Science, clients, and the state : a study of scientific knowledge production and use

Abstract

This study addresses two main issues that refer to aspects of the relationship between producers and users of research. The first half of the study is focused on the stage of the research process where research problems are selected. The role that potential users of research play in the selection of research problems is investigated, and the extent to which potential applications of research results are defined as important in problem choice. Second, the study analyses the ways in which scientific information is used by government agencies and examines the factors that affect the use of such information in bureaucratic decision-making, and in other activities of government agencies. The two main issues are addressed with a core focus on the possible effects of the organisational context within which research processes and bureaucratic utilisation of research are conducted. The empirical setting of this study is the agricultural and fishery sectors in Norway. Norwegian fisheries and agriculture are sectors where nature, science and public management are intertwined. The two sectors have organisational arrangements that underline the strong ties between science and public administration