Research performance can be assessed along a number of different dimensions. In this article, we explore the notion of the multi-dimensional research assessment matrix, which was introduced in a report published in 2010 by an Expert Group on the Assessment of University-Based Research (AUBR), installed by the European Commission. Figure 1 presents a part of this matrix.

Research assessment is a complicated business. To design a practical, informative process requires making decisions about which methodology should be used, which indicators calculated, and which data collected. These decisions in turn reflect answers to a number of questions about the scope and purpose of the research assessment process in hand. A thorough exploration of many of these questions has been presented in Moed (2005).


Table 1 — The multi-dimensional research assessment matrix. This table presents a core part of the matrix, not the entire matrix. It aims to illustrate what the matrix looks like. It should be read column-wise: each column represents a different dimension. See AUBR (2010) for more information.

What, how, and why?
A fundamental question is the unit of the assessment: is it a country, institution, research group, individual, research field or an international network? Another basic question revolves around the purpose of the assessment: is it to inform the allocation of research funding, to improve performance, or to increase regional engagement? Then there are questions about which output dimensions should be considered: scholarly impact, innovation and social benefit, or sustainability?

The matrix distinguishes four assessment methodologies: i) peer review, which provides a judgment based on expert knowledge; ii) end-user reviews, such as customer satisfaction; iii) quantitative indicators, including bibliometric and other types of measures; and iv) self evaluation. These four methodologies can be — and often are — combined into a multi-dimensional assessment. ...


May 2011 / Henk Moed and Andrew Plume

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