Filter by author: Ch'Ree Essary Ph.D.

An increasing number of government science organizations are inserting humour into their informational messages on social media. However, since individuals may expect government agencies to communicate in a more formal and traditional manner, does the use of humour influence perceptions of the organization? This study examines how humorous messages regarding three different wildlife science issues (climate change, human-wildlife interaction, and human-caused wildfires) influences perceived expertise, trustworthiness, and likability through parallel mediators, expectancy violation magnitude and the valence of that violation. Overall, results showed a significant, negative effect of humour on perceptions of the organization through the two mediators. However, these results varied slightly across issues. Government science organizations should be wary of making abrupt shifts in their tone on social media to avoid unpleasantly surprising their audiences in these spaces. Implications for future research regarding science humour and social media practice are discussed.

As the late teen and early adulthood years have been identified as a period in life where opinions regarding politics are formed, it is important to understand how the highly politicized science issue — the COVID-19 pandemic — may have influenced young adults’ trust in science and how they come to know the accuracy of science information. In order to explore these topics, this study employed a series of focus groups with college students (N = 22). Findings show that while focus group participants were largely trusting of science and science institutions, they were wary of government and politician interference in science and scientists who lack the integrity and benevolence to act in the best interests of the public.