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The Communicating Science, Health, Environment and Risk (ComSHER) Division is an academic organization that fosters research and education on the topics of science communication, health communication, environmental communication, and risk communication. This group started with a focus on science communication and expanded to explicitly include health communication in 2010. ComSHER has seen expansive growth in its 30‐year history and is currently the third largest division in the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC). Most of the organizational activities revolve around the annual conference and its paper competition.

Health Communication in the Caribbean and Beyond provides a comprehensive, well-researched and up-to-date discussion of the local and international health communication literature and provides a theoretical and practical framework for teaching health and/or medical communication skills. It reviews, explains and applies health communication concepts and principles and provides contexts for their application in both the classroom and in the health professions. In part 1, the contributors provide a context for health communication skills, education and training in the Caribbean. They cite experiences ranging from the development of an innovative communication skills programme, gender differences in delivering bad news, cultural differences between Western models of nonverbal communication and Caribbean contexts of learning, and the efforts to develop clinical communication skills in an academic setting. In part 2, the contributors address the theme of patient care and counselling from multiple perspectives, including exploring the psychological dimension of health communication through patient care and interventions, developing an approach to psychosocial factors and communication skills that influence adherence, considering the challenges in adopting a multicultural perspective, and illuminating how interdisciplinary health teams provide medical and dental support and communication to villagers. Collectively they cast new light on patient-provider communication and provide contrasting insights into issues of privacy and openness, tolerance and empathy. In part 3, the contributors focus on mediated channels of health communication at both interpersonal and mass communication levels. They examine Internet communication technologies to enhance health communication, the novel prospect of STD partner notification through e-mail and the ethical challenges inherent in such approaches, and surveys to assess the impact of mass communication in halting the spread of HIV/AIDS. In part 4, the contributors analyse the effectiveness of campaigns and practices in health communication. They explore how the role of religiosity in communicating on social and behavioral change and strategies developed from decades of clinical practice and health communication activities.

The current study involved an attempted census of first and second authors from five key journals across the subfields of science, health, environment, and risk communication between 2003 and 2008. Of those responding ( n = 320), 80% describe themselves as a communication expert. Of these experts ( n = 255), 57% report conducting formal training for bench scientists and engineers, science regulators, medical personnel, or journalists. The main focus of training was in basic communication theories and models. There is broad agreement that the science community would benefit from additional science communication training and that deficit model thinking remains prevalent.

Risk communicators are often envisioned as government officials, public relations practitioners, or health workers. Yet much of the public's risk information comes from informal messages and unofficial carriers. Referred to in this study as "informal risk communicators" (IRCs), these individuals are often service workers who relay risk information to public audiences, though often outside of their formal job descriptions. Literatures in the health communication, science and technology studies, and risk communication fields have considered ideas relevant to explaining these individuals, and the risk communication work they perform. To further explore this category of individuals, this study examines the communicative practices of commercial pesticide applicators, using both in-depth interviews and surveys. Through their interactions with clients, these individuals offer care, as well as project expertise and identity; however, the extent to which this work is recognized and validated is less clear. Both applied and theoretical implications of this research are considered.

Under the background of mobile Internet, WeChat has become an important medium and channel for science communication. This paper selected ten WeChat official accounts of science and technology museums, which were located in different regions and had different levels and scales, as the research object. By analyzing and exploring the characteristics of the communication elements of ten selected science and technology museums, we identified several factors that might affect the science communication effect. Based on our research, we propose several following strategies to enhance communication effectiveness: strengthen the training of the new media operation staff and enhance their abilities, improve their content dissemination strategies, emphasize user-centricity in communication and explore the highlights of offline activities further, etc.

IntroductionGenerative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools such as ChatGPT-4o and Gemini are rapidly influencing public health research and communication. Their capacity to assist with drafting, summarising, and translating content offers significant potential, particularly in multilingual and resource-limited settings.This narrative review critically explored the adoption of GenAI tools in public health research and communication, focusing on their practical applications and ethical implications.MethodsThis narrative review synthesised 18 recent peer-reviewed and grey literature (2023–2025) to explore the role of GenAI in public health research and communication. A hybrid human–AI approach was used, where colour-coded manual coding was combined with AI-supported thematic analysis. All AI-generated outputs were critically reviewed, verified, and refined by the author.ResultsFive key themes were identified: (1) Supporting scientific research writing tasks; (2) enhancing language clarity and scientific tone; (3) bridging the gap between science and the public; (4) ethical concerns and quality assurance; and (5) future potential and the need for upskilling.DiscussionGenAI can democratise and accelerate public health research publication and communication, provided it is used transparently and critically. Human oversight and contextual judgement remain essential to ensure responsible use.ConclusionWith thoughtful implementation, GenAI can enhance human expertise in the realm of public health, academia and scientific communication. It offers an emerging opportunity to strengthen public health research and communication, particularly when supported by ethical guidelines, training, and institutional leadership.

BackgroundPublic health agencies widely adopt social media for health and risk communication. Moreover, different platforms have different affordances, which may impact the quality and nature of the messaging and how the public engages with the content. However, these platform effects are not often compared in studies of health and risk communication and not previously for the COVID-19 pandemic.ObjectiveThis study measures the potential media effects of Twitter and Facebook on public health message design and engagement by comparing message elements and audience engagement in COVID-19–related posts by local, state, and federal public health agencies in the United States during the pandemic, to advance theories of public health messaging on social media and provide recommendations for tailored social media communication strategies.MethodsWe retrieved all COVID-19–related posts from major US federal agencies related to health and infectious disease, all major state public health agencies, and selected local public health departments on Twitter and Facebook. A total of 100,785 posts related to COVID-19, from 179 different accounts of 96 agencies, were retrieved for the entire year of 2020. We adopted a framework of social media message elements to analyze the posts across Facebook and Twitter. For manual content analysis, we subsampled 1677 posts. We calculated the prevalence of various message elements across the platforms and assessed the statistical significance of differences. We also calculated and assessed the association between message elements with normalized measures of shares and likes for both Facebook and Twitter.ResultsDistributions of message elements were largely similar across both sites. However, political figures (P<.001), experts (P=.01), and nonpolitical personalities (P=.01) were significantly more present on Facebook posts compared to Twitter. Infographics (P<.001), surveillance information (P<.001), and certain multimedia elements (eg, hyperlinks, P<.001) were more prevalent on Twitter. In general, Facebook posts received more (normalized) likes (0.19%) and (normalized) shares (0.22%) compared to Twitter likes (0.08%) and shares (0.05%). Elements with greater engagement on Facebook included expressives and collectives, whereas posts related to policy were more engaged with on Twitter. Science information (eg, scientific explanations) comprised 8.5% (73/851) of Facebook and 9.4% (78/826) of Twitter posts. Correctives of misinformation only appeared in 1.2% (11/851) of Facebook and 1.4% (12/826) of Twitter posts.ConclusionsIn general, we find a data and policy orientation for Twitter messages and users and a local and personal orientation for Facebook, although also many similarities across platforms. Message elements that impact engagement are similar across platforms but with some notable distinctions. This study provides novel evidence for differences in COVID-19 public health messaging across social media sites, advancing knowledge of public health communication on social media and recommendations for health and risk communication strategies on these online platforms.

Background: Pandemics are associated with loss of life, hospitalizations, and disruption to people’s social and economic lives. As the 2019 pandemic illustrates, COVID-19 can be prevented by pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). Recommended measures such as wearing a mask, washing hands, social distancing, and self-quarantine have been proven to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Identifying the factors associated with adherence to NPIs is the first step in understanding which levers of change to pull when designing health promotion interventions such as health communication campaigns. This dissertation explores these factors and proposes a health communication framework during pandemics. Research Questions: This dissertation has three research questions: 1) What demographic, personal-cognitive, and socio-environmental factors influenced the adoption of non-pharmaceutical interventions during pandemics among health care university students? 2) Which psychological, cognitive, or socio-environmental factors are more predictive of adherence to COVID-19 NPIs among the Saudi population? 3) What risk communication framework best suits public health messaging and communication to promote adopting non-pharmaceutical interventions during a pandemic? Methods: In the first manuscript, a systematic review was conducted to identify demographic, personal-cognitive, and socio-environmental factors influencing the adoption of non-pharmaceutical interventions during a pandemic among health care university students. In the second manuscript, a quantitative non-experimental survey research design study was conducted, where a Social Cognitive Theory-guided survey was used to measure adherence to non-pharmaceutical interventions and explore the personal cognitive and socio-environmental influencing factors. The third manuscript uses a grounded theory technique to explore the relevant literature on NPIs communication and develops a conceptual framework to assist the health communicator during pandemics. Results: In manuscript 1, the systematic review identified 18 articles for full-text review. The results yielded 18 demographic factors associated with NPIs practice factors, of which being older, female, observing others practice NPIs, and having higher risk perception levels were influencing factors. Additionally, cues to action, source of information, anger, confusion, and positive attitude, perceived stress, susceptibility, benefits, barriers, and severity influenced NPIs adherence. In manuscript 2, NPIs were strongly correlated with normative beliefs and negatively correlated with self-efficacy. The hierarchical multiple regression model revealed that socio-environmental factors explained a significant proportion of variance in NPIs (52%). In manuscript 3, the Pandemic Behavioral Prevention Framework was developed based on components adopted from the CDC’s Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication Model, The Social Amplification of Risk Perception Framework, and The Social Cognitive Theory. Conclusion: The dissertation’s manuscripts found that demographic factors

At last, a compilation of essays that provide fascinating insights into Health Communication and Disease in Africa. Falade and Murire (eds.) have produced a volume which needed to be written and will delight those with an interest in health and science communication, public health, social and behaviour change, and theoretical approaches to health communication. Broad themes cover stigma, beliefs and traditions, and rethinking approaches to health communication. A key element is the effort to bridge ‘classical’ approaches to health communication and behaviour change with indigenous knowledge systems of people in Africa.

The fields of entomology, geospatial science, and science communication are understaffed in many areas, resulting in poor community awareness and heightened risks of vector-borne diseases. This is especially true in East Tennessee, where La Crosse encephalitis (LACE) causes pediatric illness each year. In response to these problems, we created a community engagement program that includes a yearlong academy for secondary STEM educators in the 6-12 grade classroom. The objectives of this program were to support inquiry-driven classroom learning to foster student interest in STEM fields, produce community-driven mosquito surveillance, and enhance community awareness of LACE. We trained educators in medical entomology, geospatial science, and science communication, and they incorporated those skills into lesson plans for a mosquito oviposition experiment that tested hypotheses developed in the classroom. Here, we share results from the first two years of the MEGA:BITESS academy, tailored for our community by having students ask questions directly related to Aedes mosquito oviposition biology and La Crosse encephalitis. In year one, we recruited 17 educators to participate in the project, and 15 of those educators returned in year two. All participating educators completed the academy, conducted the oviposition experiment, and informed over 400 students about a variety of careers and disciplines for their students. Here, we present a community-based program that helps to address the problems associated with long-term mosquito surveillance, health and science education and communication, career opportunities, and the community needs of Appalachia, as well as the initial data on the effectiveness of two years of an educator-targeted professional-development program.

Women have become more involved in journalism coverage of science and health topics over the last 20 years. The field remains male-dominated, however, raising the question of how women in science communication are perceived. In this chapter, we explore how role congruity theory may influence women’s success in science and health communication in the media. Role congruity theory posits that individuals judge others based on the degree to which those others’ characteristics are consistent with the expectations ascribed to the role that the other fills. Gender role expectations—specifically, that women are linked with communal values and men with agentic values—may conflict with the role expectations of scientists who are women. That is, women are assumed to be helpful and concerned with others, while scientists (historically men) are presumed objective and competitive. These discrepancies have real consequences for women journalists and scholars.

Notes on Contributors

This formative research study used qualitative methods to test the suitability of messages about botulism for the general public. Nine focus group interviews and 27 cognitive interviews were conducted with diverse audiences to pretest radio, television, and fact sheet messages predicated on a hypothetical terrorist attack using botulinum toxin. Narrative data were collected, transcribed, coded, and analyzed using content domains based on risk and health communication theories. While participants accepted the need for materials, the messages produced contained images and references describing botulism as a toxin-caused illness spread both by food and water contamination as well as by airborne means. The audience's lack of understanding of the term toxin and an imperfect understanding of airborne transmission of a toxic substance meant that some people interpreted botulism as being an infectious disease rather than a type of poisoning. The communication materials did not clearly show how the set of botulism symptoms are unique and described the anti-toxin as "not a cure," thus compounding the audience's misunderstanding. Using models from cognitive and developmental psychology, our findings were interpreted to show that certain terms evoke or elicit long-held conceptual frameworks that lay audiences use to explain medical phenomena. Relevant to botulism, poisoning events are distinct from infectious diseases, but prepared messages did not reinforce these distinctions. Ignoring how people organize preexisting health information when trying to communicate new information is a prescription for failure, especially in a crisis risk communication scenario. Findings from this study have been used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to reformulate pre-event crisis risk communication materials for botulism.

Climate and anthropogenic change, particularly agricultural runoff, increase blue-green algae/cyanobacteria blooms. This article researches cyanobacteria alert-level identification, management, and risk communication in Lake Hume, Australia. Two methods, document and content analysis, evidence contamination events and risk communication, reflect water governance and data management limitations. Results found that Lake Hume had amber or red alerts for only one week, December 2021–December 2022. This failed to prevent government tourism promotion of recreational usage, contravening water authority red alert advice. Lake-use restrictions lacked compliance enforcement. Events during amber alerts lacked risk communication to vulnerable populations (children). Lake Hume’s governance by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority restricted risk communication to one authority that reproduced generic advice in minimal outlets/time points. Geophysical signage failed to address diversity needs (language, literacy, age, and disabilities). No risk communication was found for residents with diseases exacerbated by aerosolization. Despite WHO promoting cyanotoxin investigation, Australian research is absent in international literature. Further, Lake Hume cyanobacteria produce potentially carcinogenic microcystein. This coexists with census data revealing cancer rates higher than the national average in a waterside town. The results demonstrate the need to incorporate robust public health risk assessments, communication, and management into water management and advocate international legislation changes based on evidence-based research to reduce blooms and prevent agricultural runoff.

This article provides a conceptual history of science mass communication, which is seen as divided into the scientific literacy and interactive science traditions. The origins of the ideas that underlie the scientific literacy and interactive science traditions, as well as some of the issues researchers have raised, are introduced. The author argues the two traditions are not mutually exclusive, although the interactive tradition is a response to the applied problems within the scientific literacy model. It is argued that the pace of research might be accelerated if there were a more comprehensive collaboration among science communication, health communication, and risk communication scholarship.