Bridging Research and Policy: Insights from 50 Case Studies

This paper is a comparative analysis of 50 case studies collected during the first phase of the Global Development Network Bridging Research and Policy project. The 50 cases represent a range of evidence and experience about research–policy links from around the world. A few cases describe situations where research had an immediate and direct impact on policy, although in most cases the impact was less direct and took some time, requiring strenuous advocacy efforts. The cases also illustrate different types of policy impact. Some resulted in clear changes in public policy, others in changes in policy implementation; in a few cases, action research caused substantial change on the ground but little change in public policy. The paper addresses the question of why some ideas that circulate in the research and policy arenas are picked up and acted on, while others are not.