Univ.-Prof. Dipl.-Pol. Univ. Dr. Michaela Pfadenhauer

LILI - Life-worlds meet Life Science in Public Health and Social Measures – Seed Funding

Science has taken on a prominent role in tackling the challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic. Analogous to other global challenges, e.g. climate change, the measures have been facing skepticism by considerable fractions of society which has produced a high potential for societal conflict. Assuming that the protests are rooted in science skepticism and distrust towards the public communication of science, the project focuses on the lifeworlds of people rejecting the covid-19 vaccination to explain patterns of interpretation of scientific knowledge and public health and social measures (PHSM).

The expert knowledge informing political strategies to combat challenges like the pandemic or climate change requires multiple circles of interpretation and translation to reach the population. Taking mathematic modelling as case study, the project conceptualizes these translations as a multi-step process involving scientists, politics, the media, public health; and citizens interpreting their communication according to the structures of their lifeworld(s). The project, thus, aims to understand and reconstruct patterns of interpretation of science/institutions scepticism. Furthermore, the study aims to explore sceptics’ perspectives on scientific results and PHSM in solution-oriented focus groups regarding the transformation of scepticism to compliance.

The project is based on interpretative methods and funded by a start-up grant from the University of Vienna as well as the Vienna University of Economics and Business. In addition to the development of a full proposal, initial field work is carried out, results are elaborated and prepared for publication.

Project Team University of Vienna:
Michaela Pfadenhauer | Arthur Buckenleib

Partners:
Vienna University of Economics and Business | Institute of Mathematics, University of Vienna | LMU Munich