Who is the user?

Since the 1993 white paper on science and technology, Realising Our Potential, the UK research councils have placed increasing emphasis on user engagement. Moreover researchers are encouraged to involve research users before, during and after the research process (ESRC Strategic Plan 2009-14).  Research users are therefore diverse, and there are costs of engagement (in terms of time as well as resources) associated with individuals and organisations engaging in the research process. Who actually qualifies as a research user, however, is not a simple question. This workshop will explore some of its parameters in depth and from the perspectives of leading academics, a research council and research users drawn from the voluntary and public sectors.  The workshop will be of interest to a wide range of professional groups including academics, policy makers, manufacturers and designers, all those involved in the provision of services and, of course,  older people, who have the biggest stake in ageing research.

Please click for the workshop programme.

Please follow the links for presentations:

Professor Irene Hardill - Personal reflections on the challenges of user lead research

Professor Chris Caswill - Engagement, benefit and exchange: variations on the theme of research use

Wendy Olphert - Capturing user requirements

Dr Guy Dewsbury - Person into the provision: a service provider’s perspective on using research

Professor James Goodwin - A third sector user’s perspective