Identifying Trustworthy Experts: How Policymakers Find and Assess Public Health Researchers

Overview

• The study explores how policymakers identify and evaluate researchers for consultation or collaboration.
• Focuses on Australian policymakers and their assessment based on competence, integrity, and benevolence.
• Recommends strategies for both policymakers and researchers to improve collaboration and policy influence.

Key Attributes for Trustworthiness

1. Competence

   • Exemplary academic reputation.
   • Understanding of government processes.
   • Effective collaboration and communication skills.

2. Integrity

   • Independence and authenticity.
   • Faithful reporting of research.

3. Benevolence

   • Commitment to policy reform agenda.

Policymakers’ Processes

• Face-to-Face Consultations: Preferred over reading research.
• Interpersonal Relationships: Essential for research-informed policy.
• Role and Phase-Specific Needs: Criteria vary with policy type and phase.
• Trust: Reduces uncertainty and risks in collaborations.

Identification of Researchers

• Civil Servants

  • Two groups: research-related roles and general roles.
  • Use networks, conferences, and tendering processes to find researchers.
  • Diverse opinions valued but often same researchers used repeatedly.
  • Geographic proximity influences selection.
  • Challenges include lack of systematic approach.

• Politicians

  • Researchers viewed as part of a broader expert pool.
  • Relied on colleague networks and media profiles to find researchers.
  • Media presence often equated with expertise.

Assessing Researchers

1. Reputation

   • Politicians favor academic status and media profile.
   • Civil servants focus on track record and specific expertise.

2. Independence

   • Valued for providing unbiased advice.

3. Pragmatism and Perspective

   • Preference for researchers with practical, non-dogmatic approaches.
   • Importance of broad knowledge and "helicopter view."

4. Understanding Government

   • Knowledge of public health infrastructure and processes.

5. Collaborative Skills

   • Value teamwork and adaptability.

6. Authenticity

   • Genuine commitment to public good.

7. Faithful Representation of Research

   • Avoidance of ideological bias.

8. Communication Skills

   • Importance of clear, concise, and strategic communication.

Discussion

• Trust is central; preference for known researchers leads to reliance on recommendations.
• Competence, integrity, and benevolence are critical for researcher assessment.
• Role-specific and phase-specific needs dictate researcher selection.

Implications

• For Policymakers: Need for systematic methods to identify researchers; avoid over-reliance on media.
• For Researchers: Importance of engaging with civil servants and using multiple strategies for policy influence.

Conclusion

• Understanding trust and relationship dynamics can enhance researcher-policymaker collaborations.
• Both parties should strive for better engagement methods and diversified strategies for policy influence.