bedfellows? Engaged scholarship entrepreneurship and policy impact The world of small business is awash with policy interventions offering myriad forms of ‘support’ to owner-managers. A common theme in such debates is the need for approaches to evaluation that go beyond quantitative notions of ‘impact’, and for entrepreneurship research to make a measurable difference we need to make explicit reference to the value and importance of a policy-learning culture. Johnson (2022) highlights the scepticism over the extent to which ‘scientist’ assessments of programmes and
seeking wellbeing, safety from violence, and social services in Labrador. In response to changes identified by Beals and other frontline service providers in the community, MSWC’s submission – supported by an engaged scholarship collaboration called the Feminist Northern Network (FemNorthNet) – included the recommendations that the proponent ‘undertake and appropriately resource a gender-based analysis… [to] identify both employment and broader socio-cultural issues’ and ‘in cooperation with MSWC, develop a parallel and integrated monitoring process’ ( Mokami Status of
621 Policy & Politics • vol 41 • no 4 • 621-42 • © Policy Press 2013 • #PPjnl @policy_politics Print ISSN 0305 5736 • Online ISSN1470 8442 • http://dx.doi.org/10.1332/030557312X655783 The politics of engaged scholarship: impact, relevance and imagination Matthew Flinders, University of Sheffield, UK, m.flinders@sheffield.ac.uk The relationship between social scientists and the broader social sphere is changing as greater pressure is placed on academics to demonstrate the social relevance and public impact of their research. This pressure is creating
203 CHAPTER TEN The politics of engaged scholarship: impact, relevance and imagination Matthew Flinders Just now, amongst social scientists, there is widespread uneasiness, both intellectual and moral, about the direction their chosen studies seem to be taking. This uneasiness, as well as the unfortunate tendencies that contribute to it, is, I suppose, part of a general malaise of contemporary intellectual life. Yet perhaps the malaise is more acute among social scientists, if only because of the larger promise that has guided much earlier work in their
Race has been a prominent public policy issue in the UK for decades and there is growing interest in academia, but it is often caught in a repetitive cycle of progress and regress. This book analyses and bridges that gap by providing a unique insight into the relationship between race and ethnicity scholarship and the reality of ‘real world’ policy and politics.
Drawing on the author’s academic work as well as his background working in public policy bodies, it goes beyond ‘impact’ debates, public sociology, diversity and post-race, to examine the changing context for researching race and racism, including media and policy debates and the ways in which institutional racism has played out in public policy settings since the Stephen Lawrence inquiry.
Combining theory and applied policy analysis in an accessible way, it guides the reader through the cultural and political changes in race and racism in recent decades and identifies the challenges and opportunities for policy and politically-engaged scholarship in future, clearly mapping the pitfalls and possibilities for critical work on race and racism.
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In recent years the nature of policy and politics has witnessed significant transformations. These have challenged perceptions about the ways in which policy is studied, designed, delivered and appraised. This book –the first in the New Perspectives in Policy and Politics series - brings together world-leading scholars to reflect on the implications of some of these developments for the field of policy studies and the world of practice.
First published as a special issue of Policy & Politics, the book offers critical reflections on the recent history and future direction of policy studies. It advances the debate by rethinking the ways in which scholars and students of policy studies can (re)engage with pertinent issues in pursuit of both scholarly excellence and practical solutions to global policy problems.
Cities are often seen as helpless victims in a global flow of events and many view growing inequality in cities as inevitable. This engaging book rejects this gloomy prognosis and argues that imaginative place-based leadership can enable citizens to shape the urban future in accordance with progressive values – advancing social justice, promoting care for the environment and bolstering community empowerment.
This international and comparative book, written by an experienced author, shows how inspirational civic leaders are making a major difference in cities across the world. The analysis provides practical lessons for local leaders and a significant contribution to thinking on public service innovation for anyone who wants to change urban society for the better.
The idea of public sociology, as introduced by Michael Burawoy, was inspired by the sociological practice in South Africa known as ‘critical engagement’. This volume explores the evolution of critical engagement before and after Burawoy’s visit to South Africa in the 1990s and offers a Southern critique of his model of public sociology.
Involving four generations of researchers from the Global South, the authors provide a multifaceted exploration of the formation of new knowledge through research practices of co-production.
Tracing the historical development of ‘critical engagement’ from a Global South perspective, the book deftly weaves a bridge between the debates on public sociology and decolonial frameworks.
First published as a special issue of Policy & Politics, this critical and practical volume challenges policy theory scholars to change the way they produce and communicate research.
Leading academics propose eight ways to synthesise and translate state of the art knowledge to equip scholars to communicate their insights with each other and a wider audience. Chapters consider topics such as narratives as tools for influencing policy change, essential habits of successful policy entrepreneurs, and applying cultural theory to navigate the policy process.
Providing theoretical clarity and accumulated knowledge, this text highlights the vital importance of translating policy research in practical and understandable ways.
The articles on which Chapters 2, 3 and 5 are based are available Open Access under CC-BY-NC licence.
In the global emergencies our world faces, the strengths approach is needed now more than ever. Commonly misunderstood, its true power as a whole systems approach to release the potential of individuals, communities and their environments has been neglected. For those brave enough to embrace it, this book offers theoretical and practical encouragement.
The authors use a case study of their work with a unique non-governmental organisation in the United Kingdom that combines student placements with support for refugees. They illustrate what it really means to adopt a strengths approach in practice. Chapters include the strengths approach to funding, organisational development, management and governance as well as immigration law, student learning and research.
This book will give readers grounds for optimism as well as transferable practices for challenging social injustice.
