Iranian Specialists Study Role of Research Surveys in Turning Knowledge into Policy

Fatemeh Javaheri (an Associate Professor of Sociology at Khaarzmi University) pointed out in an article entitled ‘Usability of Iran's National Surveys’ that despite having material and human resources, lofty goals and good policies, the ability of many governments to realize their wishes, i.e. creating a framework for action and adjusting the environment accordingly is limited, and they are unable to use new knowledge to reduce social problems and progress and develop the society.

In this research, it is stated that in the current situation of Iran, the difference in the intellectual authority of executive agents, the difference in the intellectual authority of researchers and managers, the lack of independence of action and the serious determination of managers, lack of trust in the accuracy of scientific data, the pressure of influential groups and a variety of ideological and political considerations, lack of intra-organizational and inter-organizational coordination, the existence of various structural dualities do not allow the knowledge obtained from scientific research to enter the managers' agenda.

Another point in this research is that usually certain parts of the executive bodies, like the research departments of the ministries, request to conduct research, but the main core of the governing institutions acts based on other bases for decision making.

It added that the problem of developing countries is that they take the best instances and policy procedures from the world of advanced countries and want to implement them in a different world where organizational, human and political preparations are not available.

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