Exploring the scope of science advice: social sciences in the UK government

Science advice is normally seen in the context of physical science advice, and in particular in relation to the institutional position of “Chief Scientific Advisor” (CSA). This is true for the academic literature covering the science-policy interface, public administration, science and technology studies as well as most practitioner commentary. Very little literature exists on the provision of social science advice for public policy, insofar as this is framed in terms of individuals providing expertise within an institutional setting and role, as opposed to the provision of (social science) evidence within “evidence-based policy-making” or similar. This focus on the science advice has thus shaped the understanding of what a science advisor does, and what skills and expertise they are providing. Conventionally, this comprises an emphasis on significant knowledge in an area of expertise, a level of seniority and “eminence” to enable that knowledge to be influential and a degree of independence from those tasked with making policy decisions. Social science advice exists in the UK national policy-making context, but the mode of operation places a different emphasis and role on those providing such advice. I explore the nature of this role, using the conventional idea of the CSA as a point of departure to foreground points of similarity and difference. This exploration reveals a broader operating space for science advice than is conventionally understood and foregrounds particular tensions between relevance and influence, on the one hand, and scientific objectivity and independence, on the other. This article is published as part of a thematic collection dedicated to scientific advice to governments

Practice makes policy? The role of government and policy in shaping practices

Government and policy inevitably shape social practices. Both directly and indirectly, policy instruments can produce, configure, disperse and kill-off practices. How policy makers understand the nature of energy consumption crucially informs the design of policy interventions. The physical, technical and economic model (PTEM) of energy demand dominates policy, with little regard for how social norms, service expectations and always-changing practices influence the role of energy in everyday lif

Building a socio-technical energy research community: Theory, practice and impact

Here I respond to the seven papers that look at my original paper on the use of physics in the social studies of energy [5] and offer up clarifications, extensions and some rebuttals. It is clear from the respondents that a shared vision for an inter- cross- and transdisciplinary agenda across physics and engineering with the social sciences exists, and major steps have already been made in bringing these perspectives together

Evaluating energy efficiency policy: understanding the ‘energy policy epistemology’ may explain the lack of demand for randomised controlled trials

Vine et al.’s (2014) call for more randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in government-funded energy efficiency policy evaluation practice raises timely questions about what constitutes effective designs for evaluating and informing energy policy. Their implicit hypothesis that policy organisations share the same epistemic perspective as they do, and that the reason there are few RCTs are due to a set of barriers to be overcome is examined in relation to the UK government Department of Energy and Climate Change. Drawing on the author’s experience of working in the ministry, the claim that barriers are a reason for preventing RCT use is discounted. An alternative explanation is presented, framed around the idea of an ‘energy policy epistemology’ that legitimately places certain specific knowledge demands and ways of knowing on research and evaluation designs. Through examination of a specific set of research and evaluation outputs related to the UK energy efficiency policy called the ‘Green Deal’, aspects of the proposed ‘energy policy epistemology’ are elucidated to explain the lack of demand for RCT designs. Final consideration is given to what kinds of designs are more likely to gain support in this context that might also deliver many of the benefits attributed to RCTs with longitudinal panels being one important example

Building physics into the social: Enhancing the policy impact of energy studies and energy social science research

A diagnosis for why the social sciences have limited impact on energy policy-making is proposed, and the outline of a remedy presented. The diagnosis identifies the limited use physical science in social studies of energy as a major cause of this lack of impact. This is illustrated by a qualitative review of studies in psychological and sociological approaches and by a quantitative content analysis of all the articles published in Energy Research and Social Science to July 2016. Only around one in ten papers make any meaningful reference to common physical units for energy analysis, with nearly three-quarters making no reference at all to any of these units, in contrast to the pattern observed in the journal Energy Policy. This is important because while it is possible to make realistic but problematic energy policy with only physical and technical data it is not possible to make realistic energy policy with only social data. To bring more physics into social science of energy without the latter simply serving the framework of the former demands a new socio-technical approach to the study of energy. A potential vision for this approach is set out in order to stimulate wider debate in the academy

From paradox to principles: where next for scientific advice to governments?

Scientific advice to governments has never been in greater demand; nor has it been more contested. From climate change to cyber-security, poverty to pandemics, food technologies to fracking, the questions being asked of scientists, engineers and other experts by policymakers, the media and the wider public continue to multiply and increase in complexity. At the same time, the authority and legitimacy of experts are under increasing scrutiny. This thematic article collection (‘special issue’) brings together perspectives on the theory, practice and politics of scientific advice that build on the conclusions of the landmark conference in Auckland in August 2014, which led to the creation of the International Network for Government Science Advice (INGSA). We hope that new papers will continue to be added to this collection over the next year and beyond, making it a living, fully open access repository for new scholarship and policy thinking—and an important contribution to the emerging science and art of scientific advice

Factors associated with psychotropic drug use among community-dwelling older persons: A review of empirical studies

BACKGROUND: In the many descriptive studies on prescribed psychotropic drug use by community-dwelling older persons, several sociodemographic and other factors associated with drug use receive inconsistent support. METHOD: Empirical reports with data on at least benzodiazepine or antidepressant drug use in samples of older persons published between 1990 and 2001 (n = 32) were identified from major databases and analyzed to determine which factors are most frequently associated with psychotropic drug use in multivariate analyses. Methodological aspects were also examined. RESULTS: Most reports used probability samples of users and non-users and employed cross-sectional designs. Among variables considered in 5 or more reports, race, proximity to health centers, medical consultations, sleep complaints, and health perception were virtually always associated to drug use. Gender, mental health, and physical health status were associated in about two-thirds of reports. Associations with age, marital status, medication coverage, socioeconomic status, and social support were usually not observed. CONCLUSIONS: The large variety of methods to operationalize drug use, mental health status, and social support probably affected the magnitude of observed relationships. Employing longitudinal designs and distinguishing short-term from long-term use, focusing on samples of drug users exclusively, defining drug use and drug classes more uniformly, and utilizing measures of psychological well-being rather than only of distress, might clarify the nature of observed associations and the direction of causality. Few studies tested specific hypotheses. Most studies focused on individual characteristics of respondents, neglecting the potential contribution of health care professionals to the phenomenon of psychotropic drug use among seniors