June 29th, 2015 | RESEARCH
Over recent years, there has been much discussion of the status of science communication as a discipline, as a field of empirical research and theoretical reflection. In our own contributions to that discussion, we have tended to raise questions about the possibilities of this âemerging disciplineâ (Trench & Bucchi 2010). We have some-times drawn attention to the marks of immaturityânotably, the relatively underdeveloped state of theory in the field.
But when a major international academic publisher commissions an anthology of âmajor worksâ in our field, we can surely say that science communication studies have come of age. From a scattering of personal stories, manuals and essays there has emerged a growing stream of publications that now constitute a âliteratureâ in public communication of science. Analytical and critical work in science communication has consolidated in the past two decades, and the rate of publication has accelerated greatly.
Greater maturity and stability in this field do not necessarily correspond to greater visibility, as seen from outside, even by near neighbours. Science communication is still struggling for recognition as a field of study,and is probably less visible than the professional practice of science communication, as, for example, in science museums and centres. A contribution from an STS (science, technology and society) scholar to a recent edition of the Canadian Journal of Communication opened confidently: âThe dominant approach to science communication assumes that science constitutes secure measurable knowledge that an unknowledgeable public lacks and needsâ (Bronson 2014). This statement might be less âunknowledgeableâ if it were qualified to suggest that this is the dominant approach within science, but it still seems to betray ignorance of the very considerable literature in science communication. Perhaps the publication of an anthology will help raise the fieldâs visibility.
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Team Members
Brian Tench, Author, Dublin City UniversityMassimiano Bucchi, Author, University of Trento
Citation
Identifier Type: ISBN
Identifier: 2814302361
Publication: Science Communication Today â 2015: Current strategies and means of action
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Audience: Educators | Teachers | Museum | ISE Professionals | Scientists
Discipline: General STEM
Resource Type: Edited Chapter | Peer-reviewed article | Reference Materials | Research
Environment Type: Exhibitions | Informal | Formal Connections | Media and Technology | Professional Development | Conferences | Networks | Public Programs