TY - JOUR
T1 - Public participation in scientific research
T2 - A framework for deliberate design
AU - Shirk, Jennifer L.
AU - Ballard, Heidi L.
AU - Wilderman, Candie C.
AU - Phillips, Tina
AU - Wiggins, Andrea
AU - Jordan, Rebecca
AU - McCallie, Ellen
AU - Minarchek, Matthew
AU - Lewenstein, Bruce V.
AU - Krasny, Marianne E.
AU - Bonney, Rick
PY - 2012
Y1 - 2012
N2 - Members of the public participate in scientific research in many different contexts, stemming from traditions as varied as participatory action research and citizen science. Particularly in conservation and natural resource management contexts, where research often addresses complex social-ecological questions, the emphasis on and nature of this participation can significantly affect both the way that projects are designed and the outcomes that projects achieve. We review and integrate recent work in these and other fields, which has converged such that we propose the term public participation in scientific research (PPSR) to discuss initiatives from diverse fields and traditions. We describe three predominant models of PPSR and call upon case studies suggesting that-regardless of the research context-project outcomes are influenced by (1) the degree of public participation in the research process and (2) the quality of public participation as negotiated during project design. To illustrate relationships between the quality of participation and outcomes, we offer a framework that considers how scientific and public interests are negotiated for project design toward multiple, integrated goals. We suggest that this framework and models, used in tandem, can support deliberate design of PPSR efforts that will enhance their outcomes for scientific research, individual participants, and social-ecological systems.
AB - Members of the public participate in scientific research in many different contexts, stemming from traditions as varied as participatory action research and citizen science. Particularly in conservation and natural resource management contexts, where research often addresses complex social-ecological questions, the emphasis on and nature of this participation can significantly affect both the way that projects are designed and the outcomes that projects achieve. We review and integrate recent work in these and other fields, which has converged such that we propose the term public participation in scientific research (PPSR) to discuss initiatives from diverse fields and traditions. We describe three predominant models of PPSR and call upon case studies suggesting that-regardless of the research context-project outcomes are influenced by (1) the degree of public participation in the research process and (2) the quality of public participation as negotiated during project design. To illustrate relationships between the quality of participation and outcomes, we offer a framework that considers how scientific and public interests are negotiated for project design toward multiple, integrated goals. We suggest that this framework and models, used in tandem, can support deliberate design of PPSR efforts that will enhance their outcomes for scientific research, individual participants, and social-ecological systems.
KW - Citizen science
KW - Community-based monitoring
KW - Conservation
KW - Outcomes
KW - Participation
KW - Public
KW - Volunteer monitoring
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84864459613&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84864459613&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.5751/ES-04705-170229
DO - 10.5751/ES-04705-170229
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84864459613
SN - 1708-3087
VL - 17
JO - Conservation Ecology
JF - Conservation Ecology
IS - 2
ER -