Sigmund Freud Private University recently signed the Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment and joined the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment.
Why did SFU join CoARA?
SFU joins the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment (CoARA) in light of increasing international calls for reforms in research assessment. A variety of initiatives and frameworks have recently criticised the inappropriate use of quantitative metrics in research assessment and propose to instead focus on evaluating quality and impact. The Agreement on Reforming Research Assessment (ARRA) offers concrete steps towards this goal, providing principles and commitments, a timeframe and further tools for implementing the reforms. In Austria, the ARRA has been signed and endorsed by research institutions such as the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW), as well as the Austrian Conference of Private Universities (ÖPUK), which SFU is a member of.
Benefits for the research community
By signing the ARRA, SFU as a research institution commits to reforming its assessment criteria, recognising diverse research contributions and careers. Research institutions and organisations joining the CoARA have full autonomy in implementing the reform process according to their diverse research profiles. At the same time, CoARA provides guiding principles and organisational structures and facilitates exchange across signatories. As a member of the CoARA, SFU will thus be able to match institutional needs while simultaneously learn from other experiences with research assessment reforms, ultimately contributing to systemic progress and an iterative process of reforming research assessment internationally.
Next steps and expectations
SFU’s Faculty of Psychology currently spearheads the university-wide reform process by financing a position within its research office, serving as a pilot project. The Faculty’s unique research profile comprises a diversity of methods and approaches, ranging from natural and social sciences to cultural studies, humanities, and interdisciplinary research. For such pioneering work in research niches, appropriate standards for research evaluation are especially important. The research office is now facilitating a faculty-wide working group in which researchers get the chance to contribute to the development of appropriate assessment criteria, according to the standards in their respective research fields. The pilot project further aims at facilitating exchange with other faculties as well as other research institutions within the CoARA.
Contact:
Faculty of Psychology – Research Office
Sigmund Freud Private University
research.psychology@sfu.ac.at
Research Profile | Faculty of Psychology