Societal impact captures the social, community and civic effects of research. It includes changes in public knowledge or attitudes, shifts in social practice, improvements in community wellbeing, equity gains, and contributions to civil society institutions. Assessment is challenging because societal change is multi-causal, slow, and culturally specific; methods include contribution analysis, social return on investment, and structured case studies. Societal impact frameworks (e.g. SIAMPI, ASIRPA) emphasise productive interactions between researchers and societal actors as a precondition for impact.
References
- Spaapen J, van Drooge L 'Introducing productive interactions in social impact assessment' Research Evaluation 2011. SIAMPI project documentation.