Speaker
Description
Unlike studies on the impact of Open Access on citations or library budgets, the number of studies on OA's impact on society is relatively very small. Arguments about the societal benefits of OA are very common in OA mandates and policies as well as in advocacy materials, though with little evidence to back them up. This session aims to give an overview of 30+ research papers and reports that tried to investigate this issue using different approaches and research methods. With insight from these studies, a framework was developed to classify the different types of impact OA can have on society. This framework also aims to provide guidance for future research efforts in this direction. While it can be argued that once universal OA is achieved (for academia) it will be open to the rest of society, knowledge of who the beneficiaries are is still important. It will help in identifying target groups for more efficient advocacy and inform the ongoing debate on who should bear the cost of transition.
