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People's Vision for R&D

To strengthen our extensive public opinion research and support work towards creating a society-centred vision for R&D, CaSE commissioned a deeper exploration of the public’s views through a public dialogue focused on society’s stake in R&D. This was delivered by the National Centre for Social Research and the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement.

People’s Vision for R&D: A public dialogue

The first step towards a stronger relationship between the public and the R&D community is to understand where we are starting from. Do people feel any ownership or agency in R&D; do they feel they have a voice or influence? And would they want more of these opportunities?

The design of the public dialogue, delivered by NatCen and NCCPE, was informed by widespread consultation with the R&D sector. This included workshops with more than 50 organisations across the UK and advice from an expert group convened for this project. We refined the scope of the project from a broad question about the complex concepts of agency and ownership of R&D, to a more focused question: How do the public feel about increased opportunities for public decision-making about, and involvement in, R&D?

This allowed an effective dialogue that focused on two aspects that we believe will support a stronger connection between the public and the R&D system:

  1. The public’s emotional connection to R&D, which can offer a route towards a greater sense of ownership
  2. Ways the public can be involved in R&D, whether through shared decision-making or participation in R&D itself, which can offer a route towards a greater sense of agency

Participants took part in ten hours of dialogue across four online sessions in May 2024, hearing from subject specialists and being provided with information on how the public can influence decisions about R&D and be involved in all stages of research itself. They then iteratively developed a set of People’s Principles for Involvement in R&D, which describe how the public can be meaningfully and purposefully involved in R&D.

Hear about the project from the participants and the team who delivered the work

Project timeline

Key findings

The results of the dialogue process have emphasised to us that:

  • The public’s emotional connection to R&D can be strengthened through the opportunity to learn more about, and reflect on, both R&D and involvement in it
  • The approaches and behaviours chosen by those in the R&D system can support an increased sense of public agency and ownership in R&D

During the dialogue, participants moved from feeling largely ambivalent towards R&D and the public’s involvement in it, with some expressing excitement and others some fear or distrust, to largely positive about it, with almost no ambivalence and a reduction in fear or distrust. This evolution appears to have resulted from two things: learning more about the range of ways the public are involved in R&D already and the positive experience of involvement in this dialogue process.

The People’s Principles for Involvement in R&D show what the public expects from the R&D sector. They demonstrate that participants believe that involving the public can lead to better R&D and improved involvement; and that accountability, transparency and trust are vital. They highlight the importance of increasing awareness of involvement in R&D through communicating the benefits for participants, researchers, and wider society. Underpinning all these benefits was the idea that public involvement should use the public’s expertise to add value for society. In addition, they show what would increase connection with, and trust in, R&D, as well as reduce participants’ concerns that involvement could be tokenistic.

People’s Principles for Involvement in R&D

The People’s Principles for Involvement in R&D represent participants’ hopes, and address their concerns, about involvement in R&D. We hope that the People’s Principles will provoke a discussion and further galvanise action. They demonstrate a clear appetite among the public for access to more opportunities to be involved in R&D. The sector has a choice about how to live up to the public’s expectations.

1. Public involvement in R&D should use the public’s expertise to benefit the participants, the research and wider society
2. Public involvement in R&D should provide everything that participants need to feel properly informed
3. Public involvement in R&D should involve the right number of people with a range of experiences
4. Public involvement in R&D should ensure that participants feel safe, heard, and invested in the research

The People's Principles for Involvement in R&D

Participants collaboratively developed four principles for public involvement in R&D. Read them in full and consider how you could adopt them in your own work.

Read the People's Principles

People's Vision for R&D: Reports

People's Vision for R&D: How to move from principles to action
09 Sep 2024

CaSE has produced a separate report reflecting on the People’s Vision for R&D public dialogue and offering recommendations for those working in R&D to help further embed involvement as one route to a stronger, long-lasting relationship with the public.

People's Vision for R&D: Full report of the dialogue's findings
09 Sep 2024

The National Centre for Social Research delivered the public dialogue exercise, supported by the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement. The full report on the dialogue and its findings can be found here, along with detailed methods and NCCPE’s review of People’s Principles against existing standards and frameworks.

CaSE's reflections on the public dialogue
09 Sep 2024

CaSE’s project lead Rebecca Hill reflects on what CaSE has learned from the People’s Vision for R&D public dialogue and what this means for R&D advocates.

People's Vision for R&D: Stakeholder Workshops report
04 Apr 2024

To support the public dialogue, CaSE held five workshops across the UK bringing together 50 organisations from across the R&D sector to gather perspectives of the benefits of – and the barriers to – increasing public involvement and engagement in R&D.

Expert Group

To help CaSE successfully deliver the project, we are being advised by a group of experts drawn from across the research system. Meet the group here.

Introducing the Project

The public dialogue exercise was officially launched in November 2023. You can read the announcement here.

Request for Proposals

In August, we tendered for a supplier to deliver the public dialogue exercise. You can read the archived request for proposals here.