1. What we’re learning about science communication training
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF, Grant AISL Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF.

2. Our project goals …
Better science communication through better science communication training
Assumption: Good training includes evidence-based technical and strategic skills
Tactics
Communication Objectives
Behavioral Goals
(e.g. clear messages, narratives, dialogue, choice of visuals, channel, communicator, etc.)
Focus on how scientists think about the public and communication …
(e.g. knowledge, excitement, and beliefs about scientists’ warmth, integrity, competence, identity, efficacy, norms, etc.)
(e.g. individual behavior, or policy support/ opposition, etc.)

3. We have been work in this area quite a bit for the last five or six years although we both continue to focus on research related to how the public sees science and technology.
Research built on past surveys of scientists and 2014 interviews with trainers
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF, Grant AISL Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF.

4. This sub-project … Semi-structured interviews July-September 2017
33 North American trainers
minutes
Phone
Qualitative analysis (ongoing)
Let’s talk about this project

5. Our interviewees … Of our 33 interviewed trainers:
About 9 in in 10 white
About 6 in 10 women
About 5 in 10 Ph.Ds.
About 2 in 10 social scientists
Average about 40
About 6 in 10 women
Average age is 41
About half had Ph.D.

6. Key Theme 1: The ‘deficit model’ lives
“What’s the ultimate goal? The ultimate goal is to create people … with skills to think critically about things that they're told, and sort of transform that into the decisions that they make as part of their daily lives.”
What this means:
Most training focuses on clarity skills and story-telling skills with the expectation that clear, compelling speech will help fix our problems.
Even as many trainers may say they do not want to reinforce a deficit model of communication, many trainers seem to continue to emphasize that their objective is fostering a more informed public and that doing so will lead to better personal and individual decision-making. This seemed particularly common in less-developed programs.

7. Key Theme 2:
“We really work with them to focus on what they want to achieve, and we really want them to define who they are interested in, interacting with, and what they actually want out of that interaction, and it’s something that I think a lot of them haven’t really taken the time to think about.”
Only a small number of programs provide guidance on how to achieve specific behavioral outcomes
Most trainings appear to allow participating scientists to define their own goals. This likely means that training focuses technical skills/tactics such as the ability to write or speak clearly or in a compelling way, including through the use narratives or stories. Only a small number of trainers emphasize strategy in a substantive way (i.e., a focus on teaching scientists when and how to achieve specific goals such as increase policy support, change behavior, motivate STEM career choice).

8. Key Theme 3: Training is for everyone
Lots of training for …
Graduate students
Interested faculty
Little emphasis on selecting participants based on …
Need
Opportunity
Diversity
Almost all of the trainers emphasized that they are looking for ways to give participants as much time practicing the skills they teach as possible and letting key lessons emerge from practice. However, only a few programs appear to provide trained communicators a chance to deploy their skills outside of the training. The assumption appears to be that scientists will find their own places to communicate.
Before by Ed Schull, via flickr creative commons

9. Key Theme 4: Lots of rehearsal, few shows
“We had quite a bit of pushback, but critique, that kind of it was too theoretical. It was too academic, which is again ironic in the fact that we’re training scientists, but it was too didactic and people didn’t get enough chance to kind of try it on and take it out for a spin.”
Almost all of the trainers emphasized that they are looking for ways to give participants as much time practicing the skills they teach as possible and letting key lessons emerge from practice. However, only a few programs appear to provide trained communicators a chance to deploy their skills outside of the training. The assumption appears to be that scientists will find their own places to communicate.
Before by Ed Schull, via flickr creative commons

10. Key Theme 5: Benefits are what matter
But:
People really like the idea of talking about benefits … but does that assume everyone is rational and will devote resources to science if they think there’s enough benefits?

11. (versus build real relationships)
Key Theme 6: What’s after dialogue?
“Communication is not a one-way street, it has to be a dialogue, and so that’s something that I think is under taught in academia and so it’s something that we need to emphasize in our science communication training.”
Sense that that value of dialogue is that it’s a better tactic to fill knowledge deficits
(versus build real relationships)
Lots of trainers talked about how important it is to listen but these conversations were rarely connected to a conversation about what being a good listener would lead to …

12. (Not convey motivation, warmth)
Key Theme 7: Stories are great too …
“And then these days, there almost always is kind of a storytelling component that we do as part of workshops.”
Sense that that value of stories is as a better tactic to fill knowledge deficits
(Not convey motivation, warmth)
Lots of discussion of helping people understand narrative arcs; but less clear what the stories should be about (other than a “core idea” …

13. This one is on us … Key Theme 8: About your research …
“I don’t draw on the peer reviewed literature at all. … [T]he vast majority of research that I’ve drawn is from mass publication books, which themselves cite peer reviews.”
[Some reference to motivated reasoning, framing, ‘six Americas’ audience segmentation]
Most trainers continue to rely on a limited research base; don’t find most of the research they come across as actionable.
This one is on us …

14. Evaluation would be great but …
Key Theme 9:
Evaluation would be great but …
“I would say sort of shallow evaluation after every single … round just to generally find out, do people like this format, again, that’s where a lot of our tweaks and reflection comes in.”
Evaluation is largely satisfaction surveys … lots of self-reported efficacy measures

15. Key Theme 10: Distill, translate, decode …
“We work with journalists a ton because journalists are great at helping scientists distill their complex messages into something that makes sense.”
“We would kind of start with some orientational stuff around why framing is an important part of science translation and give some people examples of groups that have used training to effectively translate science for public understanding and policy and practice impact.”
Distilled
But:
Lots of trainers talked about how important it is to listen but these conversations were rarely connected to a conversation about what being a good listener would lead to …
Crafted

16. In the end, we would like …
… continued growth ranks of trainers
… more trainers to talk to each other
… more researchers do/share useful work
… more emphasis on training for specific communication effects
(and impact requires clarity on goals and ensuring goals will drive tactics) We
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF, Grant AISL Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the NSF.