

• Peer review in the university means that researchers

must communicate their findings. Why? So they can

be criticised and thereby improve their findings.

• It is the same in the wider pattern developed by KMb.

It provides a supplementary or complementary form

of peer review that includes the experts involved in

whatever areas of knowledge are being studied.

Who, in addition to scholars, are the peers for

research on immigration? Immigration lawyers.

Government policy analysts. Social service officers.

Religious officials. Immigration advocates.

Immigrants themselves.

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Peer review writ large

The academic value of KMb has to do with keeping

scholarship „on its toes‟ – challenging received

truths, questioning dominant theory, experimenting

with new methods, bringing in fresh ideas and

perspectives.

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11/30/2010 24

KMb model (all elements)

Impact

University

researchers

University

researchers

Research

partners,

non-

academic

researchers

Quality

Governments

NGOs

Businesses

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Evaluation of 2004 RDI grant “Studying virtual

team effectiveness in organizations”

• the analysis highlights and traces the advancement of key

scholarly ideas:– Virtual Teams

– Multi-Communicating

– Knowledge Hiding

• it shows how scholarship and scholars connect and

combine their efforts (who works with whom, in which

ways)

• it documents the dissemination work within the academy

(journals articles, academic meetings)….

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• … and it shows how scholarship and scholars move out

naturally into the community to generate intellectual, social,

economic and cultural benefits:

– graduate student work with NGO on efficiency of its

virtual team work + pass along MS Project

– company executives trained in best practices from the

research

– team has given reports on the research results to

participating organizations (100 participants got research

summaries)

– research on virtual work folded forward into research on

use of info technologies to reduce carbon output in

organizations11/30/2010 26

• employment and training benefits to 17 undergraduate students,

Master‟s student & 5 doctoral students: library + on-line

literature searches, qualitative research, administration of

surveys, conducting experiments, meta-analyses, and statistical

analyses

• flow of research into teaching (e.g., courses in virtual and cross-

cultural team training in the Executive Education and Masters of

Global Management programs at Queen‟s; instruction of MBA

students at HEC Montréal)

• profiles media coverage of research: interview with Globe & Mail

(circulated among 14,000 Queen‟s alumni etc. via Web) +

coverage in La Presse, Washington Post, London Times

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Guiding principles for Knowledge Mobilization

• KMb is an ambitious & demanding effort to

expand scholarly inquiry beyond the traditional

boundaries of university-based research

• KMb creates a virtuous circle of reciprocal

engagement that integrates intellectual & social

impact

• KMb relies on, and invigorates, central academic

functions of peer review & teaching

• KMb uses democratic methods to generate ideas

& insights that yield wealth & well-being11/30/2010 28

Social Sciences and HumanitiesResearch Council of Canada

Conseil de recherches ensciences humaines du Canada

Thank You!

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