Could you tell us a little bit about your background?
I have a BA in product design and an MA in entrepreneurship and innovation. After I completed my Master’s degree in 2013, I began working in the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research. I started in the Department of Research and stayed for almost five years until a reorganization in 2018 moved me to the Section for Policy Analysis. I have gained experience from a wide range of tasks and political processes throughout the years in the Ministry.
In late 2016, I began my Ph.D. – in many ways – as part of my work in the Ministry. The project is funded through the Public Sector Ph.D. scheme in the Research Council of Norway, and I have worked 25% in the ministry while conducting my Ph.D. project the remaining time. Three children have extended my project period, but I am now – unbelievably – approaching the finish line.
What is your Ph.D. project about?
My project concerns the use of research in policy, and I specifically study how civil servants use research in their daily tasks. In addition to one literature review—looking at conditions found to influence the use of research in policy—I apply both quantitative and qualitative methods to investigate research use practices among civil servants.
You are working for the Norwegian Ministry of Education. How has your professional background influenced the focus of your Ph.D. project?
My background as a civil servant gave me initial insights, personal experience, and questions related to research use in practice. Concretely, it shaped the focus of my project because early on, I had an impression that research use in the ministry was (too) often random, ad hoc, and the result of individual civil servants with a personal commitment and curiosity. I wanted to understand whether this lack of systematic use was just a first impression and how individual practices worked together as a whole.
You are in the final stages of writing up your Ph.D. thesis. What are some of the main findings from your research?
I find that research use in practice is closely linked to the tasks conducted by civil servants. Tasks may be considered a priority of time, and it takes a lot of time to access, assess, and apply research to policy documents and advice. I also find that individual civil servants have unique and often unspoken habits and tacit knowledge related to where they search for and how they assess research. Still, the cyclical nature of tasks – or policy documents – and research integration into these creates a system where different individual practices merge. Meaning, I find a system hidden beneath the elements visible at first glance.