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Executive Summary
Pages 1-6

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From page 1...
... We considered decision-making strategies that could address the sponsor's concerns, along with other legitimate science policy concerns about the quality and rationality of the decision process, the accountability of decision making, and the appropriate balance of influence between scientific communities and agency science managers. Our recommendations are addressed to BSR, but we think the decision strategy we propose is appropriate for a wider range of federal science agencies within and beyond the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
From page 2...
... Both extramural research scientists and institute program managers should be involved in assessing the progress and potential of the research fields supported by the BSR Program. Both sets of contributors to priority-setting decisions bring valuable knowledge and insights to the process, as well as different, complementary perspectives.
From page 3...
... These efforts should explicitly assess and compare the past and potential contributions of research in each area receiving major BSR support with regard to each of BSR's goals for scientific outcome and societal impact and with respect to the various inputs and processes that contribute to achieving the goals. These assessments should also be conducted approximately every four years.
From page 4...
... It might include historical analyses of the evolution of scientific fields; advanced bibliometric analyses of the development of research fields over time and the flows of influence among them; studies of the effects of the structure of research fields on their progress; studies of the roles of officials in science agencies in scientific progress; studies of how expert advisory groups, including study sections and advisory councils, make decisions affecting scientific progress; and studies of the effects of the organization of such groups on their success at promoting interdisciplinary and problem-focused scientific activity and ultimately at improving scientific outcomes and societal impacts. In the case of BSR, the research should focus on progress in fields of behavioral and social science related to aging.
From page 5...
... It should include studies that apply techniques for structuring deliberation to the research priority-setting tasks facing BSR; studies of trials in which review and advisory panels are instructed or trained to focus their deliberations on how each research field might contribute to specified program objectives or goals, including both those related to scientific quality and to mission relevance; studies of attempts to adapt the NIH Consensus Development Conference model to research priority setting; studies comparing advisory panels of different composition; and studies of the effects of instruction and training of advisory panel members to consider the full range of BSR and NIA objectives.


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