Whilst citation based (bibliometric) indicators can provide measures of research impact in the academic context (e.g. for the purposes of promotion, progression etc) it is also important to recognise the importance of your research impact on wider society (social or societal impact). The Higher Education Funding Council for England defines such social impact as “an effect on, change or benefit to the economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, the environment or quality of life, beyond academia”.
Strategies for purely maximising citations include, for example, publishing in highly ranked journals. However strategies exist for maximising “the contribution that research makes to the economy, society, environment or culture, beyond the contribution to academic research.”* also exist and will be the focus of this guide.
*Australian Research Council