Science of Science and Innovation PolicyScience of Science and Innovation PolicySciSIP_4cf30e4e-2595-4935-9ef2-fecefab46660To provide the foundations of an evidence-based platform from which policymakers and researchers may assess the impacts of the nation’s scientific and engineering enterprise, and improve their understanding of its dynamics and predict outcomes._fd52b112-6bc8-43f8-8e3b-6ed61304193eUnderstanding of Creative ProcessesDevelop usable knowledge and theories of creative processes and their transformation into social and economic outcomes._5d9d5738-5046-4493-96f5-be856f1bf8f11GrantsBuild a rigorous and comprehensive science of science and innovation policy research portfolio through NSF’s usual merit-review process. _e4077497-a703-4cf7-8301-4d5e0551b7621.1In the spring of 2007 SBE intends to issue its first solicitation for proposals comprising disciplinary and interdisciplinary research on knowledge generation and innovation. The emphasis areas will be data, models and tools. The solicitation will invite research that is conducted in the broad spectrum of social, behavioral, cognitive, and economic sciences. Research will include psychological and organizational studies of innovation, as well as the development of agent-based models and network analyses. For example, scientists in the natural and social sciences could collaborate on projects about cognitive pathways and interaction strategies that lead to new discoveries, optimizing team strategies in the innovative process, as well as study the relationships between ethics, values and public policies.The research objectives will go beyond the traditional input-output linkages, to broader outcomes, such as implications for national health, security, education, and well-being. New statistical and econometric tools for estimating social and economic returns to science and engineering investments will be encouraged, including domain-specific comparisons of public and private R&D expenditures and returns. The research will not be limited to quantitative assessments. Qualitative tools, such as case studies, ethnographic studies, historical analyses and cross-national comparisons will also be welcomed and interdisciplinary collaborations will be encouraged. International collaboration among scholars will also be encouraged, since much can be learned about country-based methods of scientific exploration and science policies, particularly as the scientific community globalizes. SBE will partner with funding agencies primarily in Europe and Asia to facilitate these international collaborations. Collaborative research projects between U.S. investigators and researchers in developing countries and emerging economies are anticipated.WorkshopsConduct three to six workshops each year._642f35e2-af9d-42ba-b96d-d11eb77c94d81.2SBE initiated the SciSIP activities by sponsoring three agenda-setting workshops dealing with knowledge creation and innovation. In May 2006, the Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences hosted the “NSF Innovation and Discovery Workshop: The Scientific Basis of Individual and Team Innovation and Discovery.” Researchers from the psychological sciences, together with members of the engineering community, focused on the cognitive processes of researchers working alone or in teams to develop new ideas and to overcome stumbling blocks. Frontiers of collaborative research that were identified during the workshop include: memory and analogy mechanisms in creative design processes; computational models of creativity; models of synergy between individuals and teams to improve performance; ways to build more innovative teams; management and leadership issues in innovation and creativity; and impacts of disciplinary cultures on transformative work.SRS conducted the second workshop in June 2006, entitled “Advancing Measures of Innovation: Knowledge Flows, Business Metrics, and Measurement Strategies.” Participants brainstormed about better measures of innovation and alternative data resources and tools at the national and international levels. They also focused attention on the need for theoretical frameworks that point to data that should be gathered and models that could be used for analysis of the data.Lastly, the Division of Social and Economic Sciences sponsored a workshop on “The Social Organization of Science and Science Policy” in July 2006. Participants examined the social organization and the political, economic and sociological contexts within which science policy and science succeed or flounder, and the need to develop concepts that further the understanding of interrelationships between inputs, outcome and policies in the national innovation system. Since human capital is a critical driver of scientific discovery and innovation, workshop attendees stressed the need for new strategies and vehicles for the education, training, mobility, and diversity of the STEM workforce. For reports on these workshops, please see the web sites for each of these SBE divisions (http://nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=SBE).Going forward, three to six workshops are expected to occur each year. Workshops will create an important medium for the development of future scholars whose work informs science policy. In year three of this activity there will also be a summative conference, where leading scholars and policymakers will give their assessments of research findings, identify areas for future research and draw lessons for future indicators.Science MetricsImprove and expand science metrics, datasets and analytical tools, yielding changes in the bi-annual S&E indicators and other data collections._546067ee-108f-48d6-a6e9-40efab1fbb432Contracts and Interagency AgreementsFund new and expanded data-collection activities including expanded interactions with data users and respondents, enhancing the usefulness of the data to the development of the science of science and innovation policy._1befde57-a2af-4e5f-b8dc-06e826c514b72.1Cyber-facilitated data extraction mechanisms will be employed to expand and develop new data sets; cyber-linked metrics and methods for evaluating inputs, outputs and outcomes of scientific development will greatly improve the utility of data collections. New surveys and indicators of R&D, innovation and the science and engineering (S&E) workforce will be developed. For example, SRS will develop new indicators that reflect more accurately the way in which R&D is currently being conducted. There are also plans for gathering information about innovative activities that occur at a later stage of product development than is typically captured by existing R&D indicators. SRS is also planning to deepen their database on the S&E workforce, focusing particularly on post-doctorates. The new surveys will be developed based on the expertise and experience of social psychologists, sociologists, economists, and other social scientists as well as researchers across the full spectrum of science and engineering.Community Building and TrainingDevelop a community of experts across the Federal government, industry and universities focused on SciSIP. _66155a82-da7d-45eb-b4fe-c7b9118f50413Training and Community BuildingTrain and build communities of future generations of researchers._09651c6f-af0c-4d83-beac-fdde918f11403.1Continuous enhancement of human capital requires community building and training of future generations of researchers. Broad involvement of constituencies, including universities and researchers, labs and corporations, policymakers and community leaders is critical to the success of human-capital development. Furthermore, SciSIP’s activities can be a catalyst that brings these groups together for the purpose of formulating methods and designing curriculums critical for developing, instructing and advising twenty-first century scientists and engineers.The aim is to create a cadre of scholars who marshal data, analyses and advice on the scientific underpinnings of science policy. As one means of facilitating this objective, a summer institute in 2008 will host leading researchers and graduate students in the field. The summer institute and other community-building efforts are expected to support education and training opportunities for the development of the next-generation workforce, including activities to broaden workforce participation in the STEM disciplines. Ultimately, SciSIP will facilitate transformative research on an immensely policy-relevant topic—the ecology of innovation.2006-09-012010-02-08http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/scisip/scisip_prospec.pdfArthurColman (www.drybridge.com)colman@drybridge.com