The Issue Map on Research Assessment in the Humanities and Social Sciences

Abstract

A series of initiatives for reforming research assessment mainly in the U.S. and Europe have developed into an agreement and coalition under the overarching concept of "Responsible Research Assessment". In Japan, although the number of signatories to DORA has recently increased and the awareness of reforming research assessment is growing, it is still limited.

The Japan Inter-institutional Network for Social Science, Humanities, and Arts (JINSHA) has been discussing the appropriate assessment of Humanities and Social Sciences research. Keenly aware of the need to share the issues comprehensively with different stakeholders without repeating the same arguments, JINSHA created "the Issue Map" that organizes and visualizes the existing issues.

This paper discusses the positioning and significance of the "map", and attempts to re-organize the issues regarding social impact assessment. The paper then looks ahead to the future discussions on reforming research assessment, and how the updated "map" could contribute to it.