What is Research Impact?
The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) defines research impact as the demonstrable contribution that excellent research makes to society and the economy.
Research Impact exists in many forms, and similar terms are used for vastly different outcomes. The term 'Research Impact' may often be used to describe the impact a research project may have on:
- colleagues
- the wider scholarly community
- funding models
- society
- the university's standing in World Rankings
In many cases, Metrics, or benchmarking numbers that include Bibliometrics and Altmetrics, are used to quantify impact, by assessing how research is discovered, used, and disseminated, but this is only one measure of impact.
In this guide, we will explore how metrics may impact an individual author, a journal, and a research project, and will then discuss how you are able to maximise your research impact with several simple, attainable interventions.
Creative Commons License
This guide has been created by the Toronto Metropolitan University Library and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License unless otherwise marked.
