Table 1

Facilitators and barriers to use of research by policy makers, identified in a systematic review of 24 interview studies (tabulation of data provided by Innvaer et al, 2002⁵)

Facilitators	Number of studies
Personal contact between scientists and policy makers	13
Timeliness and relevance of the research	13
Research that includes a summary with clear recommendations	11
Research that confirms current policy or endorses self interest	6
Good quality research	6
Community pressure or client demand for research	4
Inclusion of effectiveness data	3
Total studies	24
Barriers	Number of studies
Absence of personal contact between scientists and policy makers	11
Lack of timeliness and relevance of research	9
Mutual mistrust between scientists and policy makers	8
Power and budget struggles	7
Poor quality of research	6
Political instability or high turnover of policy making staff	5
Total studies	24