Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI
Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI

Project

LeNa-Shape: Socially responsible research

Design, impact assessment, quality control

In April 2021 for the first time in an international context, the LeNa Shape project began researching whether and how the principle of “socially responsible research” changes research processes and projects in terms of their quality, impact and motivation of the involved researchers. Based on these analyses, the aim is to qualify the “socially responsible research” principle as a standard element of research practice for sustainable development (https://www.nachhaltig-forschen.de/startseite/).

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Objective

The project work is bundled in two modules: LeNa-Move addresses motivational aspects of the researchers and institutional framework conditions; LeNa-Value is concerned with the quality of research and its impacts. Fraunhofer ISI coordinates the LeNa-Value module, where teams from non-university research organizations and universities work together closely in the fields of sustainability research, ethics, the social responsibility of science and research, and impact research. LeNa-Value conducts research on the questions listed below together with the following partners:

 

  • Which definitions of high quality science are used nationally and internationally? How are these changing?
  • What are the ethical and science-theoretical foundations for socially responsible research?
  • What consequences for the traditional criteria of excellence are expected within the science community if science places greater emphasis on its social responsibility and implements this in the research process? Is there any empirical evidence for these?
  • If science is increasingly expected to contribute to managing societal challenges, measuring the impact of research also becomes more important. What methodological developments can be identified here?
  • What lessons can be learned from a corresponding impact assessment based on a case example of the bioeconomy?