User:Daniel Mietchen/Reflections on participatory research

Graphical abstract
Slides: https://w.wiki/6Qf8 & DOI:10.5281/zenodo.7700484

About
This is a contribution by Daniel Mietchen to a discussion led by Rose O'Dea on 6 March 2023 at the Berlin Institute for Advanced Study (WiKo). A pad for collaborative note-taking sits here.

Mechanics
This presentation uses Wiki2Reveal for rendering, such that this link leads to presentation mode, and the shortlink https://w.wiki/6Qf8 leads back to the source on Wikiversity, which anyone can edit (also on mobile devices; no login required). The full version history is here.

Abstract, Part 1
Research processes are complex and take place at multiple levels, from individual researchers and research groups to research facilities, research fields and the research ecosystem as a whole. This talk explores multiple modes of participation in research processes at any such level and how they relate to the nature of research questions being addressed (or not) as well as to the impact that the resulting research methods, infrastructures, insights and other outcomes can have on the research ecosystem, its stakeholders and other facets of society.

Abstract, Part 2
It touches upon ethical and sustainability aspects of the research system and highlights how collaborations across disciplinary, language, jurisdictional and other boundaries can enrich research by bringing together diverse perspectives, expertise, and resources. Featuring participatory elements itself, it further outlines how participation in research processes can be enhanced - both incrementally and in transformative fashions - to create impactful, innovative, and inclusive research environments better equipped to tackle the complex problems of our times.

Subtitle
"Enhanced participation as a key ingredient of an impactful research ecosystem equipped to tackle the complex problems of our times"

Topics to discuss

 * Complex problems of our time 🌍🌡️📈 🦋🐘🌸🌳📉 💰⚖️👩‍🦽
 * Research to tackle these problems 🤔🔬🦠🔍🛢️📝🧐🏭🕵️‍♀️🏢
 * Research ecosystem equipped to tackle complex problems 🤔🤝👥🔎📐📝📜📚💡🔧🔬📷🕑💻🏷️📊🧬🧫🧪💉🧭📡🚀🤖🧐
 * Impactful research 😊🌱🐝🏞️🏡🔧🚄💊🎭🎨🎹🎬📚⚽💯🎂🧮
 * Key ingredients of an impactful research ecosystem 🧑‍🤝‍🧑💬🌁
 * Enhanced participation in research on complex problems 🌐📲💻📝💡🧑‍🤝‍🧑‍👧👩‍🍳🧑‍🍳🧑‍⚕️👨🏾‍🦲👨‍🦽👩🏽‍🦳👩🏾‍🦳👨🏽‍🦱👨🏿‍🦰👩🏻‍🦰🧑‍🚀🧑‍🏭🧑‍🤝‍🧑‍👦🧑‍🦼👷🏾‍♀️👨‍🎓👨‍🦼👩‍🦯👩‍🦼🧔🏻🧑‍🦰👨🏽‍🦰👩🏿‍🦱🧔🏾‍♂️👩‍⚕️👨🏽‍🦲👲👩‍🔬🧑‍🌾👨‍🏭👳🏿‍♀️👩‍💻👮‍♀️👨‍🌾👩🏿‍🦱🧑‍🦯👩‍🍼👩‍🏭👩🏻‍🦰👩🏼‍🦲👨‍🏫🧑‍🔬👨‍🍳🧔🏽🧑‍🔬🧑‍🍼👨‍🦯👦🏻👶🏽👨‍🍼👨‍💻👩‍🌾🧑🏻‍🦲👷‍♂️🧑‍🦲👨‍⚕️🧑‍🦱🧑‍💻👵🏼👩🏾‍🦱👨‍🚀👮‍♂️🧑‍🦽👩‍🦽👳‍♀️👩🏾‍🦲👳‍♂️👨🏾‍🦳👨‍🔬👩‍🚀🧔🏼👩‍🎓🧕🏽👷‍♀️👱🏻‍♀️👩🏿‍🦳👮🏼‍♂️👩🏻‍🦲👩🏽‍🦰🧕👩🏽‍🦱🧑🏾‍🦱🧑‍🤝‍🧑👨🏻‍🦱👩‍🏫🐁🐀🐇🐕🐐🐒🤖

Zooming in

 * Impactful research
 * Key ingredients of an impactful research ecosystem
 * Enhanced participation
 * Participatory research at WiKo?

Facets of research impact

 * 😊🌱🐝🏞️🏡🔧🚄💊🎭🎨🎹🎬📚⚽💯🎂: benefits to humans and their natural or sociocultural environments
 * 🧮: impacts need to be assessed
 * Actual versus potential impact
 * research may fail in some way
 * research success may not translate into societal benefit

The knowledge-action gap
There is a gap between knowledge and action, not just in conservation.

Bridging the knowledge-action gap
An impactful research system bridges such gaps systematically and allows for two-way traffic.

Key ingredients of a research ecosystem for complex problems

 * Research values, principles and ethics
 * Bridges across domains
 * Standardization
 * Sustainability
 * Openness in multiple dimensions
 * Participation
 * Evaluation

Dimensions of openness

 * Transparency: is the research clearly documented in an accessible manner?
 * Reproducibility: is the research clearly documented in an actionable manner?
 * reproducibility vs. replicability
 * scientific reproducibility vs. computational reproducibility
 * Licensing: are the research outcomes licensed for reuse?
 * Do I need to ask for permission or are they compliant with the Open Definition?
 * Immediacy: is it shared immediately or with some delay?
 * Comprehensiveness: is it shared in whole or in part?

Enhanced participation
"Post hoc transparency (sharing as an afterthought) does not bring about the same credibility as process transparency (planning for transparency from the onset of a project), which is best achieved through early collaboration and knowledge coproduction" Roche et al., 2021, quoting Buxton et al., 2021

Post hoc transparency / retroactive openness

 * sharing research after it happened
 * little room for participation
 * some aspect of data/ code/ manuscript is open

Process transparency / proactive openness

 * sharing research as it happens
 * open for various forms of participation
 * various aspects of data/ code/ manuscript are open by default

Ways to participate
🌐📲💻📝💡🧑‍🤝‍🧑‍👧👩‍🍳🧑‍🍳🧑‍⚕️👨🏾‍🦲👨‍🦽👩🏽‍🦳👩🏾‍🦳👨🏽‍🦱👨🏿‍🦰👩🏻‍🦰🧑‍🚀🧑‍🏭🧑‍🤝‍🧑‍👦🧑‍🦼👷🏾‍♀️👨‍🎓👨‍🦼👩‍🦯👩‍🦼🧔🏻🧑‍🦰👨🏽‍🦰👩🏿‍🦱🧔🏾‍♂️👩‍⚕️👨🏽‍🦲👲👩‍🔬🧑‍🌾👨‍🏭👳🏿‍♀️👩‍💻👮‍♀️👨‍🌾👩🏿‍🦱🧑‍🦯👩‍🍼👩‍🏭👩🏻‍🦰👩🏼‍🦲👨‍🏫🧑‍🔬👨‍🍳🧔🏽🧑‍🔬🧑‍🍼👨‍🦯👦🏻👶🏽👨‍🍼👨‍💻👩‍🌾🧑🏻‍🦲👷‍♂️🧑‍🦲👨‍⚕️🧑‍🦱🧑‍💻👵🏼👩🏾‍🦱👨‍🚀👮‍♂️🧑‍🦽👩‍🦽👳‍♀️👩🏾‍🦲👳‍♂️👨🏾‍🦳👨‍🔬👩‍🚀🧔🏼👩‍🎓🧕🏽👷‍♀️👱🏻‍♀️👩🏿‍🦳👮🏼‍♂️👩🏻‍🦲👩🏽‍🦰🧕👩🏽‍🦱🧑🏾‍🦱🧑‍🤝‍🧑👨🏻‍🦱👩‍🏫🐁🐀🐇🐕🐐🐒🤖
 * ideally, ways that are compatible with
 * good scientific practice
 * how potential participants or their communities do things
 * positive learning experiences

Researcher perspective on external participants in research

 * sharing one's own ideas and approaches
 * getting feedback on them and their impact
 * learning about those of others
 * learning about practical problems
 * opportunity to contribute to solving practical problems

Participant perspective on participating

 * sharing one's own ideas and approaches
 * getting feedback on them and their impact
 * learning about existing research fields and methods
 * opportunity to influence ongoing and future research
 * opportunity to have practical problems reviewed

Collective action problems

 * Many of the complex problems humanity faces today are collective action problems
 * Such problems require participation by diverse stakeholders
 * Research on such problems focuses on social structures and dynamics
 * Opening up the research process is one of them

Climate change
"We must abandon the conceit that individual, isolated, private actions are the answer. They can and do help. But they will not take us far enough without collective action." Al Gore, Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech (2007)

Open research
Any open research activity is an invitation to collaborate.

Resources

 * Ask Open Science
 * Publishing the research process
 * The Wikimedia ecosystem as a key component of an open science landscape
 * Interactions between citizen science and the ecosystem around Wikipedia
 * Science GLAM and Open Science
 * Linked Open Science

Discussion: Participatory research at WiKo?

 * What can research institutions do to encourage open science?
 * Open and FAIR science in an institutional context
 * How do (or would you) encourage participation by others in your research?
 * What about some pilot projects?