Information for researchers

Our online resource to support researchers interested in public involvement in research is now  available. It contains our briefing notes for researchers with practical information on how to involve members of the public in research.

The ten Briefing notes cover:

• Introduction
• What is public involvement in research?
• Why involve members of the public in research?
• Why members of the public get involved in research
• How to involve members of the public in research
• Who should I involve and how do I find people?
• Approaches to public involvement in research
• Ways that people can be involved in the research cycle
• What to do if things go wrong
• Where to go for further information

Public involvement in research sits in a changing and evolving environment. There is now a greater commitment to the importance and contribution public involvement can make to research and there are far more organisations and individuals supporting public involvement. There are also many more researchers and research commissioners working alongside the public for the first time. We have restructured some of our thinking about the framework for public involvement in research. In the past we have used the terms consultation, collaboration and user controlled to describe different levels of involving people in research. Over time it has become clear that in practice researchers can use a combination of these three and it is more helpful to describe them as approaches rather than levels.