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. 2019 Apr 16;116(16):7670-7675.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.1805863115. Epub 2018 Nov 26.

Evaluating science communication

Baruch Fischhoff  1   2
Affiliations

Evaluating science communication

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

Abstract

Effective science communication requires assembling scientists with knowledge relevant to decision makers, translating that knowledge into useful terms, establishing trusted two-way communication channels, evaluating the process, and refining it as needed. Communicating Science Effectively: A Research Agenda [National Research Council (2017)] surveys the scientific foundations for accomplishing these tasks, the research agenda for improving them, and the essential collaborative relations with decision makers and communication professionals. Recognizing the complexity of the science, the decisions, and the communication processes, the report calls for a systems approach. This perspective offers an approach to creating such systems by adapting scientific methods to the practical constraints of science communication. It considers staffing (are the right people involved?), internal collaboration (are they talking to one another?), and external collaboration (are they talking to other stakeholders?). It focuses on contexts where the goal of science communication is helping people to make autonomous choices rather than promoting specific behaviors (e.g., voter turnout, vaccination rates, energy consumption). The approach is illustrated with research in two domains: decisions about preventing sexual assault and responding to pandemic disease.

Keywords: decision making; evaluation; pandemics; science communication; sexual assault.

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Conflict of interest statement

The author declares no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Risk model for pharmacological interventions for a pandemic. Ovals indicate uncertain variables, which need to be predicted. Rectangles indicate actions, which need to be planned and implemented. Reprinted by permission from ref. , Springer Nature: Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, copyright 2006.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Network diagram of self-reported close and collegial relationships among members of an interdisciplinary research program supported by the National Academy of Sciences. Reprinted with permission from ref. .
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Advice for reducing the risk of sexual assault (36).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. National Research Council . Communicating Science Effectively: A Research Agenda. National Academy Press; Washington, DC: 2017. - PubMed
    1. Fischhoff B, Scheufele D. The science of science communication. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2013;110(Suppl 3):14033–14039. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Fischhoff B, Scheufele D. The science of science communication II. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2014;111(Suppl 4):13583–13584. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Fischhoff B, Scheufele D. 2018 The science of science communication III. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, in press.
    1. Simon HA. Administrative Behavior. Macmillan; New York: 1947.

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