IRISH SOCIAL SCIENCES PLATFORM CONFERENCE 2009 Social Science Research and Policy Making: Bridging the Divide 1st – 2nd December 2009 National University of Ireland, Galway PROCEEDINGS ISBN Number: 978-0-9553159-6-1 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS 4 ISSP Conference 2009 Programme and Organising Committee and Scientific Steering Committee 5 Foreword Dr. James Cunningham 7 BALANCED REGIONAL AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT 8 The Practice of Using Research to Influence Policy: A Policy Analyst’s Perspective Helen McHenry 21 KNOWLEDGE SOCIETY 22 Personal Mobility in Work Contexts Thomas Acton, Willie Golden and Hans van der Heijden 31 Commercialisation of Scientific Knowledge in Ireland: A Holistic Research Paradigm to Bridge the Divide of Research and Policy-Making Diana Nadine Boehm and Teresa Hogan 44 Research in Human Resources for Health and its Relevance to Healthcare Management Practices Patricia Browne and Alma McCarthy 57 Contribution Behaviours in Systems Development – A Position Paper Sharon Coyle, Kieran Conboy and Thomas Acton 68 Challenges for Aided Online Shopping and Product Selection – A Decision Making Perspective Maciej Dabrowski, Thomas Acton and Willie Golden 79 The Implementation of Electronic Healthcare Records within the Irish Health Service: An Analysis of User Attitudes Michael Lang and Annemarie Melia 88 Systematic Reviews: Their Emerging Role in Connecting Theory and Policy Patricia McHugh and Christine Domegan 102 The Cosy Consensus of Irish Policy Making: Identifying its Constitutive Features Mary Murphy and Peadar Kirby 118 Academic Entrepreneurship: The Challenge for Policy Makers Damien Organ and James Cunningham, 2 129 ‘As Important As Technology’ – Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation in Digital Media Services Jim Rogers, Paschal Preston and Des McGuinness 144 Product Information Display Formats to Support the Consumer Decision Making Process Ultan Sharkey, Thomas Acton and Kieran Conboy 155 SUSTAINING COMMUNITIES 156 Linking Research and Policy: Assessing a Framework for Organic Agricultural Support in Ireland Leslie A. Duram, Daniel Clavin and Shauna M. Bloom 170 Mental Health, Public Policy and Sustainable Communities: The Importance of Research Niamh Higgins 179 Research and Policy on Psychological Stress in Caregivers: Bridging the Divide Eimear Lee 188 Voluntary Organisations in Clifden, Co Galway: Baseline Research Maureen Maloney 204 Sexual Minority Men’s Health: Integrating Research and Policy Lorraine McDonagh 216 Stress, Sleep Loss and Well-Being: Implications for Public Health Policy Eanna O’Leary 225 Public Pensions and Retirement in Ireland Roman Raab and Brenda Gannon 3 ISSP Conference 2009 Programme and Organising Committee Conference Proceedings Editors National University of Ireland, Galway Dr. James Cunningham, Centre for Innovation and Structural Change (Chair) Professor Chris Curtin, School of Political Science and Sociology Professor Patrick Dolan, Child and Family Research Centre Dr. Allyn Fives, Child and Family Research Centre Dr. Brenda Gannon, Irish Centre for Social Gerontology Dr. Brian Hughes, Centre for Research on Occupational and Life Stress Dr. Hugh Kelley, Irish Centre for Rural Transformation and Sustainability Professor Kevin Leyden, Centre for Innovation and Structural Change Professor Eamon O’Shea, Irish Centre for Social Gerontology Professor Gerard Quinn, Centre for Disability Law and Policy Ms. Angela Sice, Centre for Innovation & Structural Change ISSP Conference 2009 Conference Administrator Ms. Angela Sice, Centre for Innovation and Structural Change, NUI Galway ISSP Conference Proceedings 2009 Editorial Assistant Ms. Valerie Parker, Centre for Innovation and Structural Change, NUI Galway ISSP Conference 2009 Scientific Steering Committee Dr. Delphine Ancien, National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis, National University of Ireland, Maynooth Dr. Majella Giblin, Centre for Innovation and Structural Change, National University of Ireland, Galway Dr. Teresa Hogan, Learning Innovation and Knowledge Research Centre, Dublin City University Dr. Brian Hughes, Centre for Research on Occupation and Life Stress, National University of Ireland, Galway Dr. Hugh Kelley, Irish Centre for Rural Transformation and Sustainability, National University of Ireland, Galway Dr Helen Kelly Holmes, School of Languages, Literature, Culture and Communication, University of Limerick Dr. Michael Murray, School of Environmental Planning, Queen’s University Belfast ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The Irish Social Sciences Platform (ISSP) is funded under the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions, administered by the HEA and co-funded under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). 4 Foreword from the Chair of the Irish Social Sciences Platform Conference 2009 Social Science Research and Policy Making: Bridging the Divide National University of Ireland, Galway In selecting the theme of the Irish Social Sciences Platform Conference hosted at NUI Galway in 2009 careful consideration was given by the organising committee in choosing a conference theme that had a scholarship relevance reflecting the three pillars of the ISSP consortium, one that had significance to business, societal and policy issues. Given the upheavals in global economies which have fundamentally challenged conventional thinking about all aspects about society and business the ISSP Conference 2009 provided an opportunity to reflect on some of these challenges and to debate the policy implications. Social science research has a significant role in framing effective policy responses to sustaining communities, balanced regional and rural development and the knowledge society. Policy makers are challenged to craft immediate short term solutions for issues that have potentially long terms impacts. Given the potentially differing perspectives of social science researchers and policy makers, growing mutual incomprehension continues to exist. Appropriate mechanisms of interaction and engagement are necessary between social science researchers and policy makers. One of the core purposes of the Conference was to stimulate discussions and debates around how social science research is organised and presented and how social science research can be effectively used by policy makers. The Conference Proceedings are an extension of the debate, the sharing of ideas and perspectives. Moreover, the ISSP as a national research consortium has significant and relevant contributions in bridging this divide with the support of empirical and critical analysis. The preparation for the Conference and the Proceedings has been a team effort by my colleagues in the six research centres who are part of the ISSP consortium at NUI Galway and I want to convey my personal thanks to them for all of their dedication and hard work. I would like to extend our thanks to other colleagues from the ISSP consortium for their guidance and assistance and to thank our keynote speakers for joining us at the Conference in 2009. A final note of thanks to all the track chairs and session chairs, who gave much time and effort to ensuring the success of the Conference, to all those who have contributed the Conference Proceedings and to Valerie Parker, the editorial assistant for the Conference Proceedings. Finally, I hope that you enjoy reading these Conference Proceedings which reflect the scholarship traditions of social science research. Dr. James Cunningham, Conference Chair Director, Centre for Innovation and Structural Change National University of Ireland, Galway 5 6 BALANCED REGIONAL AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT 7 THE PRACTICE OF USING RESEARCH TO INFLUENCE POLICY: A POLICY ANALYST’S PERSPECTIVE Helen McHenry, Western Development Commission, Roscommon, Ireland Paper type: Academic paper in development ABSTRACT It is a truism that good research should influence and help to make good policy, but experience shows this is not always the case. Policy makers are usually looking for unambiguous evidence and practical solutions, while researchers have different objectives for their work, often influenced by theories and methodologies which are not necessarily of interest to policy makers. This paper seeks to provide insight into how research can be and is used in policy analysis and, by extension, in policy making. One of the key functions of the Western Development Commission (the WDC, a statutory body promoting economic and social development in the Western Region) is to bring a regional perspective to government policy, highlight important issues for the region and influence the development of future policy. This function is thus at the interface between research and policy making, and this paper examines the use of research to influence policy from this perspective. It does this by using a case study of the work carried out by the WDC on balanced regional development policy and considers the types of research which have been used to contribute to it. The research used is classified into four types: Academic Research; Synthesised Research; ‘In House’ Analysis; and Commissioned Research. Under each of these four headings the research used for work on policy for balanced regional development is described and then analysed on the basis of a ‘research use’ continuum. This continuum extends from very conceptual uses, such as broadening knowledge, to more instrumental uses, such as influencing the detail of policy formulation. Each of the four research types can have multiple positions on this continuum. In addition, one of the key ways that research influences policy is by