Audience, consequence, and journal selection in toxic-exposure epidemiology

David A. Rier

doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.01.028

Audience, consequence, and journal selection in toxic-exposure epidemiology

David A. Rier

Department of Sociology and Anthropology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

Even preliminary toxic-exposure epidemiology papers can spark "media scares" and questionable reactions amongst the public. Concerns for the social consequences of publication can lead epidemiologists - despite the advantages of visible publication - to choose a more obscure outlet for potentially sensitive studies. Interviews with 61 US toxic-exposure epidemiologists indicate that investigators generally sought visible journals to transmit their work to the widest relevant audience. Yet up to 36-46% of this sample sometimes have sought or would seek to keep their research from a public who, they feared, might misuse their results. Implications for the boundaries between science and society (including evidence of hidden scientific activism and "inert" public activism) are discussed, and six hypotheses for further research are proposed.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1541-1546
Number of pages	6
Journal	Social Science and Medicine
Volume	59
Issue number	7
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.01.028
State	Published - Oct 2004

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The author gratefully acknowledges: the respondents, Peter Messeri, Stephen Hilgartner, Harriet Zuckerman, Michael Harrison, Miles Little, Nurit Guttman, Mervyn Susser, Ronald Bayer, and Steven Wing. Special thanks to Gavin Mooney and anonymous peer reviewers. Portions of this work originally appeared as a doctoral dissertation in the Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University, from which it received the Marissa de Castro Benton Prize. This work was partly funded by a National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant. An earlier version of this work was presented at the British Sociological Association Medical Sociology Group/European Society for Health and Medical Sociology 2nd Joint Conference. University of York, England; September 14–17, 2000.

Funding

The author gratefully acknowledges: the respondents, Peter Messeri, Stephen Hilgartner, Harriet Zuckerman, Michael Harrison, Miles Little, Nurit Guttman, Mervyn Susser, Ronald Bayer, and Steven Wing. Special thanks to Gavin Mooney and anonymous peer reviewers. Portions of this work originally appeared as a doctoral dissertation in the Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University, from which it received the Marissa de Castro Benton Prize. This work was partly funded by a National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant. An earlier version of this work was presented at the British Sociological Association Medical Sociology Group/European Society for Health and Medical Sociology 2nd Joint Conference. University of York, England; September 14–17, 2000.

Funders	Funder number
National Science Foundation

Keywords

Epidemiology
Media
Publication
Scientific responsibility
Toxic exposure

Access to Document

10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.01.028

Cite this

@article{b9ad5647af9c472bb65e3216ac52a760,

title = "Audience, consequence, and journal selection in toxic-exposure epidemiology",

abstract = "Even preliminary toxic-exposure epidemiology papers can spark {"}media scares{"} and questionable reactions amongst the public. Concerns for the social consequences of publication can lead epidemiologists - despite the advantages of visible publication - to choose a more obscure outlet for potentially sensitive studies. Interviews with 61 US toxic-exposure epidemiologists indicate that investigators generally sought visible journals to transmit their work to the widest relevant audience. Yet up to 36-46% of this sample sometimes have sought or would seek to keep their research from a public who, they feared, might misuse their results. Implications for the boundaries between science and society (including evidence of hidden scientific activism and {"}inert{"} public activism) are discussed, and six hypotheses for further research are proposed.",

keywords = "Epidemiology, Media, Publication, Scientific responsibility, Toxic exposure",

author = "Rier, {David A.}",

note = "Funding Information: The author gratefully acknowledges: the respondents, Peter Messeri, Stephen Hilgartner, Harriet Zuckerman, Michael Harrison, Miles Little, Nurit Guttman, Mervyn Susser, Ronald Bayer, and Steven Wing. Special thanks to Gavin Mooney and anonymous peer reviewers. Portions of this work originally appeared as a doctoral dissertation in the Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University, from which it received the Marissa de Castro Benton Prize. This work was partly funded by a National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant. An earlier version of this work was presented at the British Sociological Association Medical Sociology Group/European Society for Health and Medical Sociology 2nd Joint Conference. University of York, England; September 14–17, 2000.",

year = "2004",

month = oct,

doi = "10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.01.028",

language = "אנגלית",

volume = "59",

pages = "1541--1546",

journal = "Social Science and Medicine",

issn = "0277-9536",

publisher = "Elsevier Ltd.",

number = "7",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Audience, consequence, and journal selection in toxic-exposure epidemiology

AU - Rier, David A.

N1 - Funding Information: The author gratefully acknowledges: the respondents, Peter Messeri, Stephen Hilgartner, Harriet Zuckerman, Michael Harrison, Miles Little, Nurit Guttman, Mervyn Susser, Ronald Bayer, and Steven Wing. Special thanks to Gavin Mooney and anonymous peer reviewers. Portions of this work originally appeared as a doctoral dissertation in the Department of Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia University, from which it received the Marissa de Castro Benton Prize. This work was partly funded by a National Science Foundation Dissertation Improvement Grant. An earlier version of this work was presented at the British Sociological Association Medical Sociology Group/European Society for Health and Medical Sociology 2nd Joint Conference. University of York, England; September 14–17, 2000.

PY - 2004/10

Y1 - 2004/10

N2 - Even preliminary toxic-exposure epidemiology papers can spark "media scares" and questionable reactions amongst the public. Concerns for the social consequences of publication can lead epidemiologists - despite the advantages of visible publication - to choose a more obscure outlet for potentially sensitive studies. Interviews with 61 US toxic-exposure epidemiologists indicate that investigators generally sought visible journals to transmit their work to the widest relevant audience. Yet up to 36-46% of this sample sometimes have sought or would seek to keep their research from a public who, they feared, might misuse their results. Implications for the boundaries between science and society (including evidence of hidden scientific activism and "inert" public activism) are discussed, and six hypotheses for further research are proposed.

AB - Even preliminary toxic-exposure epidemiology papers can spark "media scares" and questionable reactions amongst the public. Concerns for the social consequences of publication can lead epidemiologists - despite the advantages of visible publication - to choose a more obscure outlet for potentially sensitive studies. Interviews with 61 US toxic-exposure epidemiologists indicate that investigators generally sought visible journals to transmit their work to the widest relevant audience. Yet up to 36-46% of this sample sometimes have sought or would seek to keep their research from a public who, they feared, might misuse their results. Implications for the boundaries between science and society (including evidence of hidden scientific activism and "inert" public activism) are discussed, and six hypotheses for further research are proposed.

KW - Epidemiology

KW - Media

KW - Publication

KW - Scientific responsibility

KW - Toxic exposure

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=3042706732&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.01.028

DO - 10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.01.028

M3 - ???researchoutput.researchoutputtypes.contributiontojournal.article???

C2 - 15246181

AN - SCOPUS:3042706732

SN - 0277-9536

VL - 59

SP - 1541

EP - 1546

JO - Social Science and Medicine

JF - Social Science and Medicine

IS - 7

ER -

Audience, consequence, and journal selection in toxic-exposure epidemiology

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Funding

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this