Grants Peer Review in Theory and Practice

Abstract

Grants peer review is a family of ex ante methods used by federal agencies to select research proposalsforfunding. This article draws on Chubin and Hackett's 1990 book, Peerless Science: Peer Review and U.S. Science Policy, to examine both the assumptions and theory underlying peer review as an evaluation methodology and the issues that arise in the operation of peer-based systems at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The article discusses criticisms of peer review, the various criteria that agencies must balance in interpreting evaluations of expert peers, and outstanding issues to be addressed in the refinement and reform of peer review systems. The article concludes with suggestions on how to redress the shortcomings of peer review in decision making, especially the allocation of scarce public monies.