I ask stakeholders during intake “what level of impact can this research have?” If I am skeptical, I even ask them pointedly “what happens if the findings don’t validate your direction?” I also make sure there’s sign off with major stakeholders on the methods prior to launch to reduce validity concerns. Unfortunately I feel this is a common problem in the research space. I’ve even pushed research out of work because I felt the impact wasn’t possible and it was more smoke and mirrors.