Barbara, you raise a very important point.
To offer a UK perspective, the way research outputs in "Art and Design:
History, Practice and Theory" were assessed in the last UK government census
(REF 2014) recognised the need to identify research of high quality wherever
it appears and in whatever form. The guidelines for Panel D, of which Art
and Design was a part, made clear that the assessment process would "neither
advantage nor disadvantage any type of research or form of output, whether
it is physical or virtual, textual or non-textual, visual or sonic, static
or dynamic, digital or analogue".
Crucially the guidelines for Panel D also stated that "No output will be
privileged or disadvantaged on the basis of the publisher, where it is
published or the medium of its publication."
See REF 01.2012 "Panel criteria and working methods" January 2012 page 85
(available here: http://www.ref.ac.uk/pubs/).
The same guidelines were emphatic "The sub-panels within Main Panel D will
neither receive nor make use of any citation or bibliometric data to inform
their judgements. In assessing the quality of outputs, the sub-panels in
Main Panel D will not privilege any journal or conference rankings/lists,
the perceived standing of the publisher or the medium of publication, or
where the research output is published" (page 87).
Citation information *was* accepted as an indicator of Impact (beneficial
effects beyond the academic sector), but not as an indicator of research
quality.
These positions were the outcome of battles fought and largely won by
individuals and organisations in design research and the humanities over the
years as the the UK government's research census has evolved from Research
Assessment Exercise 1992 (and its earlier forms). Other main panels (Panel
D was one of four) took different approaches, some of them effectively
encouraging publication in a certain set of journals and in a limited range
of formats, but Panel D set its face against just the sort of dangers you
identify.
I fear that, as you say, the approach of Panel D is not widely followed
internationally, but would be very pleased to discover that I am wrong.
Stephen
Stephen Boyd Davis
Professor of Design Research
School of Design
Royal College of Art
Kensington Gore, London
SW7 2EU
E [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
T (Inka Hella, School Administrator) +44 (0)20 7590 4274
T (personal) +44 (0)20 7590 4343
www.rca.ac.uk
twitter.com/RCADesRes
facebook.com/RCA.London
From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related
research in Design <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Barbara Emanuel
<[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and
related research in Design <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Sunday, 30 August 2015 11:50
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: [PHD-DESIGN] design research and its closed circle
> I'm sorry to intrude (I'm one of the younger padawans, who only "watch" the
> list to learn, but do not feel worthy of posting), but I would like to share a
> concern about what I have been seeing here lately and in my country (Brazil)
> as well, when it comes to where to publish and which conferences (and such) to
> attend.
>
> I feel that, more and more, design academia is closing itself and publishing
> in the same old journals and going to conferences from the same old circles,
> because our time/money/energy is limited, and we should focus on what is worth
> it. Established journals are great and leading conferences have la creme de la
> creme. Awesome. I understand the appeal. But that is SO limiting. It is so
> exciting when one of you guys, top researchers, goes to a conference that we,
> younger students, can actually go to and learn, and share our work, and get
> asked good questions... And newer journals might not have the super qualified
> reviewers, but MAYBE that will lead to articles with more
> different/fresh/experimental ideas being published, that would be rejected in
> established journals right off the bat.
>
> I think design researchers should go out more and talk to those who are
> interested, those who could benefit from it, those who could teach us about
> their world and their needs, those who could inspire us...
>
> I don't know (much about anything at all), but I think obsession with metrics
> is getting in our way (at least here, in Brazil).
>
>
> Barbara
>
>
>
> --
> Barbara Emanuel
> doutoranda || PhD student
> ESDI/UERJ
> http://ppd.esdi.uerj.br
> Rio de Janeiro, Brasil
>
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