Opening the Black Box: The Social Outcomes of Scientific Research

Society is increasingly asking federally funded science to demonstrate its returns on investment. This has spawned an emerging science of science and innovation policy community that seeks predictive knowledge to allow policymakers to more effectively steer the course of science toward social goals. This is a laudable effort, but it is making a "black box" out of the inevitable value judgments entailed in quantifying outcomes. A better approach would be to open the black box by engaging in fundamental inquiry about the good we hope science will deliver. But this may be a utopian project.