The FWF is Austria’s central funding body for the promotion of basic research and aims to strengthen the country’s science and research performance through supporting excellent research and optimal conditions for excellence. The SFB programme aims to strengthen Austria as a location for high-level scientific research and enhance the competitiveness of the country’s innovation system by supporting the establishment of sustainable, extremely productive and internationally visible research units, which are generally multidisciplinary/interdisciplinary and supporting these institutions in developing strategic focus areas in their research profiles.
Against the background of objectives and funded networks, the evaluation of the SFB addresses the following evaluation dimensions:
- The Support of outstanding research in Austria
- Enhancement of human resources and increased gender balance
- Achievement of broader effects on the Austrian science and research landscape
- Effectiveness and Efficiency of programme implementation
- Coherence of the SFB programme with overarching objectives
For answering the evaluation questions AIT applies a mixed methods approach comprising 1) a portfolio analysis of projects, 2) bibliometric analysis (in collaboration with KU Leuven), 3) control group and counterfactual analysis, as well as 4) interviews, 5) focus groups and 6) a survey.
Key Words: Evaluation, Research Policy
Start: 01/2019
Duration: 12 months
Funded by: The Austrian Science Fund
Contact: Michael Dinges
