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Date of this Version

11-17-2014

Document Type

Article

Citation

Lawrence, A., Houghton, J., Thomas, J. & Weldon, P. 2014, Where is the evidence?: realising the value of grey literature for public policy and practice, Swinburne Institute for Social Research, Melbourne, Australia.

Also available at http://apo.org.au/research/where-evidence-realising-value-grey-literature-public-policy-and-practice.

This publication was reviewed by members of the Grey Literature Strategies Advisory Group. Details are available here: http://greylitstrategies.info/about/advisory-group.

Comments

Copyright 2014, the authors. Open access material. License: CC-BY.

Abstract

The internet has profoundly changed how we produce, use and collect research and information for public policy and practice, with grey literature playing an increasingly important role. The authors argue that grey literature (i.e. material produced and published by organisations without recourse to the commercial or scholarly publishing industry) is a key part of the evidence produced and used for public policy and practice. Through surveys of users, producing organisations and collecting services a detailed picture is provided of the importance and economic value of grey literature. However, finding and accessing policy information is a time-consuming task made harder by poor production and management of resources and a lack of large-scale collection services able to host and make available relevant, high-quality resources quickly and efficiently. The paper makes recommendations for changes that would maximise the benefits of grey literature in the public interest and seeks feedback from readers to inform the final report of the research project.

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