The public-engaged scientists: Motivations, enablers and barriers

Cerrato, Simona; Daelli, Valentina; Pertot, Helena; Puccioni, Olga

doi:10.18546/rfa.02.2.09.

Cited by 8 publications

(21 citation statements)

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“…Some researchers may perceive public engagement as an opportunity to influence policymaking by providing media comments on contentious issues (Ho et al, 2015). However, researchers' academic freedom and freedom of expression could be curtailed by the country's legislative restrictions and media censorship (Cerrato et al, 2018).…”

Section: Macro-level Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public engagement by researchers of different disciplines in Singapore: A qualitative comparison of macro- and meso-level concerns

Looi

Leung

et al. 2019

Public Underst Sci

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Guided by neo-institutional theory, this study compares how researchers from science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines differ from researchers from the arts, humanities, and social sciences fields in terms of how macro- and meso-level concerns shaped their willingness to conduct public engagement. Focus group discussions conducted among researchers based in Singapore revealed that science, technology, engineering, and math and arts, humanities, and social sciences researchers held different macro-level concerns. Particularly, science, technology, engineering, and math researchers raised more concerns about media misrepresentation, while arts, humanities, and social sciences researchers were more concerned about receiving political repercussions and public backlash. With regard to meso-level considerations, researchers from all disciplines cited similar institutional constraints for public engagement; however they possessed varying public engagement competencies and held differing perceptions of their social duty to engage the public. Hence, researchers of different disciplines desired different kinds of media training. Policy and managerial implications as well as directions for future research were provided.

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Section: Macro-level Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Public engagement by researchers of different disciplines in Singapore: A qualitative comparison of macro- and meso-level concerns

Looi

Leung

et al. 2019

Public Underst Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The PES literature identifies barriers to carrying out public engagement that scientists face, and the SFS survey found that public engagement barriers shared common themes with previous studies. In numerous studies, time was mentioned as a major factor in whether scientists participate in PES (Poliakoff and Webb 2007, Devonshire and Hathway 2014, Concannon and Grenon 2016, Cerrato et al 2018, Stofer and Wolfe 2018. Research and funding, the primary institutional duties scientists focus on, require a lot of time and leave scientists little-to-no extra time in which to pursue PES activities.…”

Section: Pes Barriers For Scientistsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, Poliakoff and Webb (2007) found that the intent to work on PES was not affected by time constraints, suggesting that more scientists would participate if their contractual duties included public engagement. Many scientists already view public engagement as a moral obligation, as demonstrated both by the SFS survey and the literature (Poliakoff and Webb 2007, Devonshire and Hathway 2014, Cerrato et al 2018. Incorporating PES into existing work responsibilities, including courses taught or research projects, may grant more time and resources, resulting in greater participation.…”

Section: Pes Barriers For Scientistsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Only 6% of respondents felt nothing was limiting their PES opportunities. Training or mentoring programs to prepare scientists for outreach are rare (Devonshire and Hathway 2014, Singh et al 2014, Stofer and Wolfe 2018, Stylinski et al 2018; however, such opportunities could improve scientists' perceptions of their own abilities (Poliakoff and Webb 2007, Ecklund et al 2012, Singh et al 2014, Cerrato et al 2018, Stylinski et al 2018, in addition to improving PES itself (Concannon and Grenon 2016). If incorporated into student courses, PES training programs could alleviate time-constraint issues with professional development (Devonshire and Hathway 2014), bring additional lenses and uses to class material, and prepare students for careers where communicating with the public is key .…”

Section: Pes Barriers For Scientistsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Scientists across the globe and across disciplines generally believe public engagement is important (Pew Research Center 2015). Specifically, international surveys demonstrate that research scientists believe the public benefits from a better understanding of science(The Royal Society 2006, Singh et al 2014, Cerrato et al 2018 and that science is improved through stakeholder input and knowledge sharing. Additionally, scientists are motivated to engage with the public because doing so offers professional development benefits, such as improved public The Society for Freshwater Science 2020.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Engaging Early‐Career Scientists in Global Policy‐Making

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Cordova,

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et al. 2023

Angewandte Chemie

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Pressing global challenges, such as climate change, the COVID‐19 pandemic, or antibiotic resistance, require coordinated international responses guided by evidence‐informed decisions. For this purpose, it is critical that scientists engage in providing insights during the decision‐making process. However, the mechanisms for the engagement of scientists in policy‐making are complex and vary internationally, which often poses significant challenges to their involvement. Herein, we address some of the mechanisms and barriers for scientists to engage in policy‐making with a global perspective by early‐career scientists. We highlight the importance of scientific academies, societies, universities, and early‐career networks as stakeholders and how they can adapt their structures to actively contribute to shaping global policies, with representative examples from chemistry‐related disciplines. We showcase the importance of raising awareness, providing resources and training, and leading discussions about connecting emerging scientists with global decision‐makers to address societal challenges through policies.

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The public-engaged scientists: Motivations, enablers and barriers

Cited by 8 publications

References 0 publications

Public engagement by researchers of different disciplines in Singapore: A qualitative comparison of macro- and meso-level concerns

Public engagement by researchers of different disciplines in Singapore: A qualitative comparison of macro- and meso-level concerns

Elevate your work through incorporation of public engagement

Engaging Early‐Career Scientists in Global Policy‐Making

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