The relation between science and society is both continually open to debate and subject to change. This course will help to better understand this relationship and discuss both its affordances and its responsibilities with a focus on how scientific knowledge is produced, evaluated, and communicated. The course is organized around three themes. It starts with the societal preconditions of scientific research, as stated in Germany’s Grundgesetz Art. 5(3). After introducing key concepts concerning values in science – including value-free ideals, as well as legitimate and illegitimate values – the second part focuses on scientific decision-making in experimental behavioral sciences, particularly experimental psychology. Among the many decisions experimental scientists face in their day-to-day practice we discuss a) the benefits and downsides of preregistering experiments, hypothesis testing and exploratory practices, communicating uncertainty and evaluating evidence. In addition, we address b) socio-epistemic decisions related to collaboration, epistemic trust, and the communication of limitations and uncertainties within a competitive academic environment. Thirdly, the course returns to the science-society relationship by examining how science communication impacts society. This includes challenges of policy recommendations, expert knowledge, and communication to the general public. The course concludes with an analysis of known challenges such as false balance and manufactured doubt, and reflects on the shared responsibilities of science and society in maintaining a mutually beneficial relationship.
Prerequisites: Willingness to engage with English-language texts. BA and MA students (German- and English- speaking) are welcome.
- Kursleiter/in: Nora Hangel