Josie Coburnمشاهده پروفایل
پژوهشگر ارشد
Dr. Josie Coburn is a Research Fellow at the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) within the University of Sussex Business School. With an interdisciplinary background spanning science and technology policy, sociology of science, and information systems, she contributes significantly to understanding how scientific research is funded, organized, evaluated, and directed toward societal needs across multiple domains including health and biomedicine, energy and sustainability, and AI and ICTs. Her educational journey at the University of Sussex includes a PhD in Science and Technology Policy Studies (2018-2024), an MSc in Public Policies for Science, Technology and Innovation (2006-2007), an MSc in Evolutionary and Adaptive Systems (2003-2004), and a BA in Artificial Intelligence (1998-2001). Prior to her academic career, she accumulated four years of professional experience as an Analyst Programmer and Systems Analyst in ICT firms, providing practical industry perspective to her academic work. Dr. Coburn's research portfolio centers on metascience (the science of science), examining research directionality, evolution, and the dynamics of how research changes course through mechanisms like serendipity and failures. She is particularly recognized for her expertise in Multicriteria Mapping (MCM), a hybrid quantitative-qualitative methodology she regularly teaches and applies to open up complex decision-making processes in science, technology, and innovation policy. Her current projects include the ERC-funded JustWind4All initiative appraising sustainable and just wind energy implementation, and a UKRI Metascience Unit project assessing novelty in research. Previous significant work includes the ERC-funded SIRI project on serendipity in research, an EBNet project examining environmental biotechnology from social science perspectives, and a multi-country study on diagnostics for antimicrobial resistance. Her publication record demonstrates consistent contributions to high-impact journals in science policy, with recurring themes of research targeting, knowledge spillovers, and evaluation methodologies. The most recent work shows increasing focus on practical applications of metascience to pressing societal challenges in energy transition and health innovation. As an educator, Dr. Coburn has served as an Associate Tutor at SPRU since 2012, teaching Information Systems (2012-2014) and Multicriteria Mapping in various courses since 2017. She has provided specialized MCM training to policy practitioners and researchers, and serves as a reviewer for leading journals including Research Policy and Social Science and Medicine. Her professional engagement includes regular participation in the Eu-SPRI conference series and other scholarly activities that bridge academic research with policy application.





