European recommendations on responsible research assessment

Responsible research assessment entails recognizing diversity of research outputs, activities, missions, and difference between fields, as well as rewarding open science practices. Slow uptake of responsible assessment policies at institutions is partly due to lack of qualitative and quantitative data needed to document the broader range of merits for assessments. 

In recent years, implementation of responsible research assessment has been promoted by national recommendations in three European countries (the Netherlands 2019, Finland 2020, and Norway 2021). Most recently, the European Commission aims to facilitate and speed up changes with a European agreement on a reform of the research assessment system.

We analyze and compare the European Commision and three national documents on responsible assessment to show overlaps and differences in construction of policies, as well as continuities and discontinuities with earlier recommendations in DORA (2012), the Leiden manifesto (2015), and the Metric tide (2015).

References:

Curry, S., de Rijcke, S., Hatch, A., Pillay, D.; van der Weijden, I. & Wilsdon, J. (2020). The changing role of funders in responsible research assessment: progress, obstacles and the way ahead.

European Commission (2021). Towards a reform of the research assessment system.

Federation of Finnish Learned Societies (2020). Good practice in researcher evaluation. Recommendation for the responsible evaluation of a researcher in Finland.

Mustajoki, H., Pölönen, J., Gregory, K., Ivanović, D., Brasse, V., Kesäniemi, J., Koivisto, E., & Pylvänäinen, E. (2021). Making FAIReR assessments possible. Final report of EOSC Co-Creation projects: "European overview of career merit systems'' and "Vision for research data in research careers".

Universities Norway (2021). NOR-CAM - A toolbox for recognition and rewards in academic careers.

VSNU, NFU, KNAW, NWO and ZonMw (2019). Room for everyone’s talent: towards a new balance in the recognition and rewards of academics.