INORMS Research Evaluation Group releases guide to SCOPE framework for responsible research evaluation

The International Network of Research Management Societies (INORMS) Research Evaluation Group (REG) has today released an 18-page guide to their framework for responsible research evaluation called SCOPE.

Established in 2018, the INORMS REG has been working to better understand and develop best practices in responsible research evaluation with the aim of providing practitioners and senior leaders the tools they need to effectively and responsibly evaluate research. The SCOPE Framework for responsible research evaluation resulted from their work. 

Over the past year the Group have partnered with a range of funders, institutions and publishers to apply SCOPE to a series of real-life evaluation problems with the aim of testing the model. The guide draws on the learnings of these explorations, many of which have been included as case studies. The aim of the guide is to assist any organisation seeking to design a responsible research evaluation. It was designed by their publishing partner, Emerald Publishing, and is now available as an open resource under a CC-BY licence.

The SCOPE framework for responsible research evaluation comprises of five stages:

1. Start with what you value
2. Context considerations
3. Ooptions for measuring
4. Probe deeply
5. Evaluate your evaluation

Commenting on the project, Sally Wilson, Head of Publishing at Emerald Publishing, said: 'It was a great learning experience to work with Dr Elizabeth Gadd and Dr Laura Himanen from International Network of Research Management Societies (INORMS) Research Evaluation Group (REG) on a project where we used the SCOPE model to help us evaluate the diversity of our editorial boards – outcomes we are still actively progressing at Emerald.

'At Emerald we are committed to responsible forms of research evaluation so were delighted to partner with Dr Elizabeth Gadd and INORMS REG in the design of their practical guide published under a CC-BY licence to promote the benefits of the SCOPE model as widely as possible'.

This content is available online, including one-page summaries in various languages, and is available for no charge. In addition to the SCOPE guide, additional materials have been developed including fuller case studies using the framework from a variety of international contexts including research universities, publishing companies, and funding agencies. More information and materials can be found online.

The REG is available for additional workshops and program development in the use of SCOPE. Contact the group by reaching out to the Chair, Dr. Elizabeth Gadd, [email protected] or the Deputy Chair, Tanja Strom, [email protected].

About the INORMS REG: This international group has been meeting regularly over the last three years and was tasked by INORMS to develop best practice in responsible research evaluation. The group is chaired by Dr. Elizabeth Gadd, Head of Research Operations, University of Glasgow (UK) and Tanja Strom, Senior Advisor, Department of Research and Development at Oslo Metropolitan University (Norway) is Deputy Chair. Additional members include: Aline Pacifico Rodrigues, Sociedade Beneficente Israelita Brasilerira Hospital Albert Einstein (Brazil); Dr. Baron Wolf, University of Kentucky (USA); Dr. Fang Xu, Chinese Academy of Sciences (China); Hirofumi Seike, Tohoku University (Japan); Justin Shearer, The University of Melbourne (Australia); Laura Beaupre, University of Guelph (Canada); Laura Himanen, Tampere University (Finland); Marianne Gauffriau, University of Copenhagen (Denmark); and Dr. Xiaoxuan Li, Chinese Academy of Sciences (China).

About INORMS: Formed in 2001, INORMS brings together research management societies and associations from across the globe. Its purpose is to enable interactions, sharing of good practice, and joint activities between the member societies, to the benefit of their individual memberships. Each member society has its own distinct remit, constitution, membership and geographical base, but we each face similar issues. The nature of research management and administration is changing, and it is becoming more professional. The economic and political imperatives and pressures are common across the globe. The network enables the officers of the member societies to compare their national or regional issues, and to learn from each other. Through INORMS, we are able to transfer training course structure and content, adopt comparable support mechanisms, and jointly develop training materials.