Science in public discourse and the media
"…meaningful public engagement involves the creation of mechanisms for dialogue, in which publics are introduced to novel areas of science and technology, encouraged to contemplate their implications relative to personal experiences, needs, and values, and are then given the opportunity to articulate their perspectives on the topic."
Jenkins, Cunningham, O'Doherty, 2019
Science is communicated in various ways, including:
- the scientific literature – primarily experts communicating with others in their own discipline (and and often indeed their specific field);
- formal education – teachers and text book authors intend to explain science to students at different levels (see 'Teaching Science');
- places of informal (or self-directed) learning such as museums, science centres, botanic and zoological gardens;
- public communication of science – where scientists address a general audience about their work;
- science in the media – this includes news journalism, documentaries and special interest programmes and podcasts aimed at informing the public, as well as entertainments where science is either a context or incidental to the book, film, drama, etc.;
- folk science – there are also many dubious ideas with currency in the culture which may be communicated through informal interaction in families and in other social settings.
Students attending formal science classes can of course be exposed to all of these sources, not just what they meet in their official classes.
The range here varies on several dimensions
- the level of expertise of the person communicating (the scientist, a science teacher, a journalist, a playwright, etc.)
- whether the communication is aimed at experts in the field, students who need to learn about a topic, an audience seeking out information on the topic, the general public
- whether the intention is to offer a technical account, a pedagogic simplification, an argument for the importance (and value of funding) of the work, to change behaviour, to generally inform, to entertain…
Clearly with informal means of communication, such as journalism and science included in popular drama, there is little control over the audience and how they understand the communication.
All of this contributes to the general level of understanding of both science itself, and specific scientific topics, in the pubic.
The presentation of science
In the case of scientists professional contributions to the research literature there is usually an intention to offer a fully detailed account of the work discussed (albeit, when communication within a field or research programme much may be omitted which is relevant because it can be assumed to be taken for granted within the specialist community.
In the case of formal education, teachers and textbook authors seldom intend to offer a full technical account, as they know that learners may not have sufficient background knowledge and understanding to effectively engage with such an account – so deliberate simplifications may be adopted, and various techniques used to make the unfamiliar familiar.
(Read more about 'Making the unfamiliar familiar')
(Read/view a lecture about making the unfamiliar familiar, and seeking the optimal level of simplification)
Similar techniques may be used both by scientists addressing general audiences, and journalists. In these cases, even if the speaker has the necessary pedagogic skills to use the same techniques as teachers, their task is more difficult because a general audience is less tightly defined (a radio programme may be heard by people of all ages and levels of background knowledge).
In summary, professional communication through the scientific literature may offer the most complete and accurate communications, but without being fully accessible to those outside the intended specialised audience. Other forms of science communication may sacrifice both detail and precision to provide an account of the science which can engage and be accessible to non-specialist audiences.
Given this, it is not surprising that sometimes some aspects of the public presentation of science might seem misjudged.
Omniscience of scientists
One common problem is that scientific knowledge is often treated in a simplistic ways in the media, as though scientists produce absolute and certain knowledge, rather that knowledge which is always in principle open to revision.
Read about scientific certainty in the media
Figures of speech used in scientific communication
Common techniques in communicating science include the use of analogies, metaphors and similes, as well as anthropomorphism, animism and teleology.
(Read about examples of anthropomorphism in public discourse about science)
(Read about 'teleology')
(Read about 'metaphors in science')
(Read about 'analogies in science')
(Read about 'similes in science')
(Read about 'Personification')
(Examples of puns in science communication)
Source cited
- Jenkins, A., Cunningham, S. & O'Doherty, K. C. (2019) Engaging publics on asthma and bacteria: understanding potential negative social implications of human microbiome research, in K. C. O'Doherty, L. M. Osbeck, E. Schraube, E. & J. Yen, (Eds.) Psychological Studies of Science and Technology (in Psychological Studies of Science and Technology (pp.167-187), Palgrave Macmillan.
