The effect of scientific evidence on conservation practitioners' management decisions.

A major justification of environmental management research is that it helps practitioners, yet previous studies show it is rarely used to inform their decisions. We tested whether conservation practitioners focusing on bird management were willing to use a synopsis of relevant scientific literature to inform their management decisions. This allowed us to examine whether the limited use of scientific information in management is due to a lack of access to the scientific literature or whether it is because practitioners are either not interested or unable to incorporate the research into their decisions. In on-line surveys, we asked 92 conservation managers, predominantly from Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, to provide opinions on 28 management techniques that could be applied to reduce predation on birds. We asked their opinions before and after giving them a summary of the literature about the interventions' effectiveness. We scored the overall effectiveness and certainty of evidence for each intervention through an expert elicitation process-the Delphi method. We used the effectiveness scores to assess the practitioners' level of understanding and awareness of the literature. On average, each survey participant changed their likelihood of using 45.7% of the interventions after reading the synopsis of the evidence. They were more likely to implement effective interventions and avoid ineffective actions, suggesting that their intended future management strategies may be more successful than current practice. More experienced practitioners were less likely to change their management practices than those with less experience, even though they were not more aware of the existing scientific information than less experienced practitioners. The practitioners' willingness to change their management choices when provided with summarized scientific evidence suggests that improved accessibility to scientific information would benefit conservation management outcomes.

Indicadores de uso del conocimiento científico para la evaluación de las publicaciones científicas seriadas de Ciencias Sociales y Humanísticas

El escenario de las nuevas tecnologías de la información y la comunicación han transformado los modos de evaluar la publicación científica. Variedad instrumentos e indicadores impactan en los procesos de evaluación. El objetivo de este trabajo es ofrecer una valoración de los procedimientos utilizados en base al uso del conocimiento. Se evidencia a necesidad de avanzar en cuanto a indicadores que combinen métricas cuantitativas con las cualitativas que reflejen los procesos de apropiación del conocimiento y el impacto social; denominadas métricas responsables, además de velar por la calidad de la gestión, y de políticas institucionales mesuradas que guían la valoración y evaluación de la actividad científica.

The scenario of new information and communication technologies has transformed the ways of evaluating scientific publication. Variety of instruments and indicators impact the evaluation processes. The objective of this work is to offer an assessment of the procedures used based on the use of knowledge. There is a need to advance in terms of indicators that combine quantitative metrics with qualitative ones that reflect the processes of knowledge appropriation and social impact; called responsible metrics, in addition to ensuring the quality of management, and measured institutional policies that guide the assessment and evaluation of scientific activity.

Capital social y uso del conocimiento en el sector salud: una revisión narrativa de la literatura / Social capital and use of the knowledge in the health sector: a narrative review of the literature

En el sector salud, las brechas entre la generación del conocimiento científico y su uso para la toma de decisiones comprometen la calidad de la atención brindada. Estas brechas se han relacionado con diferentes factores, entre ellos el capital social. Este trabajo explora el papel del capital social en el uso del conocimiento en el sector salud. Para hacerlo se recurrió a una revisión de la literatura de los últimos veinte años. Los hallazgos reportaron que las tres dimensiones del capital social, es decir, el capital estructural, el capital relacional y el capital cognitivo, se han relacionado teóricamente con la gestión y el uso del conocimiento y que el capital social se considera un predictor significativo de la práctica basada en evidencias. Se concluye que fomentar la confianza y los lazos de comunicación entre los empleados, así como buscar relaciones con investigadores, potencian el uso de las evidencias científicas en la toma de decisiones. Estas acciones se traducen en beneficios para los usuarios finales del sistema de salud(AU)

In the health sector, gaps persist between scientific knowledge´s production and its use for decision-making; and these gaps compromise the quality of provided care. These gaps have been related to different factors, including social capital. This paper explores the role of social capital in the use of knowledge in the health sector. To do so, a review of the literature of the last twenty years was conducted. Among the main findings, three dimensions of social capital (i.e. structural capital, relational capital and cognitive capital) have been theoretically related to knowledge use and management; and social capital is highlighted as a significant predictor of evidence-based practice. Encouraging trust and strengthening communication links among employees, as well as seeking relationships with researchers have the potential to foster scientific knowledge use in decision-making. These actions can be translated into benefits for final health system´s users(AU)