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Models of public communication of science and technology

Author
Lewenstein, Bruce V.
Abstract
Science journalism, science museums, community outreach programs about science – all these forms of "public communication of science and technology" have a long history. But little is understood about the systematic differences between the goals and possibilities of different kinds of projects. This working papger identifies four key models that have been used to describe public communication activities: deficit model, contextual model, lay expertise model, and public participation model. It also identifies problems both within the models and with attempts to fit all activities into this particular set of models. It suggests both new areas for research and new possibilities for outreach.
Sponsorship
A grant from the Department of Energy's Human Genome Project – Ethical, Legal, & Social Issues program (Grant DE-FG02-01ER63173) supported the writing of this manuscript.
Date Issued
2003-06-16Subject
public engagement; science communication; public communication of science and technology
Related Version
A later version, with additional case studies, was published as: Brossard, Dominique, & Lewenstein, Bruce V. (2010). A Critical Appraisal of Models of Public Understanding of Science: Using Practice to Inform Theory. In LeeAnn Kahlor & Patricia Stout (Eds.), Communicating Science: New Agendas in Communication (pp. 11-39). New York: Routledge.
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
Type
report other
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Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International