Citizen scientists and non-citizen scientist hobbyists: motivation, benefits, and influences

Jones, M. Gail; Childers, Gina; André, Thomas; Corin, Elysa N.; Hite, Rebecca

doi:10.1080/21548455.2018.1475780

Cited by 25 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Loners are also present in COASST, as ∼9% of participants conduct their surveys alone (Parrish et al 2019). Whether this reflective, loner-helper mentality is more attached to environmental hobbyists who develop a lifelong passion for a place or taxon (e.g., Wright et al 2015, Jones et al 2018 is an open question. In sum, divergent findings as to the degree to which social interactions play a role in determining participant motivation suggest that environmental citizen science is not a monolithic enterprise, but rather a collection of activity structures attracting and sustaining multiple possible identities and roles.…”

Section: Science Is a Social Activitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is not a new phenomenon; public participation in science traces its lineage in the West to the traditions of the naturalist, the almanac keeper, and the amateur collector (Miller-Rushing et al 2012). Growth from these historic roots is evident in the current diversity of approaches to nonprofessional involvement in environmental science, defined herein as out of doors, nature focused, and grounded in issues or questions, from ecotourism (Caissie and Halpenny 2003) and hobbyist activities (Jones et al 2017(Jones et al , 2018 to agency-and academic-sponsored environmental monitoring (Dickinson et al 2010) to place-based, community-sponsored social justice programs (Ballard et al 2008). Although some public participation programs focus on youths (National Research Council 2009, Ballard et al 2017), many programs actively recruit adults (Burgess et al 2017, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, andMedicine 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evolving interest and sense of self in an environmental citizen science program

He¹,

Parrish²,

Rowe³

et al. 2019

E&S

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Citizen science is a growing phenomenon across many branches of environmental science facilitating both increased science literacy and the collection of highly rigorous, longitudinal data. Understanding the motivations of adults to join and remain active in citizen science programs is important as the diversity and abundance of opportunities for public participation in science grow. We conducted a mixed-methods study of newly recruited and "seasoned" (1 year plus) participants in the Coastal Observation and Seabird Survey Team, a hands-on, environmental citizen science program focused on adult coastal residents, to explore the degree to which engagement, measured as time in the program, influenced motivation. We used constructs of functionalism, person-object theory of interest, and activity theoretic approaches to situational identity to deconstruct motivation into three interacting components: objects of interest, actions directed toward those objects, and situated senses of self. Newly recruited participants came with a strong interest in being outside on the beach and learning about birds and saw themselves as data collectors defined in part by their birding and degree/ job-based credentials and their social relationships. By contrast, seasoned participants aligned their interests and situational identity more directly with the program, calling out the importance of program data and results, elevating science-based actions such as monitoring over learning, intensifying their desire to contribute to science, subjugating individual attributes in favor of their science identity, and increasing their sense of self-worth attached to the project. Our results suggest that hands-on, environmental citizen science programs focused on adults should shape their data collector roles and projects around context-specific motivations including senses of place and biodiversity, support both the altruistic and self-interest needs of participants, and combine rigorous science experience with social interaction.

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Section: Science Is a Social Activitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolving interest and sense of self in an environmental citizen science program

He¹,

Parrish²,

Rowe³

et al. 2019

E&S

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This is just one experiment, but it is clear that volunteers' behavior in systems which involve them in scientific tasks is likely to be complex and difficult to predict. This is especially so for volunteers who may have a complex relationship with science and who may or may not view their participation as contributing to research (24,27,(63)(64)(65)(66).…”

Section: Design Tensionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Numerous studies have outlined the positive impacts of public participation in scientific research, including increases in longterm environmental, civic, and research interests (e.g., ref. 18 and references therein); the empowerment of communities to influence local environmental decision making (18,19); the increased representation of women and minorities in the scientific process (20); and increases in confidence (21)(22)(23)(24), scientific literacy (25)(26)(27)(28), domain knowledge (23,29), and understanding that scientific progress is a collective process (30).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Citizen science frontiers: Efficiency, engagement, and serendipitous discovery with human–machine systems

Trouille

Lintott

Fortson

2019

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Citizen science has proved to be a unique and effective tool in helping science and society cope with the ever-growing data rates and volumes that characterize the modern research landscape. It also serves a critical role in engaging the public with research in a direct, authentic fashion and by doing so promotes a better understanding of the processes of science. To take full advantage of the onslaught of data being experienced across the disciplines, it is essential that citizen science platforms leverage the complementary strengths of humans and machines. ThisPerspectivespiece explores the issues encountered in designing human–machine systems optimized for both efficiency and volunteer engagement, while striving to safeguard and encourage opportunities for serendipitous discovery. We discuss case studies from Zooniverse, a large online citizen science platform, and show that combining human and machine classifications can efficiently produce results superior to those of either one alone and how smart task allocation can lead to further efficiencies in the system. While these examples make clear the promise of human–machine integration within an online citizen science system, we then explore in detail how system design choices can inadvertently lower volunteer engagement, create exclusionary practices, and reduce opportunity for serendipitous discovery. Throughout we investigate the tensions that arise when designing a human–machine system serving the dual goals of carrying out research in the most efficient manner possible while empowering a broad community to authentically engage in this research.

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“…Often youth have the opportunity during out of school time to engage in activities that might foster science interest and learning, with prior research demonstrating that these out-of-school-time science experiences lead to science interest and engagement [4,5]. Likewise, adults frequently engage in science learning after their formal schooling ends, for instance through hobbies [6]. Museums, zoos, aquariums and other informal science learning sites (ISLS) function as rich sources of science content and as engaging spaces where learning might occur outside of the formal classroom environment [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interest and learning in informal science learning sites: Differences in experiences with different types of educators

et al. 2020

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This study explored topic interest, perceived learning and actual recall of exhibit content in 979 children and adolescents and 1,184 adults who visited informal science learning sites and interacted with an adult or youth educator or just the exhibit itself as part of family visits to the sites. Children in early childhood reported greater topic interest and perceived learning, but actually recalled less content, than participants in middle childhood or adolescence. Youth visitors reported greater interest after interacting with a youth educator than just the exhibit, and perceived that they learn more if they interact with an educator (youth or adult). Participants in middle childhood recall more when they encounter a youth educator. Adult visitors reported greater interest after interaction with a youth educator than with the exhibit alone or an adult educator. They also perceived that they learn more if they interact with an educator (youth or adult) than just the exhibit and perceived that they learned more if they interacted with a youth educator than an adult educator. Results highlight the benefits of educators in informal science learning sites and document the importance of attention to developmental needs.

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Citizen scientists and non-citizen scientist hobbyists: motivation, benefits, and influences

Cited by 25 publications

References 24 publications

Evolving interest and sense of self in an environmental citizen science program

Evolving interest and sense of self in an environmental citizen science program

Citizen science frontiers: Efficiency, engagement, and serendipitous discovery with human–machine systems

Interest and learning in informal science learning sites: Differences in experiences with different types of educators

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