RESEARCH PROFILE

Public Engagement with Science; Science in the Public Sphere; Social Change; Sociology of Zoos; Science Festivals; Museums; Visitor Studies; Media Sociology

BACKGROUND

Dr Eric Jensen has two main research specialisms: Public engagement with science and science in the media. His research on the impacts of public engagement with science for visitors and audiences cuts across a wide range of settings, from zoos to museums to festivals. His research on science in the media has included a detailed investigation of coverage of the issue of therapeutic cloning in the US and UK. He has a forthcoming book on this topic, under contract with Ashgate. Current research projects include a three-year study of conservation education at ZSL London Zoo (funded by the Greater London Authority), a project researching the use of student volunteers within UK festivals that involve universities in public engagement (funded by the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement) and a mixed methods external evaluation studies of the Cambridge Science Festival and the Cambridge Festival of Ideas (funded by the University of Cambridge). As Associate Education Fellow at Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, he is also advising and contributing to the EU-Zoos-XXI project on science engagement activities at European zoos (funded by the European Research Council). Finally, Eric is an advisory board member for the 'Science for Global Citizenship' project (funded by the Department for International Development) and contributor to the Informing Science Outreach and Public Engagement (ISOTOPE) project (funded by NESTA and the Open University), which can be accessed at: isotope.open.ac.uk.

Eric's recent publications include peer-reviewed journal articles in Public Understanding of Science ('Mediating subpolitics in US and UK science news'), Culture & Psychology ('A cyclical model of social change'), New Genetics & Society ('Celebrity life politics in US and UK journalistic coverage of therapeutic cloning research'), Media, Culture & Society ('Between credulity and scepticism: Sightings of the fourth estate in 21st century science journalism') and Psychology & Society ('Science learning at the zoo'), as well as two chapters on science communication practice and methods in the Oxford University Press volume Investigating Science Communication in the Information Age. He is also co-editing the forthcoming book Culture & Social Change: Transforming Society through the Power of Ideas (Information Age), and contributing original theoretical chapters ('Scientific controversies and the struggle for symbolic power' and 'Mediating social change: Irony, hybridity and corporate censorship').

Eric is teaching the undergraduate modules Media Sociology (with Steve Fuller) and Surveys, Secondary Analysis and Social Statistics and the postgraduate module Quantitative Methods in Social Research (both with Richard Lampard). From 2011/12, he will also be teaching two new postgraduate modules: 'Researching Science, Media and Public Policy' and 'The Practice of Social Research' for the Warwick Faculty of Social Sciences Doctoral Training Centre. Dr Jensen is also co-convenor of the MSc, Science, Media & Public Policy

TEACHING PROFILE

Courses Taught

• Researching Science, Media and Public Policy [details]
  Module Leader and Lecturer

Learning, Teaching & Development Activity

• Postgraduate teaching (inc modules & project/research)

CURRENT RESEARCH PROJECTS

• Digital R&D Fund for the Arts: Qualia, Funded by: National Endowment of Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA), Project Start Date: 01/02/2013 Project End Date: 15/01/2014
• Investigating the Production, Delivery and Cultural Impacts of European Street Performance Theatre Festivals, Funded by: IAS (Institute of Advanced Study), Project Start Date: 01/08/2012 Project End Date: 31/07/2013
  
  

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SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

• Dr Eric Jensen (2011) 'Learning about animals, science and conservation: Large-scale survey-based evaluation of the educational impact of the ZSL London Zoo Formal Learning programme', Empirical evaluation research report on the impacts of zoo-based conservation education for children and young people, funded by the Greater London Authority. [Report] [view]
• Jensen, E. and Holliman, R. (2009) 'Investigating science communication to inform science outreach and public engagement' in Investigating science communication in the information age: implications for public engagement and popular media, 55 - 71, Editors: Holliman, R., Whitelegg, E., Scanlon, E., Smid, S. and Thomas, J., Oxford; Milton Keynes: Oxford University Press; Open University
• Jensen, E. (2014) Therapeutic cloning: global scientific controversy and the media , Ashgate
• Wagoner, B., Jensen, E. and Oldmeadow, J. (2012) Culture and social change: transforming society through the power of ideas , Information Age Publishers
• Jensen, E. (2012) 'Mediating social change: irony, hybridity and corporate censorship' in Culture and Social Change: Transforming society through the power of ideas, , Information Age Publishers

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Conferences

RESEARCH DEGREES SUPERVISED

• Freedom to Speak?: Citizen Commentary within Online, Moderated, Mainstream UK News