title: Communicating Uncertain Science to the Public: How Amount and Source of Uncertainty Impact Fatalism, Backlash, and Overload.
abstract: Public dissemination of scientific research often focuses on the finding (e.g., nanobombs kill lung cancer) rather than the uncertainty/limitations (e.g., in mice). Adults (n = 880) participated in an experiment where they read a manipulated news report about cancer research (a) that contained either low or high uncertainty (b) that was attributed to the scientists responsible for the research (disclosure condition) or an unaffiliated scientist (dueling condition). Compared to the dueling condition, the disclosure condition triggered less prevention-focused cancer fatalism and nutritional backlash.
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
authors.forename: Jakob D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Jensen
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
authors.forename: Manusheela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pokharel
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Studies, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Courtney L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Scherr
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Relations, Texas Tech, Lubbock, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Andy J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: King
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication, Indiana University-Northwest, Gary, IN.
authors.forename: Natasha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Whitewater, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D022126:Access to Information; D035843:Biomedical Research / Q000639:trends*; D003142:Communication; D030881:Disclosure; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D035501:Uncertainty
keywords: Cancer; cancer information overload; fatalism; nutritional backlash; uncertainty