About the origin of the term "Realexperiment"
Real-world experiments are the essential research instrument and methodological core of Real-World Laboratories (Schneidewind 2014b: 2; De Flander et al. 2014: 285; Wagner, Grunwald 2015: 27; WBGU 2016: 456). Unlike the controlled and reproducible experiments carried out in a laboratory setting, real-world experiments performed in a Real-World Laboratory directly intervene in real-world problem contexts, whereby potential approaches to a solution are negotiated jointly and on an equal footing by the various stakeholders and tested experimentally. "The concept of real-world experimentation is based on the assumption that one can know a relatively large amount about what one does not know, and that trial and error is the most effective way to self correct and make progress" (Gross et al. 2005: 12). At the same time, real-world experiments serve as a means of applying existing knowledge and generating new knowledge, and move between controlled and situation-specific boundary conditions during their implementation (cf. Schneidewind, Scheck 2013: 241). In other words, it is all about "scientifically monitored actions or interventions" (Alcántara et al. 2017: 26) or alternative experimental settings based on everyday life and designed to identify more sustainable alternatives. Their purpose is to cause changes in people's perceptions and routines.
When conducting experiments under conditions of uncertainty, experimental trial and error during a real-world experiment limited by time and space can be an effective way to proceed. Real-world experiments involving the use of innovative technologies, infrastructures or new lifestyles can fail and are allowed to do so. Rather than being about the mere legitimation and acceptance of those involved and those affected, it is about active participation and controversy (cf. Best, Roose 2014:3).
"Everyone has some idea of how the world works and what we ought to be doing to make it a bit better. Real -World Laboratories bring people together from different backgrounds and life phases: university researchers and students meet with members of the public and political and administrative decision-makers. All of them introduce their ideas of a desirable future, of cause-and-effect relationships, and of the changes needed. Real-world experiments and vision workshops provide a forum for these ideas, allowing for the presentation of unconventional solutions, and an egalitarian exchange of ideas."
Impact of the real-world experiments
Real-world experiments explore and test sustainable approaches to solutions with the aim of activating transformation processes within specific contexts of local problems. How a real-world experiment can proceed -> Die Kultur des Experimentierens 2017:25. How can the impact of these interventions be measured and described? It is extremely difficult to record and evaluate the effects, i.e., the observed changes, in a differentiated manner. However, these are important if we are to understand the potentials, but also the limitations, of experimentation and thus of the Real-World Laboratory approach. Research in this area is still developing, and various models have been put forward, especially in relation to analyzing societal-transformative effects and effects relating to socio-spatial impacts (Lüderitz et al. 2017; Bergmann et al. 2017; Stelzer et al. 2018 ;Lux et al. 2020; Lam et al.. 2021; von Wirth et al. 2019; von Wirth, Levin-Keithel 2020).
What we do know is thatreal-world experiments can haveshort- to long-term effects at multiple levels both intended and unintended. "The focus is on ensuringthat the intended change deliversa benefit in terms of sustainability and has no harmful side effects."(Die Kultur des Experimentierens 2017:26). From the conception stage to potential permanence, real-world experiments are guided by criteria that are relevant in terms of describing and evaluating them from both a scientific and a practitioner's perspective (Kuhn et al. 2018:60, for a discussion on integration see Lam et. 2021).