Assessing federally-supported academic research in the United States

Academic research in the USA receives most of its support through federal research agencies like the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, Assessment of the outcomes of the funding provided by these agencies is a complicated task, but one that is now required by accountability legislation that is just going into effect. Various new audiences for assessment are asking for different, sometimes contradictory, measures of effectiveness, Research managers can cope with the complexity of qualitative reporting, but simpler indicators may be necessary to reach the broader audiences that are now entering the assessment process.