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Why Isn't Policy Research Utilized More by Decisionmakers

Published: Jun 09, 1979. Publicly Released: Jun 09, 1979.
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Highlights

The availability of relevant, timely, objective, reliable, and valid research does not automatically ensure its use in decisionmaking. Recent evidence indicates that policymakers believe social science research should have a substantial effect on the formulation of national policy. However, there are problems in the utilization of social science research. In terms of practice, 45 percent of the policymakers indicated that they were not satisfied with the translation of research results into usable products or into techniques for problem solving. Additionally, problems in the dissemination of social research information are of major concern as they cause low utilization. To increase the utilization of social research, increased interaction between policymakers and social researchers is necessary. However, interaction must occur within a framework that increases the relevance of policies for congressional and executive decisionmakers. Thus, the challenge of the future is to better define what constitutes utilization, to determine ways to decide what is usable, and to develop techniques and organizations to facilitate utilization. These undertakings should be conducted within the context of a total research process which gives emphasis to the creation, diffusion, and utilization of knowledge.

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