What is Societal Impact

Higher education performance assessment systems are under scrutiny as they are viewed as driving scholarship away from its fundamental purpose which is to recognize and reward scholarship that addresses the questions that matter most to society. This is further perpetuated by university rankings which might be good for the university's image but not for scholarship and involved researchers. Performance assessment indicators used by higher education institutions need to measure impact validly and reliably in different parts of society. A challenge to institutions and funders is to develop a methodology that can enhance quality control and research management and policy on top of equity rather than further exposing marginalized groups to epistemic injustices in these traditional systems. Hence the purpose of this study, which draws from a doctoral study on research impact assessment, is to explore how higher education institutions can use performance assessment to drive research impact in the global South.