Perspectives from Citizen Science Practitioners on How Projects Develop Science Identity and Community-Building Among Volunteers

Abstract:

Beyond scientific outcomes, citizen science projects also produce a myriad of personal and social outcomes for the volunteers involved. Engaging with citizen science projects as a volunteer has been identified as a mechanism to support the development of an individual’s science-related identity in addition to their social and cultural identities, especially for participants from communities and backgrounds considered to be nondominant and underrepresented in STEM. Additionally, social aspects of participation in citizen science have been identified, both as indicators of volunteer satisfaction and as contributors to continued project engagement. Among these are the interactive features and opportunities of programs that support the development and fostering of volunteer communities.

This presentation focuses on how current citizen science projects promote science identity development and community-building among their volunteers. By sharing data from a survey of citizen science practitioners involved in a diversity of projects along with highlighting examples from project resources, we will explore the direct and indirect ways that these projects contribute to volunteer science identity development and community-building. Additionally, we will share the methods and efforts by which some projects intentionally recruit and engage diverse audiences to contribute to their projects as volunteers.

The survey of citizen science practitioners was shared through the Citizen Science Association (CSA) listserv, and in addition to questions surrounding science identity and community-building among volunteers were questions related to project format, scale, and scope, numbers of total and active volunteers, and volunteer demographics.