Sharing research with academia and beyond: Insights from early career researchers in Australia and Japan

Quality scholarly research outputs, such as peer reviewed journal articles published in reputable journals, are essential for early career researchers' (ECRs) vocational success while also offering benefits for their institutions. Research outputs destined for audiences beyond academia are also increasingly valued by funders, end users, and tertiary institutions. While there is an expectation that ECRs may create diverse research outputs for an array of audiences, the kinds of research output texts produced by ECRs for varied audiences warrants further investigation. In addition, the routes of dissemination that ECRs use to share their academic research outputs to secure impact beyond academia are not well understood. Drawing on semi‐structured interviews of 30 respondents in Australia and Japan, we explore the research‐sharing practices of ECRs, finding that ECRs may potentially create a wide range of research‐informed texts for end users beyond academia, using an array of methods for dissemination. The examples of the output text types and dissemination routes we provide in this paper can be used to inspire ECRs and also more senior academics to share their research more broadly, and perhaps more effectively, and can be used by publishers to improve research impact and support ECRs' research translation.     

How can we build an impactful future for science in conservation? Essential next steps

This paper presents the outcomes of reflection and debate within the ICCROM Forum (2013) which explored how to build an impactful future for science in conservation. It sets out a number of recommendations to support a vibrant heritage science community with an impactful future. Key recommendations include: adopting the term heritage science as this reflects the growing use of the term in domains not exclusively conservation-focussed, positioning ICCROM as a leader in setting a vision for the heritage science community which would grow capacity, and support a high standard of academic research to underpin an impactful future for this growing discipline.     

Eligibility and classification decisions in educational settings: Issuing “Passports” in a state of confusion

Eligibility and classification decisions have become an integral part of the American educational system, but the process of making these decisions remains poorly understood. Subjects for this investigation of this decision-making process were 223 educational professionals. Each was given referral and assessment information reflecting average performance for a hypothetical student and asked to make decisions about that student. In their decisions, 51% declared the student eligible for special services; 61% indicated the presence of mental retardation, learning disabilities, and/or emotional disturbance. Several subjects indicated eligibility for services, but did not classify, or indicated ineligibility for services, but classified the student. Learning disabilities was the most popular classification. Student characteristics and the subjects' professional roles and knowledge of assessment/ measurement principles affected decisions made; however, greater training and knowledge did not lead to significantly better decisions. It is apparent that more care must be taken by decision makers in the use and interpretation of assessment information.     

Continuing education as a catalyst for inter-professional collaboration

Do nurses have access to the tools and resources they need for evidence-based practice? Are librarians prepared to work with nurses to provide access to appropriate resources and services, and teach the needed information literacy skills? The authors work with professional library and nursing organizations to present interdisciplinary continuing education to improve the information literacy of nurses and the ability of librarians to provide resources and services that meet nurses' information needs. This article reviews behavioral and practice changes reported by nurses and librarian participants in symposia on evidence-based nursing in March 2001 and May 2003.     

“Wildest dreams”: the racial aura of celebrity safari

This paper deploys theories of aura to explore the celebrity safari as a mode by which famous people authenticate Africa as a distant, timeless place for a global audience. Their safari depictions create an imagined mystical locale, an aura, that imbues cult value and maintains transnational racial divides. The celebritized racial aura constructs a nostalgic paradise that sits in contrast to the many narratives of misery and privation that celebrity representation also creates. Thus aura commodifies the continent as a kind of playground for the desires of Western publics.