Science and society

INED has long worked to diffuse its research study findings to a broad audience, along with general scientific culture. The results of INED research studies and surveys are regularly used to attain a better understanding of society, develop public policies, inform social debates, and combat disinformation. 

The Institute addresses a wide public at many different levels and through many different channels, that include political decisionmakers, economic actors, professional and cultural institutions and bodies, journalists, teachers, secondary and higher education students, associations and advocacy groups, and, generally speaking, citizens. Its actions help initiate and develop constructive dialogues between science and society, particularly through Institute interactions with decisionmakers, actors from the economic, social, and cultural spheres, and citizens. INED’s “Annual Report” provides a detailed review of all of these activities.

INED works actively to make research as visible and useful a foundation for public policies. The Institute carefully monitors French lawmaking and regularly identifies studies to bring to the attention of the French government, members of parliament, administrative departments, and a wide range of authorities and bodies in charge of designing, funding, and supervising or monitoring public policies. The Institute keeps these groups informed of ongoing INED studies, new survey findings, the yearly INED analysis of France’s major demographic indicators as published in its journal, Population [in English under the title “Recent Demographic Trends in France”], and all of INED resources related to current social and policy issues. This in turn means that INED researchers are often called upon by high-level public institutions—the French Parliament, Council of State, general accounting office, ministries, and others—to inform them on a wide range of subjects. INED researchers are regularly cited in parliamentary texts and public reports and asked to participate in the scientific councils of institutions such as the Caisse Nationale de Solidarité pour l’Autonomie, the Caisse Nationale des Allocations Familiales, and the French National Platform for End-of-Life Research. INED has also developed close partnership ties with many public organizations, often in connection with our major surveys. 

INED works to diffuse and popularize its research studies for a non-scientific audience that encompasses many social actors: economic structures, professional and cultural organizations, associations and advocacy groups, citizens. Moreover, community associations are involved to varying degrees in an increasing number of our research projects. In some cases, associations are also included in research consortiums to provide a reflexive approach to the questions raised. Associations and advocacy groups also regularly play a role in diffusing study findings.

Moreover, INED has research partnerships with a range of private-sector actors, notably business companies, which participate in assessing the results of France’s occupational gender-equality policy.

INED also has strong relations with cultural actors. Major museum exhibitions organized by important French cultural institutions, including the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, the Palais de la Découverte, and the Muséum National de l’Histoire Naturelle, on themes as varied as demographic trends, love, and racism regularly drew on the findings of INED research surveys. And the Institute now has a partnership with the Musée national de l’histoire de l’immigration. And INED researchers regularly deliver talks and otherwise intervene at a wide range of events: public lectures, festivals, salons, and various annual general-public scientific events, such as the Fête de la Science, Rendez-vous de l’histoire de Blois.

Because INED research studies directly address the major issues exercising the contemporary world, they play an important role in informing and clarifying the debates that animate society. In compliance with its official missions, INED ensures that everyone has access to research findings through a dynamic communications policy and in some cases direct communication and training of media professionals, and by sharing new information, analysis, animated charts, maps, and games, teaching material, and a wide range of other resources on the INED website and social media accounts. Our brief “Question of the Day” texts, for example, are directly designed to combat certain prejudices, unfounded assumptions, and fake news material.

In fulfilling our mission to develop and diffuse the scientific method, INED is particularly attentive to young people. We regularly organize researcher talks for secondary education students. And since 2021, as part of our “Apprentice Researchers” program we have been hosting middle and high school students at the Institute as they carry out research projects with the help of our researchers. There is also the Fabstat project (Fabrique des Statistiques), which aims to develop young people’s familiarity and understanding of statistics and thereby to transmit a certain statistics culture by establishing a tool box for teachers that they can use to produce surveys with their students, from questionnaire design all the way to statistical analysis of the collected data. For students and their teachers, INED offers a website of educational resources that lists its content in relation to existing school programmes, by subject and level.