Strategies for utilizing research findings for policy, program design and practice in child and family social services: a synthesis of the literature

Although the potential value of research evidence is intuitive, research findings can fail to find their way into conversations and decisions about programs and practices. This paper synthesizes a growing literature on strategies for research utilization in child and family social services. It summarizes 10 strategies for maximizing the likelihood that research findings will be used to inform policy, program design and practice. With a strategic approach that also attends to the complexities inherent in this work, we remain optimistic that researchers can increase the likelihood that findings from research will inform policy, program design and practice.