A Field of Expertise, the Organization, or Science Itself? Scientists' Perception of Representing Research in Public Communication

Social and political interest in science regularly prompts scientists to assume the role of public spokesperson. The article investigates this role of representing science as both speaking on behalf of science and symbolically standing for science and its organizations. With inspiration from the field of organizational communication, it is argued that science communication should be considered as an activity intimately linked with perceptions of identity and organizational culture. When scientists communicate publicly, they do not just disseminate knowledge, they also represent a particular sense making about what science, scientists, and scientific organizations are. Based on a qualitative analysis of 20 leading Danish scientists' views on their own role in public communication, three different modes of representation are identified: Expert, Research Manager, and Guardian of Science. Each of these modes of representation implies particular notions of quality, audience, motivation, and learning in science communication.