Title: Dissemination and impact
Course: EDPS0009: Researching Education and Society: Qualitative Methods 2020/2021 > Section: 10. Dissemination

Introduction to impact

If dissemination is the sharing of findings, then "impact" describes what happens after the findings of a research have been shared.

Impact is a measure of how the findings of a research have been used. In the UK context of higher education, but across the globe the research impact is a measure of relevance. And although this may sound difficult to achieve, we do have to ask ourselves what the point of a research project is, if nobody learns about it.

Here is an infographic from the University of York, outlining what impact is and how it happens:

As you can see, impact is about the uptake and use of research outside of academia. Sometimes, people find it difficult to know exactly where the line is between dissemination and impact, because they plan activities around sharing findings.

The difference lies with what the researcher does. If as a researcher you are initiating a workshop or a policy discussion, then this is not impact, yet. Impact is when people are using the findings from your research to change their practices or policies.

What is impact?

Impact can be described and measured in different ways:

In addition to these categories, there is also a measure of time in relation to impact, as impact can be short-term, medium-term or long-term. Attitudinal changes, for example, are long-term effects and impact, and will require a much longer time to gripe than for example policy changes, which may be implemented in the short- or medium-term. For research to be of significant impact, however, the "pathway" to impact and dissemination will need to be planned for right at the beginning of a project.

Planning for impact

Certain kinds of impact activities need to be built into the research design. Similarly, if there are particular sets of data required for engaging with stakeholders, then again, that needs to be built into the research design.

In this video, Professor Mark Reed from "Fast Track Impact" talks us through some of the elements and aspects a researcher needs to consider when trying to plan for research with impact.

Having watched the videos and having learned a little bit about dissemination and impact, consider the following:
What are you hoping to achieve with your research projects?
What will you do with your findings? Who will you share them with and why and how?
And finally, does your research process account for your dissemination and impact plans?