Kaija Biermann, M.A.

• Online communication
• Risk and crisis communication
• Political communication
• Science communication

Communication and roles of scientific experts in social media during the Covid 19 pandemic.

The communication of scientific experts via social media is an important development in science communication. Scientific experts can communicate directly with political, media, and social actors through their own social media channels. The boundaries between different public arenas are becoming increasingly blurred in the online environment. In her cumulative dissertation project, Kaija Biermann uses the Covid 19 pandemic as an example to investigate what this means for the communication behavior and roles of scientific experts. During the first two years of the pandemic, scientific experts in the field of virology were the main actors shaping the public debate. They also used their own social media channels to communicate with the public. In order to be able to make statements about the communication behavior of scientific experts in the social media, a quantitative content analysis of contributions of visible experts on Twitter will be carried out. In addition, the expectations and evaluations of laypersons regarding the communication of scientific experts in social media will be examined more closely in focus group discussions. Finally, the own understanding of the role and the perceived role attributions will be examined with the help of qualitative interviews with scientific experts. Through the empirical investigation of different dimensions of roles, (changing) roles of scientific experts in digital communication environments will be considered holistically.

• Biermann, K., Banse, L. and Taddicken, M. (2025). "It's mostly a one-way street, to be honest": the subjective relevance of public engagement in the science communication of professional university communicators JCOM 24(01), A03. https://doi.org/10.22323/2.24010203
• Biermann, K., Nowak, B., Braun, L.‑M., Taddicken, M., Krämer, N. C., & Stieglitz, S. (2024). Does Scientific Evidence Sell? Combining Manual and Automated Content Analysis to Investigate Scientists’ and Laypeople’s Evidence Practices on Social Media. Science Communication, 46(5), 619-652. https://doi.org/10.1177/10755470241249468
• Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2024). Visible scientists in digital communication environments: An analysis of their role performance as public experts on Twitter/X during the Covid-19 pandemic. Public Understanding of Science, 34(1), 38-58. https://doi.org/10.1177/09636625241249389
• Peters, N., Peter, E., & Biermann, K. (2023). Kann Wissenschaftskommunikation einen Beitrag dazu leisten, Wissenschaftsskepsis und Wissenschaftsleugnung in Deutschland zu reduzieren? Ein Forschungsüberblick (Report). Transfer Unit Wissenschaftskommunikation, Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b4-opus4-47016
• Biermann, K., Peters, N., & Taddicken, M. (2023). "You can do better than that!": Tweeting Scientists Addressing Politics on Climate Change and Covid-19. Media and Communication, 11(01), 217-227. https://doi.org/10.17645/mac.v11i1.5961

• Banse, L., Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2025, June 15). “My official title is science communicator, in reality I just do marketing”: Localization of communication functions in the professional role identities of full-time communicators in research organizations in centralized vs. decentralized structures [Accepted presentation]. 75^th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA) Conference, Denver, USA.

• Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2025, June 14). “However I judge it – I think it’s a gut feeling”: Examining (Un)trustworthiness Cues in YouTube Videos by Real and Feigned Experts [Accepted presentation]. 75^th Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA) Conference, Denver, USA.

• Biermann, K. & Taddicken, M. (2025, May 27-29). Public’s role perceptions of scientific experts on social media [Individual Talk/Presentation]. Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST) Conference, Aberdeen, Scotland.

• Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2024, September). “They should make it apolitical”: Public’s role perceptions of scientific experts on social media [Presentation]. 10^th European Communication Research and Education Association (ECREA) Conference, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

• Biermann, K., & Banse, L. (2024, September 12). Die Rolle von Hochschulkommunikator*innen an der Schnittstelle zwischen Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft: Herausforderungen und Perspektiven [Presentation]. WissKomm Connected Conference of the Transfer Unit Science Communication, Berlin, Germany.

• Peters, N., Jonas, E., & Biermann, K. (2024, September 12). Skepsis, Misstrauen, Leugnung – Wie die Forschung negative Einstellungen gegenüber Wissenschaft definiert und wie die Wissenschaftskommunikation ihr begegnen kann [Presentation]. WissKomm Connected Conference of the Transfer Unit Science Communication, Berlin, Germany.

• Banse, L., Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2024, June 7). Centralized vs. Decentralized Science Communication in Universities: Differences in the Professional Role Identities of University Communicators in Various Organizational Contexts [Presentation]. Annual Meeting of the Science Communication Division of the German Communication Association (DGPuK), Zurich, Switzerland.

• Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2024, June 6). “However I judge it, I think it‘s a gut feeling”: Examining (Un)trustworthiness Cues in YouTube Videos by Real and Feigned Experts [Presentation]. Annual Meeting of the Science Communication Division of the German Communication Association (DGPuK), Zurich, Switzerland.

• Biermann, K., Banse, L., & Taddicken, M. (2024, March 15). „Motivieren, begeistern, fröhliche Gesichter, leuchtende Augen“: Die Rolle von Public Engagement in der Wissenschaftskommunikation deutscher Hochschulkommunikator*innen [Presentation]. 69^th Annual Conference of the German Communication Association (DGPuK). Erfurt, Germany.

• Biermann, K., Braun, L., Nowak, B., Taddicken, M., Krämer, N., & Steiglitz, S. (2023, May 29). Evidence sells? Combining manual and automated coding to analyze evidence-based communication on social media [Presentation]. 73^rd Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), Toronto, Canada.

• Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2023, May 28). Scientists’ role performance in intermingling online public arenas during the COVID-19 pandemic [Presentation]. 73^rd Annual Conference of the International Communication Association (ICA), Toronto, Canada.

• Peters, N., Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2023, April 5). "You can do better than that!"- Climate and Covid-19 Experts Addressing Politics on Twitter [Presentation]. Public Communiation of Science and Technology (PCST), Rotterdam, Netherlands, virtual.

• Biermann, K., & Taddicken, M. (2022, September 28). Changing roles: Scientists’ role performance on Twitter during the Covid-19 pandemic [Presentation]. Scientific Expertise, Communication and Trust (SECAT) Conference, virtual.
• Podschuweit, N., Biermann, K., Struck, F., & Wiedicke, A. (2017, July 15-17). Measuring interpersonal political communication: Methodological and ethical challenges [Presentation]. 70^th Annual Conference WAPOR “Public Opinion and Policy-making”, Lisbon, Portugal.

SCan

Science communication during pandemics: The role of public engagement in social media discussions