Sweden's Research Facing a Challenge -- and Signalling a Message to Australia? (September 20, 2010)

 Sweden has just concluded its parliamentary elections and it appears probable that Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt will be leading a minority government.

Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt

Jan Haggstrom, chief economist at Handelsbanken says: "The government is in a strong position in terms of the budget. I think that is the most important thing when it comes to the reaction in the markets. We have such strong public finances in Sweden that it would take something really spectacular for people to start worrying ... and start selling Swedish government paper."

And with regard to Sweden's research and development investment, at 3.6% it's the highest in Europe relative to its GDP. Nevertheless a report issued by the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet) strikes a discordant note.

Its principal findings:

Interestingly while ranked sixth globally on mean citation rates, the report's findings are causing concern among the country's politicians because in comparison with Switzerland, the Netherlands and Denmark, nations viewed as cohorts, Sweden is falling behind. And according to Mats Benner at the Research Policy Institute at Lund University in southern Sweden: "Sweden has enjoyed a position as a scientific superpower in Europe, but the citation analysis challenges that. The great challenge for the next government is to understand why this is so, and to do something about it... There has been a lot of focus on inputs. Now politicians will be looking for delivery."

According to NatureNews: "Whatever is causing Sweden to lag behind its competitors, it isn't funding. The country's most recent science bill, published in 2008, increased universities' block research grants. It also introduced major new funding streams for strategic research areas selected by the government, such as nanotechnology and stem-cell research." And remarkably Sweden's universities had a combined budget surplus of 2 billion Swedish kronor (A$300 million) last year.

According to Mathias Uhlen, a leading microbiology professor based at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm the problem lies with a lack of support for large research groups: "The Swedish research council has chosen to support basic research through small grants, which split groups into small units. This does not promote highly cited, cutting-edge research," while Johan Rockström, executive director of the Stockholm Environment Institute -- which produces widely cited research in sustainability science -- told NatureNews: "Our young researchers collaborate with the best senior researchers in the world. That raises our standards."

Karl Tryggvason, a professor of medical chemistry at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm says that  in his view, many Swedish institutions, including Karolinska,   don't support excellence internally and he claims that his efforts to boost quality research were thwarted by a university leadership more focused on management than on research. "I don't think the universities are good enough at nurturing excellence. There is too much nepotism and wheeling and dealing. It's seen as a right to get promoted simply for providing long and faithful service."

And he is supported by Dr. Brenner: "This happens when on the one hand you increase expectations on researchers to deliver, while the people at management level are focused on meeting delivery targets rather than nurturing academic excellence," and goes on to make the point that Swedish universities will have to reform the way they encourage quality internally if the country is to improve its international ratings.

Finally, according to NatureNews Prime Minister Reinfeldt's coalition has already indicated that it has noted "Sweden's stagnating research performance as an issue it wants to address. In a position paper published in July, it proposes to increase the funding for 'wild card' researchers with bold ideas, and to create a programme offering dedicated support to promising young researchers". What isn't clear is how the sector is going to deal with its bureausaurs.