Research culture: practical initiatives for measurement and improvement
Research culture: practical initiatives for measurement and improvement
Wednesday 25 June 2025 10-11AM BST
In this webinar, speakers explored what a ‘good’ research culture looks like – and discussed how it can be meaningfully measured to support ongoing improvement without adding unnecessary burden or bureaucracy.
Assessing research culture in a practical and responsible way
In this presentation, Dr Elizabeth Gadd examined how research culture can be assessed in ways that are practical, proportionate, and aligned with institutional values. She highlighted the negative impact of over-assessment and metrics-driven evaluation on research culture, arguing that what we choose to measure – and how we measure it – shapes behaviour across the sector. Dr Gadd outlined common pitfalls in assessment reform, such as failing to reweight traditional metrics or over-relying on incentives. She then introduced the INORMS SCOPE Framework, a simple, flexible tool for designing responsible research assessments, and shared case studies from UK universities already using it to support cultural change.
Attendees learned about:
- How traditional assessment practices can harm research culture by overemphasising metrics like publication count and grant income.
- Why aligning assessment criteria with institutional values is critical—and why not everything needs to be incentivised.
- The importance of disincentivising harmful behaviours, not just rewarding good ones.
- The INORMS SCOPE Framework and how it can support more responsible, values-led assessment.
- UK case studies where SCOPE has helped institutions track and improve research culture.
About the speaker
Dr Elizabeth (Lizzie) Gadd is Head of Research Culture & Assessment at Loughborough University. She chairs INORMS’ Research Evaluation Group, is Vice Chair of CoARA, and co-authored the UKRI report Harnessing the Metric Tide. Lizzie founded the LIS-Bibliometrics Forum and The Bibliomagician Blog, and won the 2020 INORMS Award for Excellence in Research Management and Leadership.
📄You can access a PDF version of this presentation here.
Improving research culture: what works?
In this presentation, Professor Catherine Davies reflected on four years as institutional lead for research culture at the University of Leeds. Drawing on practical experience and sector-level involvement, she outlined the strategies and structures that have enabled meaningful progress. Emphasising a community-led approach, Professor Davies described how Leeds built a distributed network of ambassadors, invested in grassroots projects, and embedded research culture across institutional strategies. She also shared challenges, including managing expectations, avoiding unnecessary burden, and sustaining momentum in a large, complex organisation.
Attendees learned about:
- How Leeds developed a community-led model for research culture, balancing top-down support with grassroots ownership.
- The importance of practical enablers: dedicated teams, dual leadership (academic/professional services), aligned strategies, and flexible funding.
- Why clear boundaries and a written strategy helped define focus and manage competing demands.
- Challenges such as short-term funding, survey fatigue, and misconceptions about research culture vs. research quality.
- How embedding research culture in existing initiatives (e.g. EDI, open research, REF) and using a meta-scientific, data-informed approach supported lasting change.
About the speaker
Prof Catherine Davies is Dean for Research Culture at the University of Leeds, leading efforts to build an inclusive and integrity-driven research environment. In 2024/25, she is on partial secondment with Wellcome, providing insights on the funding environment to inform sector-wide research strategy. Her research focuses on children’s language development, particularly the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns, with collaborations across government and practice to inform policy.
📄You can access a PDF version of this presentation here.
About UKRIO Expert webinars:
UKRIO hosts multiple free, public webinars throughout the year where experts explore emerging challenges in research integrity and share practical advice. These events are great opportunities for researchers, students, administrators, and other research stakeholders to stay informed on developing topics in research integrity and learn new skills to improve their work.