I just posted my final project for JOMC-713: Social Media and the Scientific Community. It is a reflection of my coursework this semester and my interest in social media use by scientists and researchers.
As there is compelling evidence that the acceptance and use of social media in the scientific community is dwarfed in comparison to its prevalence in the business sector, my paper explores the reasons behind that imbalance, and seeks to determine whether social media is a viable tool for the scientific community.
Though its image is changing as it becomes more mainstream, social media is still largely viewed by the scientific community as a trivial, time-wasting activity that adds no intrinsic value in the real world. The Facebook/Myspace teen-user image is still the dominant one. The “science” personality may also contribute to the sparse number of scientists and researchers using social media. There is a school of thought that researchers and scientists may be caught up in a vicious cycle of not having large social circles, which results in a limited amount of online social interaction, which in turn limits the size of their social circles.
There are plenty of “experts” out there who are convinced that social media is a dead end in the realm of scientists and researchers. My theory is that that those who are downplaying its potential are being short-sighted and not giving the community enough credit for its ability to creatively integrate new technologies. Science is all about making new discoveries, and this group will surely discover new ways to utilize social media in their work. They shouldn’t underestimate the motivation of social media platform providers, either, who will work hard to provide what this large group of participants will support and use.
Read the entire paper here: rachel_pittman_713_fa09_essay
