Conclusions: Towards a Better Understanding of the Public Value of Arts and Humanities Research

Abstract

We cannot give a final answer to defining “the public value of arts & humanities research”. Our contribution comes by firstly offering a better definition, of knowledge circulating in networks creating societal capacity, but also identifying where more research is necessary to better ground this definition. Current policy debates are hemmed in by their instrumentalism and economic reductionism, reducing research management practices to evaluation compliance practices, and missing out the manifold ways in which publics themselves actively engage with arts and humanities research. From this, we turn to the wider question of how do publics value all kinds of scientific research, and highlight three findings more generally applicable: the role of the academic as expert, the use of grey literature and reconsidering barriers of expertise.