TITLE:
Ease of Doing Research towards R&D, Technological Advancement and Global Development: From a Conceptual Framework to an Instrument for Reliable Indices
AUTHORS:
Joshua Oladele Owolabi
KEYWORDS:
Ease of Doing Research, Governance, Ecosystem, Research Infrastructure, Scholarship Leadership, Funding, Resourcefulness, Research Policy, National Development, R&D
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.14 No.5,
May
12,
2026
ABSTRACT: Research output and its translation into development remain profoundly unequal across global contexts, with researchers in resource-constrained environments persistently disadvantaged not merely by differences in individual capacity but by systemic disparities in the conditions under which research is conducted. Despite extensive documentation of these disparities, no universally applicable, multi-dimensional framework has been developed to measure and compare the conditions that enable or constrain research productivity across institutions and nations. This conceptual article introduces the Ease of Doing Research (EDR) as a practical framework for systematically assessing the research environment and its contributions to research output and impact. Drawing on analogous logic to the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index, the EDR framework proposes three primary, interconnected domains: Governance (encompassing research leadership, policies, regulations, and controlling forces), Ecosystem (comprising the research environment, context and culture, and incentives), and Resourcefulness and Resources (covering human capacity, funding, and infrastructure). The framework further identifies overlapping zones between these domains, recognising that research productivity is determined not only by the discrete quality of each domain but also by the dynamic interactions among them. The EDR is presented as a foremost framework on this subject, with significant implications for research policy, equity in scholarship, and the advancement of national development through science and technology.