Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SInnoPSis (ERA-Chair in Science and Innovation Policy and Studies)
Reporting period: 2021-11-01 to 2023-09-30
Science and Innovation (S&I) policies have shaped to a great extent the progress of science and technology. The choice of the allocation of resources towards achieving optimal results is a key policy issue for all countries, especially with the financial crisis of the last decade. Given this need, an idea for a research project may focus on this heavily understudied topic in Cyprus, namely Science and Innovation Policy and Studies (SIPS). It is a multidisciplinary field which encompasses different approaches and domains, of both quantitative and qualitative character. SInnoPSis will emphasise more on the Economics of Science and Innovation field but will also be open to attract an ERA Chair in any of the connected fields as long as it is evident that he/she can help the UCY to consolidate its activities and upgrade its research and innovation level in the SIPS field. Thus irrespective of the SIPS subfield that the ERA Chair is hired, there will be room to bring at UCY researchers from the other connected fields who will work closely with the ERA Chair and the existing faculty members.
Science has become a significant force for the shaping and the intermediation of global relations. Innovation management as a subset of science policy aims to promote international scientific collaboration and global innovation as a means for tackling pressing societal challenges and implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals. SInnoPSis aims to contribute substantially towards achieving these goals.
The objectives of the project stem from both the need to consolidate and develop the field of Science and Innovation Policy and Studies in Cyprus and the EMME region and the expected impact requirements as set in the ERA Chairs call for proposals. To this end the project will be realised through the achievement of five objectives:
1. Attract a high calibre scientist and a team of outstanding researchers at the UCY us in the field of Science and Innovation Policy and Studies
2. Consolidate the academic departments and research units of the UCY related to the field of Science and Innovation Policy and Studies by establishing a Research Unit, which will gradually develop into a Centre
of Excellence through the presence of the ERA Chair and her/his team
3. Improve the quantity and quality of Research and Innovation (R&I) output as well as the capacity of UCY in securing research funding in Science and Innovation Policy and Studies and the connected fields
4. Carry out all necessary institutional changes to fully align UCY practices to the European Research Area priorities
5. Provide the necessary support mechanisms to the ERA Chair to design and carry out a cutting-edge research programme within the duration of the project
Science has become a significant force for the shaping and the intermediation of global relations. Innovation management as a subset of science policy aims to promote international scientific collaboration and global innovation as a means for tackling pressing societal challenges and implementing the UN Sustainable Development Goals. SInnoPSis aims to contribute substantially towards achieving these goals.
The objectives of the project stem from both the need to consolidate and develop the field of Science and Innovation Policy and Studies in Cyprus and the EMME region and the expected impact requirements as set in the ERA Chairs call for proposals. To this end the project will be realised through the achievement of five objectives:
1. Attract a high calibre scientist and a team of outstanding researchers at the UCY us in the field of Science and Innovation Policy and Studies
2. Consolidate the academic departments and research units of the UCY related to the field of Science and Innovation Policy and Studies by establishing a Research Unit, which will gradually develop into a Centre
of Excellence through the presence of the ERA Chair and her/his team
3. Improve the quantity and quality of Research and Innovation (R&I) output as well as the capacity of UCY in securing research funding in Science and Innovation Policy and Studies and the connected fields
4. Carry out all necessary institutional changes to fully align UCY practices to the European Research Area priorities
5. Provide the necessary support mechanisms to the ERA Chair to design and carry out a cutting-edge research programme within the duration of the project
Several reforms were implemented: the introduction of an umbrella R&I policy, the introduction and approval of a Gender Equality Plan, a Code of Conduct for Research and others. Additionally, the SInnoPSis team has written and submitted a significant number of proposals for external funding, securing over 4 million Euros and seven new projects related to the SInnoPSis project purpose and thematic focus.
Deliverables planned for the second period were delivered in time or with minor delays (see extensive technical report). Significant progress was made in the domains of research, policy, dissemination, and in the process of solidifying meta-research across different departments of the UCY. Achievements during the most recent period of the project include:
1) Hiring of research personnel that led to the formation of an international team of researchers.
2) Work towards formal recognition of the group in the form of a laboratory within UCY
3) The production of 14 publications in domains mostly related to meta-research, research policy, meta-analysis, and Open science.
4) On top of the above, SInnoPSis scholars are working on more that 10 projects on topics related to accountability in science, weaknesses of the peer review system, meta-analysis of behavioural interventions, among others.
5) The Organisation of two international events (the SInnoPSis inaugural workshop and the 1st SinnoPSis conference)
6) The welcoming of two visiting scholars who interacted with the group and led to international collaborations.
7) The organization of an economic theory reading group that brings together SInnoPSis scholars with the excellent group in game theory and experimental economics at the economics department of the UCY
9) Participation in policy projects that relate to the institutional reforms that UCY needs to achieve in terms of open science and reformed researcher assessment, such as OPUS and TWI4MERIT.
10) Policy influence at the European Level by participating at the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA) working group, pertaining to the topic of responsible use of metrics.
11) In terms of education, the SinnOPSis team participated in research and policy lectures at the international level, including at the University of Maastricht and at the University of Carlos III in Spain. The team is also preparing to deliver a module on Behavioural economics at the economics department at UCY, as well as workshops on issues related to meta-research, credibility of science and researcher assessment.
Deliverables planned for the second period were delivered in time or with minor delays (see extensive technical report). Significant progress was made in the domains of research, policy, dissemination, and in the process of solidifying meta-research across different departments of the UCY. Achievements during the most recent period of the project include:
1) Hiring of research personnel that led to the formation of an international team of researchers.
2) Work towards formal recognition of the group in the form of a laboratory within UCY
3) The production of 14 publications in domains mostly related to meta-research, research policy, meta-analysis, and Open science.
4) On top of the above, SInnoPSis scholars are working on more that 10 projects on topics related to accountability in science, weaknesses of the peer review system, meta-analysis of behavioural interventions, among others.
5) The Organisation of two international events (the SInnoPSis inaugural workshop and the 1st SinnoPSis conference)
6) The welcoming of two visiting scholars who interacted with the group and led to international collaborations.
7) The organization of an economic theory reading group that brings together SInnoPSis scholars with the excellent group in game theory and experimental economics at the economics department of the UCY
9) Participation in policy projects that relate to the institutional reforms that UCY needs to achieve in terms of open science and reformed researcher assessment, such as OPUS and TWI4MERIT.
10) Policy influence at the European Level by participating at the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA) working group, pertaining to the topic of responsible use of metrics.
11) In terms of education, the SinnOPSis team participated in research and policy lectures at the international level, including at the University of Maastricht and at the University of Carlos III in Spain. The team is also preparing to deliver a module on Behavioural economics at the economics department at UCY, as well as workshops on issues related to meta-research, credibility of science and researcher assessment.
During the first half of the presence of the ERA chair, several elements of progress beyond the state of the art have been achieved in terms of research and in terms of assisting UCY to perform a transition into a new environment of Open Science and reformed researcher assessment.
In terms of research, several articles were published in the domain of appropriate use of quantitative metrics for researcher assessment, some of the in established journals such as PLOS Biology. These publications criticise the current understanding of how quantitative metrics should be used for researcher assessment. In particular, it is argued that 1) Appropriate quantitative metrics are key in empowering resource constrained institutions 2) Appropriate use of quantitative metrics can ameliorate the problems associated with the use of such metrics. Moreover, the domain of economics of science is closely related to the area of public trust in science and experts. Several publications of the SInnoPSis group showed that in technical domains the general public may be prone to manipulation by means of populist information revelation or biased release of information. In addition, interdisciplinarity was enhanced by means of several projects together with colleagues from the medical school, pertaining to meta-analysis of meteorological measurable factors that may affect health in Cyprus.
In terms of the international presence of the UCY, significant steps were achieved in terms of participation in international consortia such as iRISE (an international consortium studying the reproducibility of science). In terms of institutional policy, SInnoPSis is assisting the UCY to make the necessary adjustments for a renewed form of researcher assessment, in line with the recently signed CoARA declaration. This also happens in coordination with complementary projects such as OPUS.
In terms of research, several articles were published in the domain of appropriate use of quantitative metrics for researcher assessment, some of the in established journals such as PLOS Biology. These publications criticise the current understanding of how quantitative metrics should be used for researcher assessment. In particular, it is argued that 1) Appropriate quantitative metrics are key in empowering resource constrained institutions 2) Appropriate use of quantitative metrics can ameliorate the problems associated with the use of such metrics. Moreover, the domain of economics of science is closely related to the area of public trust in science and experts. Several publications of the SInnoPSis group showed that in technical domains the general public may be prone to manipulation by means of populist information revelation or biased release of information. In addition, interdisciplinarity was enhanced by means of several projects together with colleagues from the medical school, pertaining to meta-analysis of meteorological measurable factors that may affect health in Cyprus.
In terms of the international presence of the UCY, significant steps were achieved in terms of participation in international consortia such as iRISE (an international consortium studying the reproducibility of science). In terms of institutional policy, SInnoPSis is assisting the UCY to make the necessary adjustments for a renewed form of researcher assessment, in line with the recently signed CoARA declaration. This also happens in coordination with complementary projects such as OPUS.