Science Communication

This article introduces the special issue of Science Communication on “nanotechnology and the public.” It argues that studies of “nanotechnology and the public” are important not for themselves, but for their ability to shed light on more general social theories, especially those that help illuminate the interweaving of science and society.

The author of this content analytic study examines news narratives about nano science and technology (nano S&T) in major U.S. and non-U.S. newspapers by taking a random sample of 350 articles published from1988 through mid-July 2004 froma universe of 1,330 articles. In addition to identifying dominant frames or content themes, the author evaluates whether there is a dominant tone or sentiment regarding the ethical, legal, and societal implications of developments and issues in nano S&T. Scientific discoveries or projects and the social effects of nano S&T are the dominant frames. The ratio of articles leaning toward the sentiment that benefits outweigh risks versus that risks outweigh benefits is three to one.

This article investigates how developments in nanotechnology were framed in the British national newspaper press during a formative period in their rising public salience. Specifically, an intervention by Prince Charles in April 2003 is shown to have acted as the principal catalyst for much of the ensuing newspaper reporting over the next fifteen months. This study, in taking as its focus the operation of specific news frames, identifies a range of factors that shaped the initial terms of the subsequent debate (between both advocates and critics of nanotechnology) from one newspaper to the next during this period. The analysis suggests that the involvement of a celebrity may play a crucial role in enhancing the newsworthiness of an issue and influencing its subsequent framing in the newspaper press.

In this study, I examine whether Americans’ emotions and opinions about nanotechnology are influenced by how the issue is framed. Using data collected from an experiment embedded within a national survey, I find consistent framing effects even though the magnitudes of respondents’ opinion changes are not especially large. Frames about specific risks and benefits of nanotechnology are more influential than frames based on general beliefs about the merits of science, and framing nanotechnology as beneficial is only somewhat less powerful than framing it as risky. I conclude by discussing the implications of these framing effects for future mass opinions about nanotechnology.

Previous studies on public attitudes toward emerging technologies have treated cognitive and affective influences on public opinion as distinct, with little attention to the possible interaction between the two. Directly addressing this issue, we argue that cognitive and affective factors not only have important separate effects on public attitudes but also work in tandem to produce effects. In particular, it may be that affective variables shape the impact of cognitions and vice versa. We use data from a national telephone survey to test this interactive model of decision making about emerging technologies. Our analyses show that emotional heuristics moderate the effect that knowledge about nanotechnology has on people's overall attitudes toward nanotechnology, with knowledge having a weaker effect on attitudes for people who do show strong emotional reactions to the topic. The implications of these findings for future research and policy making in this area are discussed.

In this article we argue that nanotechnology represents an extraordinary opportunity to build in a robust role for the social sciences in a technology that remains at an early, and hence undetermined, stage of development. We examine policy dynamics in both the United States and United Kingdom aimed at both opening up, and closing down, the role of the social sciences in nanotechnologies. We then set out a prospective agenda for the social sciences and its potential in the future shaping of nanotechnology research and innovation processes. The emergent, undetermined nature of nanotechnologies calls for an open, experimental, and interdisciplinary model of social science research.

Since the emergence of specialty beats in science and environment reporting, journalists have looked for opportunities to enhance their understanding of these complex subjects. Institutions both public and private have responded with programs designed to provide continuing education aimed at those writers and reporters who cover science or environmental stories in a range of mass media. One such fellowship program, now in its 7th year, takes place annually under the direction of the National Tropical Botanical Garden, with its headquarters on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. A report on the program's success demonstrates the need for this and similar efforts geared toward improving the public's understanding of science by targeting media messengers.