Dutch assessments to centre on quality

The Dutch government is to focus on the quality of science rather than quantity of output in future research evaluation, according to its Standard Evaluation Protocol 2015-2021.

The protocol, released on 21 March by the country’s research ministry, does not include “productivity” as a separate evaluation criterion, as did previous versions. Instead, the guidelines highlight the social relevance of research and good scientific conduct as important factors to determine the quality of research at Dutch universities and the country’s two research councils.

“More is not necessarily better,” said research minister Jet Bussemaker. “Good science results from curiosity about how and why things are the way they are. Productivity and speed may not be the leading factors in this.”