Fakta och festivaler : forskares engagemang i vetenskaplig kommunikation med allmänheten - den tredje uppgiften

This master thesis investigates how and why scientists and researchers engage in communication activities with the public and whether new channels of communication have an impact on the engagement. Science communication is seen in the light of Social Sciences where Mertonian science ethos as well as social constructivism constitute the theoretical framework. Communication models, namely the deficit model, the dialogue model and the participation model are applied when analysing science communication between scientists and non-specialists. An online questionnaire was distributed to seventy scientists and researchers in Applied mathematics and Data science at French national institute. The results from this survey show that the scientists engage in communication activities for personal and social reasons. A possibility to improve communication skill was seen as the main personal benefit. The respondents think that their research field engage the public and the respondents are interested in communicating the social and ethical implications of their research. Scientists and researchers are motivated to engage in activities organized on an institutional level, such as science festivals, but the results from this study suggest a preference for other communication activities i.e. writing articles online. Social media and other tools enhance visibility in general but are also perceived as possible threats to scientific values such as objectiveness and accurateness. Lack of time, inadequate communication skills, fear of superficiality in discussions on social media are factors that give rise to tensions in communication with the public, whereas institutional support and events targeting a wider public may alleviate tensions in this context