Construction of knowledge-based indicators for Science and Technology Sector in the Vision Document of the Islamic Republic of Iran

According the Vision Document of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the country should rank first from the point of view of production of knowledge in the region. In order to construct relevant indicators, the paper has followed a six-step approach. In the first step 2100 science, cultural and financial indicators have been collected. In the second step 1178 relevant indicators have been selected. In the third step, the indicators were grouped into 20 categories to enable us to select 313 indicators in the fourth step. In the fifth step a total of 40 knowledge-related indicators of the highest importance have been chosen to enable us to rank them in the sixth step. The selected knowledge-based indicators were grouped into three categories of knowledgeable persons, knowledgeable organizations, and knowledgeable societies. The findings of the study may well be used in a wide area related to knowledge-based activities and plans.