John C Besley

Biographic Data

ID2432883
NAMEJohn C Besley
GIVEN NAMESJohn C
FAMILY NAMEBesley
SIGNATUREBESLEY J C
AFFILIATIONSMichigan State University
ORCID0000-0002-8778-4973
VERIFIEDYes
TOTAL WORKS67
TOTAL CITATIONS212
WORKS AS AUTHOR67
WORKS AS EDITOR0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR2004
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2026
H-INDEX9

  • Preferences for training on mandatory reporting of intimate partner violence among healthcare professionals

    Open AccessVeronica Kvalen Pilskog, John C Besley et al.ARTICLEFrontiers in Public Health2026

    Background Training healthcare professionals to recognize and respond to intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important component of health system responses to violence. However, little research has explored how healthcare professionals prefer such training to be delivered. Objectives This study explored healthcare professionals’ preferences for training modalities on mandatory reporting of IPV and the associations between participant characteri…

  • A response to

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Sara K Yeo et al.ARTICLEJournal of Science Communication2026

    This response to the commentary “Does science communication have its goals wrong? From persuading science skeptics to promoting scientific empowerment” argues that the field would benefit from more attention to the persuasion literature, not less. A primary element of this argument is that a nuanced understanding of persuasion research can provide opportunities to achieve a wide range of goals — including empowering others — in ethical, evidence-…

  • The Evidence Against the Deficit Model May Not Be What You Think It Is

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Sara K YeoARTICLEScience Communication2026

    This commentary argues that blanket exhortations against the “deficit model” limit the ability to have nuanced discussions about the potential impact of seeking and sharing different types of information. It specifically seeks to remind the science communication community that the evidence only suggests a weak relationship between a specific type of textbook science knowledge and pro-science attitudes. In contrast, there is substantial evidence t…

  • Scientists’ public engagement goals

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Anthony DudoARTICLEPublic Understanding of Science2026

    This study used a survey ( n = 1897) of United States- and Canada-based scientists in six scientific fields to explore correlates of perceived (a) public engagement goal importance and (b) personal goal prioritization. Building on the Integrated Behavioral Model, the results suggest that scientists’ beliefs about the societal benefits of a goal (i.e. attitudes) are the most consistent predictors of goal importance ratings and personal goal priori…

  • Gaps in public trust between scientists and climate scientists

    Open AccessOmid Ghasemi, Viktoria Cologna et al.ARTICLEEnvironmental Research Letters2025

    This study compares public trust in climate scientists and scientists in general across 68 countries ( N = 69,534). On average, participants reported moderately high levels of trust in climate scientists, with trust levels being slightly lower than trust in scientists in general. Overall, this trust gap was larger among participants who identified as politically conservative or right-leaning, but there was considerable variation across countries

  • Public Communication about Science in 68 Countries

    Open AccessNiels G Mede, Viktoria Cologna et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2025References: 11

    This 68-country survey ( n = 71,922) examines science information diets and communication behavior, identifies cross-country differences, and tests how such differences are associated with sociopolitical and economic conditions. We find that social media are the most used sources of science information in most countries, except those with democratic-corporatist media systems where news media tend to be used more widely. People in collectivist soc…

  • Science Communication Spaces as “Pockets of Belonging

    Open AccessNic Bennett, Anthony Dudo et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2025References: 42

    Science communication spaces may provide an antidote to the hostility of graduate academic spaces. Using the conceptual lens of science identity, we interviewed North American-based STEM graduate students about their sense of belonging in these spaces. Our results suggest that many science communication spaces welcome a plurality of alternative science identities, while academic spaces require assimilation into a singular research science identit…

  • Trust in scientists and their role in society across 68 countries

    Open AccessViktoria Cologna, Niels G Mede et al.ARTICLENature Human Behaviour2025Cited by: 7References: 76

    Science is crucial for evidence-based decision-making. Public trust in scientists can help decision makers act on the basis of the best available evidence, especially during crises. However, in recent years the epistemic authority of science has been challenged, causing concerns about low public trust in scientists. We interrogated these concerns with a preregistered 68-country survey of 71,922 respondents and found that in most countries, most p…

  • Communicating trust and trustworthiness through scientists’ biographies

    Open AccessSamantha Hautea, John C Besley et al.ARTICLEPublic Understanding of Science2024

    A goal of many science communicators is to foster trust in scientists and their work. This study investigates if existing textual resources that scientists create in the course of their regular activities can be improved to enhance perceptions of scientists as trustworthy. Building on Mayer et al.’s integrative model of organizational trust, we examine how communicating benevolence through short biographies can affect trustworthiness perceptions …

  • Ecologists Prioritize Listening to Community Perspectives When They See the Benefit

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Martha R DownsARTICLEScience Communication2024References: 13

    This study uses survey data to explore ecologists’ willingness to prioritize the behavioral goal of considering local community members’ perspectives in the context of research at Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) sites. It finds that believing in the benefits of such listening is a relatively strong statistical predictor of expressing a willingness to prioritize listening. Neither normative beliefs nor agency beliefs were strong correlates of…

  • What are you assessing when you measure “trust” in scientists with a direct measure

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Leigh Anne TiffanyARTICLEPublic Understanding of Science2023

    This article analyzes three publicly available datasets focused on trust in science and scientists. It specifically seeks to understand what direct measures of trust (i.e. questions that directly ask respondents how much they trust scientists) assess in terms of discrete measures of trustworthiness (i.e. perceptions of scientists’ ability, integrity, and benevolence). Underlying the analyses is a concern that direct measures of trust are a poor s…

  • Science communication fellowship programs as gatekeepers

    Open AccessNic Bennett, Anthony Dudo et al.ARTICLEPublic Understanding of Science2022

    Science communication fellowship programs act as gatekeepers to the skills and opportunities they provide scientists and science communicators. In this role, they may either resist or reproduce inequities present in society at large. We conducted interviews with 25 US-based science communication fellowship directors representing 23 programs to investigate (1) what types of capital these programs provide to fellows and (2) what rules and norms may…

  • Strategic Science Communication

    John C Besley, John Besley et al.BOOKStrategic Science Communication2022

  • Effect of Context on Scientists’ Normative Beliefs

    Open AccessLeigh Anne Tiffany, Samantha Hautea et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2022Cited by: 1References: 24

    Past research on the relationship between scientists’ normative beliefs about public engagement in the context of willingness to engage could prove misleading if respondents do not consider the impacts of engagement activities when responding to survey questions. This study asks scientists to report normative beliefs in the context of engagement impacts and explores correlations between these responses and engagement willingness. Results suggest …

  • Can scientists communicate interpersonal warmth? Testing warmth messages in the context of science communication

    Nagwan R Zahry, John C BesleyARTICLEJournal of Applied Communication…2021

    Warmth and competence are two fundamental dimensions of social judgments that shape stereotypes of social groups/professions. In perceiving others, people assess their intentions (warmth) and their abilities to act upon those intentions (competence). As stereotyping can influence attitudes and subsequent behaviors, pre-existing stereotypes of scientists as ‘cold’ may undermine trust in science and interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineerin…

  • American Scientists’ Willingness to Use Different Communication Tactics

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Todd P Newman et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2021Cited by: 1References: 31

    The careful choice of tactics—such as specific messages, styles, channels, or sources—is how strategic science communicators ensure that the time and money going into communication results in intended changes to chosen audiences’ beliefs, feelings, and frames, as well as associated behaviors. Using a sample of scientists from American research universities ( N = 516), we assess scientists’ willingness to use 11 different communication tactics and…

  • Science Communication Training in North America

    Open AccessAnthony Dudo, John C Besley et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2021Cited by: 3References: 84

    This study identifies key characteristics of current science communication training programs based in North America. We report findings from semistructured interviews conducted with science communication trainers ( N = 32) that examined programs’ curricula, trainees, and impacts. Findings suggest that the current landscape of science communication training is one where a range of well-intentioned individuals and groups provide guidance to mostly …

  • The Evolving Field of Risk Communication

    Open AccessDominic H P Balog‐Way, Katherine A Mccomas et al.ARTICLERisk Analysis2020

    The 40th Anniversary of the Society for Risk Analysis presents an apt time to step back and review the field of risk communication. In this review, we first evaluate recent debates over the field's current state and future directions. Our takeaway is that efforts to settle on a single, generic version of what constitutes risk communication will be less productive than an open‐minded exploration of the multiple forms that comprise today's vibrant …

  • Five thoughts about improving science communication as an organizational activity

    Open AccessJohn C BesleyARTICLEJournal of Communication Management2020

    Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe five key lessons learned from a decade of studying how scientists and science communicators think about communication strategy. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on the experience of the researcher and the underlying literatures on strategic communication and science communication. Findings The key argument is that the scientific community needs to put more priority into enabling organ…

  • Exploring scholars’ public engagement goals in Canada and the United States

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Todd P Newman et al.ARTICLEPublic Understanding of Science2020

    We have little systematic knowledge about scholars’ goals for public engagement in the academic literature. This study therefore provides a secondary analysis of two surveys of scholars that included closed-ended questions about goals. One survey from 2017 was from a sample of Canadian grant recipients from a federal science funding agency, while the second survey from 2018 comes from a sample of professors at top American research universities. …

  • Reassessing the Variables Used to Measure Public Perceptions of Scientists

    Open AccessJohn C Besley, Nicole Lee et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2020Cited by: 18References: 10

    Both academics and science communication practitioners have long been interested in the public’s perceptions of scientists, impacts of those perceptions, and how communication tactics can affect them. Despite this interest, perceptual variables (e.g., trustworthiness, credibility, and fairness) are inconsistently conceptualized and operationalized within the literature. Through an examination of existing scales and a national survey ( N = 605), t…

  • Contribution of Training to Scientists’ Public Engagement Intentions

    Open AccessJacob Copple, Nichole Bennett et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2020Cited by: 5References: 88

    This article investigates the impact science communication training has on engagement intentions through a parallel multiple mediation model. Theory of planned behavior variables for internal efficacy, response efficacy, norms, and attitudes are examined as potential mediators. Based on a survey of randomly selected scientists from universities in the Association of American Universities, results indicate indirect effects for internal efficacy an…

  • A comparison between scientists’ and communication scholars’ views about scientists’ public engagement activities

    Open AccessShupei Yuan, John C Besley et al.ARTICLEPublic Understanding of Science2019

    This study investigated how communication scholars view scientists’ public engagement as well as differences between how these scholars and natural and physical scientists think about the topic. The study used surveys of authors who recently published in five journals related to science communication alongside surveys of scientists from three prominent professional science societies. The results suggest that communication scholars ( N = 362) shar…

  • Warmth portrayals to recruit students into science majors

    Open AccessNagwan R Zahry, John C BesleyARTICLEVisual Communication2019References: 11

    Negative perception of scientists is disquieting for the future of science and US economic and scientific competitiveness. Drawing on studies suggesting that warmth guides people’s judgments of social groups and professions, this study aims to communicate the interpersonal warmth of scientists using two non-verbal behaviors, namely, smiling and collaboration. Building on the visual communication literature, posters were used in a 2 x 2 x 3 within…

  • Should Scientists Talk About GMOs Nicely? Exploring the Effects of Communication Styles, Source Expertise, and Preexisting Attitude

    Open AccessShupei Yuan, Wenjuan Ma et al.ARTICLEScience Communication2019Cited by: 1References: 41

    The present study investigated the effects of communication styles, source expertise, and audiences’ preexisting attitudes in the contexts of the debate regarding genetically modified organisms. A between-subject experiment ( N = 416) was conducted manipulating communication styles (aggressive vs. polite) and the expertise of the communicator (scientist vs. nonscientist) in blog articles. The results showed significant effects of communicator exp…