Science and technology are embedded in virtually every aspect of modern life. As a result, people face an increasing need to integrate information from science with their personal values and other considerations as they make important life decisions about medical care, the safety of foods, what to do about climate change, and many other issues. Communicating science effectively, however, is a complex task and an acquired skill. Moreover, the approaches to communicating science that will be most effective for specific audiences and circumstances are not obvious. Fortunately, there is an expanding science base from diverse disciplines that can support science communicators in making these determinations.

Communicating Science Effectively offers a research agenda for science communicators and researchers seeking to apply this research and fill gaps in knowledge about how to communicate effectively about science, focusing in particular on issues that are contentious in the public sphere. To inform this research agenda, this publication identifies important influences—psychological, economic, political, social, cultural, and media-related—on how science related to such issues is understood, perceived, and used.

Contents

• The National Academies of SCIENCES • ENGINEERING • MEDICINE
• COMMITTEE ON THE SCIENCE OF SCIENCE COMMUNICATION: A RESEARCH AGENDA
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Summary
  • CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES
  • MAJOR CHALLENGES FOR RESEARCH AND PRACTICE IN SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
  • GENERAL CONCEPTUAL AND METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES
  • A FINAL WORD
• 1. Using Science to Improve Science Communication
  • PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THIS STUDY
  • THE DIVERSITY OF SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS AND THEIR GOALS
  • THE SIMPLE—AND FALSE—MODEL OF SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
  • ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
• 2. The Complexities of Communicating Science
  • VARYING NEEDS FOR AND RESPONSES TO SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION
  • THE NEED FOR FORMAL PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT
  • CHALLENGES POSED BY SCIENTIFIC CONTENT
  • KEY INDIVIDUAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL FACTORS: DIFFERENT AUDIENCES, DIFFERENT NEEDS
  • SOCIAL INFLUENCES ON HOW PEOPLE INTERPRET SCIENCE
  • PRESENTING INFORMATION IN DIFFERENT FORMS
  • THE SPECIAL CASE OF POLICY MAKER AUDIENCES
  • TRUST AND CREDIBILITY OF SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
  • APPLYING THE LESSONS OF LARGE-SCALE SCIENCE COMMUNICATION EFFORTS
• 3. The Nature of Science-Related Public Controversies
  • THE ORIGINS AND DYNAMICS OF SCIENCE-RELATED CONTROVERSIES
  • CONFLICTS OVER BELIEFS, VALUES, AND INTERESTS
  • PERCEPTIONS OF UNCERTAINTY
  • AMPLIFIED VOICES OF ORGANIZED INTERESTS AND INFLUENTIAL INDIVIDUALS
• 4. Communicating Science in a Complex, Competitive Communication Environment
  • TRENDS IN THE COMMUNICATION OF SCIENCE NEWS
  • HOW JOURNALISTIC DECISIONS AFFECT SCIENCE COVERAGE AND AUDIENCES
  • EMERGING RESEARCH ON USE OF THE INTERNET AS A SOURCE OF SCIENCE NEWS
• 5. Building the Knowledge Base for Effective Science Communication
  • GENERAL CONCEPTUAL AND METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES
  • MAJOR CHALLENGES FOR PRACTICE AND RESEARCH IN SCIENCE COMMUNICATION
  • BUILDING A COHERENT SCIENCE COMMUNICATION RESEARCH ENTERPRISE
  • FINAL THOUGHTS
• References
• Appendixes
  • Appendix A. Agendas of Public Meetings
  • Appendix B. Biographical Sketches of Committee Members and Staff

Suggested citation:

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2017). Communicating Science Effectively: A Research Agenda. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23674.