Public Science Communication: Reflections and a Resource

Greetings again.

Should researchers communicate with the public about their work (and, more broadly, their fields)? If so, when and how much? Members of the AuthorAID email discussion list recently discussed such questions.

To me, the answer is, “It depends.” Most researchers, I believe, should communicate with the public at least somewhat, especially if their work is publicly funded. However, the specifics can vary.

For example:

• In general, young researchers still trying to establish their careers should focus mainly on writing journal articles rather than writing for the public. Likewise, in general they should speak mainly at conferences, not public events. Later, researchers often can devote more time to public communication.
• How much time to devote to public communication can depend on one’s field. For example, public communication tends to fit naturally with fields such as public health. It might not fit as well with some highly theoretical fields.
• Some researchers enjoy public communication, have a talent for it, and eventually choose to make it a major part of their work. Other researchers have different interests and abilities and so do not.

For those interested, a new resource in the AuthorAID Resource Library offers some guidance on public science communication. This resource is adapted from a presentation at a recent workshop in Kenya.

Also, recently a graduate student showed me an interesting article relating to public communication of science. In this article, the authors argue that journal articles should be accompanied by lay summaries. What do you think of this idea?

Until the next post—

Barbara