This article provides an overview to the Forum on the Public Value of Arts and Humanities Research which follows it. The author argues that the current gloom in the arts and humanities as a result of the increasing pressure for societal utility does not recognise the complete picture. A growing number of scholars are seeking to understand how the social life of arts and humanities knowledge operates and how it flows into and has impact on society. Seven articles provide a variety of insights into understanding and mapping this ‘social life of knowledge’, and provide a glimmer of hope for a set of disciplines undergoing a painful period of self-reflection.
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