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The new evidence-based policy: public participation between ‘hard evidence’ and democracy in practice

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dc.contributor.author Pallett, Helen
dc.date.accessioned 2022-04-03T06:22:26Z
dc.date.available 2022-04-03T06:22:26Z
dc.date.issued 2020-05
dc.identifier.citation : Pallett, H. (2020) The new evidence-based policy: public participation between ‘hard evidence’ and democracy in practice, Evidence & Policy, vol 16, no 2, 209–227, DOI: 10.1332/174426419X15704985880872 sm
dc.identifier.issn • Online ISSN 1744-2656
dc.identifier.uri ttps://doi.org/10.1332/174426419X15704985880872
dc.identifier.uri ${sadil.baseUrl}/handle/123456789/3661
dc.description 19 p. ; PDF sm
dc.description.abstract Background: Debates about evidence-based policy (EBP) were revived in the UK in the 2010s in the context of civil service reform and changing practices of policy making, including institutionalisation of public participation in science policy making. Aims and objectives: This paper aims to explore this revival of interest in EBP in the context of the Government-funded public participation programme Sciencewise, which supports and promotes public dialogues in science policy making. It is based on in-depth ethnographic study of the programme during 2013, considering the impacts on Sciencewise practices and working understandings of engaging in the EBP debate. There is a particular focus on the advantages and disadvantages of categorising public participation as a source of evidence-based policy as opposed to presenting participation as a democratic act which is separate from discussions of EBP. Key conclusions: At different times Sciencewise actors moved between these stances in order to gain credibility and attention for their work, and to situate the outcomes of public participation processes in a broader policy context. In some instances the presentation of outputs from public participation processes as legitimate evidence for policy gave them greater influence and enriched broader discussions about the meaning and practice of open policy. However, it also frequently led to their dismissal on methodological grounds, inhibiting serious engagement with their outputs and challenging internal frameworks for evaluation and learning. sm
dc.description.sponsorship This work was supported by an ESRC 1+3 PhD studentship (grant number ES/ I902201/1). sm
dc.language.iso en sm
dc.publisher Policy Press sm
dc.relation.ispartofseries Evidence & Policy • vol 16 • no 2 • 209–227 •;
dc.subject evidence-based policy sm
dc.subject evaluation sm
dc.subject public participation sm
dc.subject organisation of participation sm
dc.title The new evidence-based policy: public participation between ‘hard evidence’ and democracy in practice sm
dc.type Article sm


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