Coping with Complexity - Appropriation-Theoretical Conception and Studies on Online Communication of Scientific Topics
The increasing complexity of scientific objects poses a challenge for the individual and social debate as well as the public communication of these topics. In addition, dynamic, interactive and networked communication environments are developing online, in which users are now themselves involved in the communicative construction of scientific topics and (must) establish constant coherence between communicated and received content. So far, however, there is little knowledge of how scientific content is made 'own' in the course of online use and reception, i. H. how they are contextualized, evaluated, (further) communicated and in this way opened up and negotiated. For this purpose, investigation approaches are required which understand the management of complexity in dynamic communication environments as an interpretative and interactive process. Research of these appropriation processes can help to better understand scientific content from the users' perspective. These findings are also relevant because personal interpretations are closely linked to public discourse and affect the relationship between the public and science more generally. As part of her doctoral project, Laura Wolff is therefore pursuing the goal of conceptualizing and empirically examining the management of complexity in the context of online communication of scientific topics.