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Research for development and academic career
trajectories: Opportunities and challenges
Research for development (R4D) poses both opportunities
and challenges to the academic research 1 community. On
one hand, R4D provides an opportunity for academic researchers
to make meaningful and lasting contributions to the
improvement of human welfare. On the other hand, academic
researchers must balance their commitment to R4D activities
with their other academic responsibilities and must
also accommodate the differing values and expectations associated
with these endeavours.
Academic freedom and research for development
Academic researchers enjoy the remarkable privilege of pursuing
research topics on the basis of the intellectual challenges
that they pose as well as their potential to provide
a direct benefit to society. This academic freedom is a core
value of the academic community (Karran, 2007). Within its
scope, academic researchers have pursued a wide range of
research interests including R4D.
Academic freedom is, however, not entirely without constraints.
In practical terms, the key constraint is the value
placed on R4D within the system of evaluation for tenure
and professional advancement. Before the tenure decision,
academic researchers are subject to review on a relatively
short timeframe. Thus pre-tenure academic researchers
must demonstrate productivity in the short-term and often
on the basis of conventional academic criteria (i.e. publications,
particularly in high-impact journals).
After a (successful) tenure decision, academic researchers
28 can choose to set their own standards for evaluating their development. Legende Such generalised and conceptual analyses
work, but this strategy is not entirely without consequences.
Further professional advancement and access to resources
may also depend on performance according to conventional
indicators, which are gaining ever-increasing prominence
in the evaluation of academic institutions. Criticisms of this
approach have also been increasing, particularly because
of biases (for example, against transdisciplinary and longterm
research) that indicators tend to create and perpetuate
(Zilahy et al, 2009).
FOCUS
Research for development
Dissonances between engagement in R4D and furthering
academic careers
It is worth considering some points where engagement in
R4D may impede the professional advancement of academic
researchers. The first issue is that successful engagement
in R4D requires a substantial investment of time
to develop personal relationships among partners in the
North and South and to build capacity in the South (KFPE,
1998). This investment does not necessarily pay off in the
short-term but is essential for long-term success. The time
that needs to be invested represents a trade-off with other
activities, including both responsibilities to the researchers’
home institutions (for example, teaching responsibilities)
and other professional activities. An additional point is that
some activities in R4D (particularly those that are more oriented
toward implementation) are often not appropriate for
publication in highly-ranked, peer-reviewed academic publications.
Finally, it is difficult to identify indicators appropriate
to R4D that could be used in parallel with more traditional
academic indicators. Ideally, R4D-specific indicators would
be derived from the impact of R4D projects, but such outcomes
are often not easily linked to a single research project.
Even recognised influences can be difficult to document and
even harder to quantify.
Overcoming dissonances – Ways forward
Academic researchers with tenure have the academic freedom
to pursue research interests that they consider to be
important, including R4D. However, they must also accept
the responsibilities that accompany this freedom. Specifically,
researchers must be willing and able to justify the
importance of R4D activities, to define their successes, and
to demonstrate their impact. Researchers in R4D should
not ignore the academic aspects of their work. Experience
with specific cases should be leveraged to develop general
concepts; this could also include concepts for the improvement
of effectiveness in technology transfer and capacity
should be brought into the broader academic community
through journals and conferences, which would serve to integrate
R4D with more traditional academic values. Collaborations
among researchers engaged in R4D activities could
also allow the integration of implementation-oriented and
conceptual perspectives and expertise. It is also important
that R4D researchers recognise that academic institutions
cannot act as development agencies. Rather, partnerships
among R4D researchers and development agencies can
provide a conceptual basis for development strategies and
improve the transferability of results and experiences from
specific cases to a more general context. Researchers in R4D
should also focus strongly on capacity building for partners
in the South, which would both improve implementation at
the local level and help to ensure long-term sustainability.
Academic research institutions can also play a role in promoting
R4D both by integrating such activities into the broader
1 Here, the term academic research is used to refer to investigator-initiated research as practiced in universities and in academic
research institutions in contrast to directed research practiced in industrial research laboratories.