In this commentary I explain why research institutions are neither doing science communication nor developing ‘public’ relations in the proper sense. Their activities are rather a mix of different things, serving various purposes and targets. However, dealing with PCST, their main responsibilities [should] include: promoting genuine communication and dialogue, being open and accessible to the public, providing high quality scientific information, ensuring good internal communication and educating their scientific staff.
Scientific institutions have for a long time known the importance of framing and owning stories about science They also know the effective way of communicating science in a press release This is part of the institution’s public relations. Enhanced competition among research institutions has led to a buildup of communicative competences and professionalization of public relations inside the institutions and the press release has become an integrated part of science communication from these institutions. Changing working conditions in the media, where fewer people have to publish more, have made
Antibiotic resistance is an increasing global threat involving many actors, including the general public. We present findings from a content analysis of the coverage of antibiotic resistance in the Swedish print media with respect to the risk communication factors cause, magnitude and countermeasures. The most commonly reported cause of development and spread of resistance was unnecessary prescription of antibiotics. Risk magnitudes were mostly reported qualitatively rather than using quantitative figures. Risk-reduction measures were analyzed using a framework that distinguishes between
The study investigated the extent to which transmission and cognition, the first two stages in the research use process, are accomplished for winemakers. “Transmission-cognition” was operationalized as the frequency of engagement with information sources considered to be carriers of scientific research. The study also investigated the prominence of four types of research use among winemakers (conceptual, symbolic, instrumental and persuasive) together with their inter-relationship. Conceptual use of scientific information was reported by 90% of winemakers and is a precursor to the other types
This white paper discusses how out-of-school providers can inspire more underrepresented youth to become the innovators and problem-solvers of tomorrow. Boys & Girls Clubs of America convened key stakeholders from higher education, government, corporations and nonprofit organizations at the STEM Great Think, the first national thought leadership forum to combine innovation and creativity with STEM programming in the out-of-school time environment. The purpose of the STEM Great Think was to develop a plan for establishing strategic partnerships that advance STEM education during out-of-school
This dissertation focuses on an integral aspect of public opinion formation — individual selectivity of information. Principally, I seek answers about why individuals opt for certain media. Broadly, my research is guided by the following question: How do communication contexts and individual traits contribute to and motivate individuals’ selectivity? Though there have been many studies on the phenomenon of selective exposure in political science and political communication, my research is conducted in the context of a scientific issue. There is relatively little clear empirical data
Despite new governmental initiatives aiming to engage the general public in policymaking related to nuclear energy, little is known about how expert stakeholders involved in the decision-making process perceive such activity. This study examines how a series of social, cognitive and communication factors influences expert stakeholders’ attitudes toward public participation in policy decisions related to nuclear energy. Specifically, using data from a survey of 557 experts identified through content analyses of public meeting records, we find that among those perceiving public opinion as being
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Nan LiLeona Yi-Fan SuXuan LiangDominique BrossardDietram Scheufele
Scientific debates in modern societies often blur the lines between the science that is being debated and the political, moral, and legal implications that come with its societal applications. This manuscript traces the origins of this phenomenon to professional norms within the scientific discipline and to the nature and complexities of modern science and offers an expanded model of science communication that takes into account the political contexts in which science communication takes place. In a second step, it explores what we know from empirical work in political communication, public
Large-scale assessments like PISA are highly influential in policymaking, but they don’t tell us anything about the nature of student learning underpinning the scores. In this study, an additional instrument was administered to students in Finland, Germany, and Switzerland. Finnish students, who score higher on PISA, also scored higher on the second assessment. Findings suggest that Finnish students may have developed more complex knowledge bases in science.