In the last decade, there has been renewed interest in how policy makers in various fields use research in their decision making. Researchers wonder why some research ends up being influential in policy making while other research does not. Funders want to find ways that their investment in research can be more influential. And, with the recent move
toward evidence-based policy making in many countries, advocates argue that policy makers should be using the best information available to inform consequential decisions, especially when it affects children and youth.Â
In this talk, I discuss what we know as a field about the ways in which research informs policy making. Rather than taking a normative stance, I discuss the nature of decision making in public agencies and the ways in which research enters into these practices. I illustrate the discussion with evidence from my current study of decision making related to
mathematics instruction in three large urban school districts in the United States. I discuss implications for researchers, paying particular attention to new ways of conceptualizing the relationship between researchers and policy makers.