Responsible Research and Innovation

Last updated

Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is a term used by the European Union's Framework Programmes to describe scientific research and technological development processes that take into account effects and potential impacts on the environment and society. [1] [2] [3] [4] It gained visibility around the year 2010, [5] arising from predecessors including "ELSA" (Ethical, Legal and Social Aspects) studies prompted by the Human Genome Project. [6] [7] Various slightly different definitions of RRI emerged, but all of them agree that societal challenges should be a primary focus of scientific research, and moreover they agree upon the methods by which that goal should be achieved. [8] RRI involves holding research to high ethical standards, ensuring gender equality in the scientific community, investing policy-makers with the responsibility to avoid harmful effects of innovation, engaging the communities affected by innovation and ensuring that they have the knowledge necessary to understand the implications by furthering science education and Open Access. [4] Organizations that adopted the RRI terminology include the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

"Horizon 2020", the European Commission's program for science funding announced in 2013, made RRI a main focus. [9] The foundations for this were laid in the program "Societally Responsible Innovating", which was an initiative of Netherlands Organization for Scientific research and six ministerial departments in the Netherlands. [10] [11] [12] [13] The 2005-2007 preparations for this program coined the phrase “Responsible Innovation” and designed a program with several calls for proposals. The core idea of Responsible Research and Innovation in the EU Horizon 2020 Program was inspired by this program. [14] [15]

In 2014, it was suggested that the "broader impacts" criteria of the National Science Foundation were, despite certain dissimilarities, in effect coming to resemble RRI standards. [16]

There are many industries and services that involve research and development and specifically highlight the need and importance of responsible research to make that development most beneficial to all of its stake holders including the society linked with it. [17] Commercial agriculture is one such industry among others that is heavily dependent on responsible research development.

One area in which RRI principles are being applied is quantum computing. A research collaboration led by Oxford University within the UK National Quantum Technologies Programme aims to reveal how quantum computing can be socially and economically transformative, and to identify the potential downsides of the "disruption" it might bring about. [18]

Among the criticisms voiced about RRI, prominent concerns include the vagueness of the terminology, the possibility of discouraging blue skies research and the lack of sufficient practical reward for embracing RRI in a research culture based on competition and short-term contracts. [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Computing</span> Activity involving calculations or computing machinery

Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and development of both hardware and software. Computing has scientific, engineering, mathematical, technological and social aspects. Major computing disciplines include computer engineering, computer science, cybersecurity, data science, information systems, information technology and software engineering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Science policy</span> Form of policy

Science policy is concerned with the allocation of resources for the conduct of science towards the goal of best serving the public interest. Topics include the funding of science, the careers of scientists, and the translation of scientific discoveries into technological innovation to promote commercial product development, competitiveness, economic growth and economic development. Science policy focuses on knowledge production and role of knowledge networks, collaborations, and the complex distributions of expertise, equipment, and know-how. Understanding the processes and organizational context of generating novel and innovative science and engineering ideas is a core concern of science policy. Science policy topics include weapons development, health care and environmental monitoring.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Science and technology studies</span> Academic field

Science and technology studies (STS) or science, technology, and society is an interdisciplinary field that examines the creation, development, and consequences of science and technology in their historical, cultural, and social contexts.

The impact factor (IF) or journal impact factor (JIF) of an academic journal is a scientometric index calculated by Clarivate that reflects the yearly mean number of citations of articles published in the last two years in a given journal, as indexed by Clarivate's Web of Science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social responsibility</span> Ethical framework

Social responsibility is an ethical framework in which a person works and cooperates with other people and organizations for the benefit of the community.

Research funding is a term generally covering any funding for scientific research, in the areas of natural science, technology, and social science. Different methods can be used to disburse funding, but the term often connotes funding obtained through a competitive process, in which potential research projects are evaluated and only the most promising receive funding. It is often measured via Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD).

Public awareness of science (PAwS) is everything relating to the awareness, attitudes, behaviors, opinions, and activities that comprise the relations between the general public or lay society as a whole to scientific knowledge and organization. This concept is also known as public understanding of science (PUS), or more recently, public engagement with science and technology (PEST). It is a comparatively new approach to the task of exploring the multitude of relations and linkages science, technology, and innovation have among the general public. While early work in the discipline focused on increasing or augmenting the public's knowledge of scientific topics, in line with the information deficit model of science communication, the deficit model has largely been abandoned by science communication researchers. Instead, there is an increasing emphasis on understanding how the public chooses to use scientific knowledge and on the development of interfaces to mediate between expert and lay understandings of an issue. Newer frameworks of communicating science include the dialogue and the participation models. The dialogue model aims to create spaces for conversations between scientists and non-scientists to occur while the participation model aims to include non-scientists in the process of science.

John Michael Ziman was a British-born New Zealand physicist and humanist who worked in the area of condensed matter physics. He was a spokesman for science, as well as a teacher and author.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helga Nowotny</span> Austrian sociologist

Helga Nowotny is Professor emeritus of Social Studies of Science, ETH Zurich. She has held numerous leadership roles on Academic boards and public policy councils, and she has authored many publications in the social studies of science and technology.

VA is a non-profit association that wants to promote dialogue and openness between researchers and the general public. VA operates primarily in Sweden, but with an eye on European and International science communication including several new EU projects. The organization was founded in 2002 and is currently based from Grev Turegatan 14 in Stockholm, Sweden.

EuroScience was founded in 1997 for the support and promotion of science and technology in Europe. EuroScience is a membership-based non-profit association to foster open debate about science and create networks in research and innovation. Its members include anyone interested in European research, whether professional scientists, policy-makers, industries or members of the public.

Angela K. Wilson is an American scientist and former (2022) President of the American Chemical Society. She currently serves as the John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, associate dean for strategic initiatives in the College of Natural Sciences, and director of the MSU Center for Quantum Computing, Science, and Engineering (MSU-Q) at Michigan State University.

Science diplomacy is the use of scientific collaborations among nations to address common problems and to build constructive international partnerships. Science diplomacy is a form of new diplomacy and has become an umbrella term to describe a number of formal or informal technical, research-based, academic or engineering exchanges, within the general field of international relations and the emerging field of global policy making.

The acronyms ELSI and ELSA refer to research activities that anticipate and address ethical, legal and social implications (ELSI) or aspects (ELSA) of emerging sciences, notably genomics and nanotechnology. ELSI was conceived in 1988 when James Watson, at the press conference announcing his appointment as director of the Human Genome Project (HGP), suddenly and somewhat unexpectedly declared that the ethical and social implications of genomics warranted a special effort and should be directly funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Narendra Kumar was an Indian theoretical physicist and a Homi Bhaba Distinguished Professor of the Department of Atomic Energy at Raman Research Institute. He was also an honorary professor at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research.

Neuroskeptic is a British neuroscientist and pseudonymous science blogger. They are known for their efforts uncovering fake and plagiarized articles published in predatory journals. They have also blogged about the limitations of MRI scans, which they began writing about after realizing that they and their colleagues did not entirely understand how some of their own MRI results had been produced. Their use of a pseudonym has been criticized as unethical, an accusation that they have denied. A 2013 Wired article by David Dobbs described Neuroskeptic as "one of the most insightful neuro-psycho-bloggers out there today".

Marina Denise Anne Jirotka is professor of human-centered computing at the University of Oxford, director of the Responsible Technology Institute, governing body fellow at St Cross College, board member of the Society for Computers and Law and a research associate at the Oxford Internet Institute. She leads a team that works on responsible innovation, in a range of ICT fields including robotics, AI, machine learning, quantum computing, social media and the digital economy. She is known for her work with Alan Winfield on the 'Ethical Black Box'. A proposal that robots using AI should be fitted with a type of inflight recorder, similar to those used by aircraft, to track the decisions and actions of the AI when operating in an uncontrolled environment and to aid in post-accident investigations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Science and technology in the Netherlands</span> Overview of science and technology in the Netherlands

Science and technology in the Netherlands has an extended history, producing many notable achievements and discoveries in the field. It is an important component in the economic and societal development of the Netherlands. The Dutch government is a driver of scientific and technological progress with science expenditure passing €4.5 billion every year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pearl Dykstra</span> Dutch social scientist

Pearl A. Dykstra is a Dutch social scientist with a background in sociology, psychology, gerontology and demography. She is a specialist on intergenerational solidarity, aging societies, family change, aging and the life course, and loneliness.

Horizon scanning (HS) or horizon scan is a method from futures studies, sometimes regarded as a part of foresight. It is the early detection and assessment of emerging technologies or threats for mainly policy makers in a domain of choice. Such domains include agriculture, environmental studies, health care, biosecurity, and food safety.

References

  1. ↑ von Schomberg, René (2013). "A Vision of Responsible Research and Innovation" (PDF). Responsible Innovation. Responsible Innovation: Managing the Responsible Emergence of Science and Innovation in Society. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 51–74. doi:10.1002/9781118551424.ch3. ISBN   9781119966364. S2CID   153336433.
  2. ↑ European Commission (2013). "Options for Strengthening Responsible Research and Innovation - Report of the Expert Group on the State of Art in Europe on Responsible Research and Innovation" (PDF). Publications Office. doi:10.2777/46253 . Retrieved 24 June 2014.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ↑ Zwart, Hub; Landeweerd, Laurens; van Rooij, Arjan (2014-05-14). "Adapt or perish? Assessing the recent shift in the European research funding arena from 'ELSA' to 'RRI'". Life Sciences, Society and Policy. 10: 11. doi: 10.1186/s40504-014-0011-x . PMC   4648839 . PMID   26085447.
  4. 1 2 Peckham, James (2018-08-27). "What is responsible innovation, and why should tech giants take it seriously?". TechRadar . Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  5. ↑ Owen, Richard; Macnaghten, Phil; Stilgoe, Jack (2012). "Responsible research and innovation: from science in society to science for society, with society". Science and Public Policy . 39 (6): 751–760. doi:10.1093/scipol/scs093.
  6. ↑ Felt, Ulrike (2018). "Responsible Research and Innovation". Routledge Handbook of Genomics, Health and Society (2nd ed.). Routledge. ISBN   9781315451671.
  7. ↑ Murget, Mirjam; Bardone, Emanuele; Pedaste, Margus (2017). "Definitions and Conceptual Dimensions of Responsible Research and Innovation: A Literature Review". Science and Engineering Ethics . 23 (1): 1–19. doi:10.1007/s11948-016-9782-1. PMID   27090147. S2CID   3635486.
  8. ↑ Smallman, Melanie (2018). "Citizen science and Responsible Research and Innovation". Citizen Science: Innovation in Open Science, Society and Policy. UCL Press. pp. 241–253. ISBN   9781787352353. JSTOR   j.ctv550cf2.24.
  9. 1 2 Pain, Elisabeth (2017-01-17). "To be a responsible researcher, reach out and listen". Science . Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  10. ↑ "History | NWO-MVI". www.nwo-mvi.nl. Retrieved 2021-12-13.
  11. ↑ Stahl, Bernd Carsten (2013-12-01). "Responsible research and innovation: The role of privacy in an emerging framework". Science and Public Policy . 40 (6): 708–716. doi: 10.1093/scipol/sct067 . hdl: 10.1093/scipol/sct067 .
  12. ↑ Molenaar, Henk (2017). "A Plurality of Voices". A Plurality of Voices: The Dutch National Research Agenda in Dispute. The Dutch National Research Agenda in Perspective: A Reflection on Research and Science Policy in Practice. Amsterdam University Press. pp. 31–46. ISBN   9789462982796. JSTOR   j.ctt1n7qk7m.6.
  13. ↑ Rip, Arie (2016-12-14). "The many lives of Responsible Research and Innovation". EuroScience . Retrieved 2018-11-14.
  14. ↑ Responsible Innovation 1. Innovative solutions for global issues. Springer. 2014.
  15. ↑ Directorate-General of Research and Innovation, European Commission (2013). Options for strengthening responsible research and innovation: report of the Expert Group of the State of the Art in Europe on Responsible Research and Innovation. LU: Publications Office of the European Union. ISBN   978-92-79-28233-1.
  16. ↑ Davis, Michael; Laas, Kelly (2014). ""Broader Impacts" or "Responsible Research and Innovation"? A Comparison of Two Criteria for Funding Research in Science and Engineering". Science and Engineering Ethics . 20 (4): 963–983. doi:10.1007/s11948-013-9480-1. PMID   24155159. S2CID   13394652.
  17. ↑ Abeysiriwardana, Prabath Chaminda; Jayasinghe-Mudalige, Udith K.; Seneviratne, Gamini (2022-12-31). "Probing into the concept of 'research for society' to utilize as a strategy to synergize flexibility of a research institute working on eco-friendly commercial agriculture". All Life. 15 (1): 220–233. doi: 10.1080/26895293.2022.2038280 . ISSN   2689-5293. S2CID   246761304.
  18. ↑ "Responsible Research and Innovation in Networked Quantum IT". University of Oxford, Department of Computer Science. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.