Filter by keyword: Bridging research, practice and teaching

Nov 26, 2025 Article

Exploring the role of partnerships in enabling public engagement by Long-Term Ecological Research programs

by John C. Besley , Alexandra Benitez , Kari O'Connell , Martha R. Downs , Cristina Lissette Mancilla

This study explores how organizations that conduct scientific research support communication activities, including activities aimed at fostering public engagement. It uses qualitative, thematic analyses of semi-structured interviews to propose an initial partnership categorization based on the degree to which communication support is embedded within or external to the organization, as well as the degree to which engagement resources are pooled across funding sources. It then discusses how different categorizations might be associated with several different metrics of public engagement quality. Findings suggest that partnerships with external groups that have shared goals can enhance engagement efforts in situations where the organization lacks the resources to build internal engagement teams and programs. These findings challenge past work focused on the value of internal communication infrastructure. However, the potential benefits and limitations of different approaches to within-organization versus external-to-organization communication support need further research.

Volume 24Issue 072025

Nov 10, 2025 Article

Walking the Faultline of Fear: How affect-inducing risk communication can help promote disaster preparedness.

by Caroline Rowe , Caroline Orchiston , Fabien Medvecky

This paper uses New Zealand’s AF8 [Alpine Fault Magnitude 8] program, designed to build resilience and preparedness for earthquakes, as a real-world example to explore how emotional appeals can affect preparedness intentions within the emergency management sector. Drawing on template analysis of 14 artifacts from AF8’s communication material and 34 semi-structured interviews with emergency management stakeholders (the AF8 material’s primary audience), the study examines how emotional appeals are strategically employed and perceived in practice. Findings contextualize theoretical understandings of how risk communication can balance fear and anxiety with positive emotions like fascination and confidence using tools such as vivid imagery, narrative framing, and certainty. The research offers empirical insights into how emotional appeals are used and perceived in risk communication, providing a foundation for developing future hazard communication strategies grounded in real-world application.

Volume 24Issue 062025Emotions and Science Communication (Emotions and Science Communication)

Oct 27, 2025 Book Review

Applying academic authority in public debates

by Brian Trench

Philip Cohen argues for social scientists to be active citizens, intervening in public debates with the legitimacy that their expertise gives them. His advocacy and advice for “citizen scholarship” are guided by his own experience.

Volume 24Issue 052025

Sep 15, 2025 Review Article

A scoping review on the connection between research and practice in science communication

by Nuria Saladie , Carolina Llorente , Gema Revuelta

The purpose of this scoping review is to examine the available research on the relationship between research and practice in the field of science communication, identifying barriers and solutions to their disconnect. This scoping review was conducted using the Arksey and O'Malley framework. Results indicate that the main barrier is the inefficient communication between the two domains, and that the main solution lies in changing some modus operandi in science communication. In conclusion, this scoping review provides novel insights to build bridges between research and practice for the advancement of science communication.

Volume 24Issue 052025

Jul 16, 2025 Practice Insight

How can we enable school students to learn and participate in science engagement initiatives? Roles and tasks of enablers

by Tim Kiessling , Claussen Christina , Kruse Katrin , Carolin Enzingmüller , Kerstin Kremer , Knickmeier Katrin , Sinja Dittmann , Hinrich Schulenburg , Ilka Parchmann

Involving school students in authentic research beyond their school learning means creating participatory, out-of-school opportunities related to research processes, giving them a voice in the applied format of science engagement. Important for such endeavours is a group of people we identify as “enablers”. Based on insights from two long-term and large-scale science engagement initiatives in Germany (the Darwin Day science outreach and the Plastic Pirates citizen science program), we identified four principal work tasks of enablers. They are described as (i) aligning the needs, expectations and goals of involved participants, (ii) translating differing conceptions about science into shared visions, (iii) guiding the design of the initiative through educational theory, and (iv) evaluating the success of the out-of-school science engagement initiative. We further suggest that self-awareness of being an enabler, working at the interface of the research and education sphere, is an important prerequisite to successfully collaborate with participants.

Volume 24Issue 042025

May 26, 2025 Practice Insight

Survey-based analysis of a science of science communication scientific interest group: member feedback and perspectives on science communication

by Anna Hilliard , Nicola Sugden , Kristin Bass , Chris Gunter

Coordinated attempts to promote systematic approaches to the design and evaluation of science communication efforts have generally lagged behind the proliferation and diversification of those efforts. To address this, we founded the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) Science of Science Communication Scientific Interest Group (SciOSciComm-SIG) and undertook a mixed-methods survey-based analysis of the group one year after its founding. Respondents indicated ongoing interest and some participation in public-facing science communication while identifying specific barriers, and praised the role of the SIG in expanding access to information about evidence-based practices.

Volume 24Issue 032025

May 07, 2025 Practice Insight

Framing food waste: development and evaluation of a science communication format at the workplace

by Stefanie Nigg , Rebecca Kandut , Julia Serong , Monica Déchène , Kateřina Veselá , Carmen Klinger

The mitigation of the climate crisis demands effective communication strategies. Transforming food systems plays a key role in climate protection, not only by changing eating habits, but also by preventing food waste. While workplaces are commonly used for health promotion activities, they are a rare setting for science communication. This practice insight targets individual food waste reduction through a workshop at the workplace, including a lunch from rescued food, documentary screening, discussion, and expert presentation. It aimed to enhance participants’ self-efficacy and intention to reduce food waste. The effectiveness of the screening was tested experimentally by evaluating the effects of positive and negative framing. Exposure to negative framing was associated with higher intensity in negative affect, whereas positive framing appeared to be associated with higher self-efficacy. Furthermore, this practice insight provides strategies to foster science communication in workplaces.

Volume 24Issue 032025

Oct 21, 2024 Essay

Communication and engagement for basic science: insights and practical considerations

by Keegan Sawyer , Brooke Smith

Basic research underpins the innovations that power the global economy and shape society. It is the focus of scientific investment for both The Kavli Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. Yet it has been rare to see basic research command much attention, practice, or scholarship in science communication. In December 2020, we launched the Science Public Engagement Partnership, or SciPEP, a limited term public-private partnership, to dive into basic science communication headlong. Our work through SciPEP has led to new insights about audiences’ relationship to basic science, as well as the needs and interests of those who communicate basic research. We see a path forward that involves forging more partnerships between scholars who study science communication and practitioners of basic science communication.

Volume 23Issue 072024Special Issue: Communicating Discovery Science (Discovery Science)

Oct 21, 2024 Essay

The challenge of identifying behavioral goals for communication in the context of basic science

by John C. Besley , Sara K. Yeo , Todd P. Newman , Anthony Dudo

This essay highlights the unique challenges that basic scientists may face when trying to identify goals for their engagement efforts. We propose that the difference between basic and applied science, at least when it comes to communication, is primarily about the degree to which scientists can identify audience-specific behavioral goals for their communication efforts. To support our thesis, we provide data from recent survey projects that highlight the degree to which applied and basic scientists have different views about behavioral goals for their communications. We ultimately suggest that basic scientists may need additional help choosing goals and that applied scientists may have more opportunities for focused impact whereas the impact of engagement by basic scientists may be more broad-based.

Volume 23Issue 072024Special Issue: Communicating Discovery Science (Discovery Science)

Oct 21, 2024 Practice Insight

The Hopes and Fears Lab: enabling dialogue on discovery science

by Richard Milne , Catherine Galloway , Mariam Rashid , Daniela Boraschi , Claudette Burch , Anna Middleton

In this Practice Insight, we consider challenges associated with dialogue-based public engagement with discovery science, related to a focus on application, the need for short-term policy impact, and the lack of conceptual attention to dialogue. We consider potential responses to these through our initial evaluation of The Hopes and Fears Lab engagement project. We suggest the potential value of foregrounding emotional connections with science for both researchers and members of the public, and the need for as much attention to be paid to the preparatory work and settings for dialogue as to the dialogue itself.

Volume 23Issue 072024Special Issue: Communicating Discovery Science (Discovery Science)

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