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Communication Studies - Prof Brüggemann
Prof Dr M. BrüggemannJournalism and Communication Studies

Photo: UHH/Dichant

The Trust Relationship between Science and Digitized Publics” (TruSDi)

Description of the Research Project

(Digital) media are among the most important sources for various publics to obtain information about science. As intermediaries of trust, they mediate trust between publics and science. This is where the DFG-funded project “The Trust Relationship between Science and Digitized Publics” (TruSDi) comes in. Conducted as a collaborative effort between the University of Hamburg, TU Braunschweig, LMU München and Bielefeld University, the project investigates the trust relationship between science and (digitized) publics. Using a mixed-methods design, this research is carried out in five research modules at the levels of users, content, and social structures. The results will identify dynamic changes in trust relationships and provide corresponding explanatory approaches, conceptualizing trust as a multidimensional construct. The project is the predecessor of TruSDi II.

Dr. Anne Reif (postdoctoral researcher) is responsible for project coordination. Her responsibilities also include the planning and implementation of the panel design and an experimental study, as well as the development of the measurement methodology and the conceptualization of the Public Trust in Science Scale (PuTruS).

  •  Project duration: 2021–2025
  • Third-party funding: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)

Project Members at the University of Hamburg

Project Members at the LMU München

Project Members at the TU Braunschweig

Project partner at Bielefeld University

Project partners (from left to right): Prof. Dr. Monika Taddicken, Dr. Anne Reif, Evelyn Jonas, Prof. Dr. Lars Guenther, Dr. Justin Tim Schröder, and Prof. Dr. Peter Weingart

Publications (selected):

  • Reif, A., Guenther, L., Taddicken, M., & Weingart, P. (2026). Correction: Trust in science during the COVID-19 pandemic: A typology of internet users in South Africa. PLOS ONE, 21(2), e0344001. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0344001
  • Reif, A., Taddicken, M., Guenther, L., Schröder, J. T., & Weingart, P. (2026). Dynamics of trust in science among digitised publics: A two-wave panel study identifying trust groups. Journal of Trust Research, 1-28. doi.org/10.1080/21515581.2025.2600301
  • Taddicken, M., & Reif, A. (2025). Science opinion leaders in digitized communication environments: Media use, trust in science, and conspiracy affinity. European Journal of Communication, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/02673231251340802
  • Reif, A., Schröder, J. T., Guenther, L., Taddicken, M., & Weingart, P. (2025). Identifying groups of trust in science in South Africa and Germany: A comparative study. In A. Fage-Butler, L. Ledderer, & K. H. Nielsen (Eds.), Science communication and trust (pp. 407–426). Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-96-1289-5_20
  • Reif, A., Taddicken, M., Guenther, L., Schröder, J. T., & Weingart, P. (2024). The Public Trust in Science Scale: A Multilevel and Multidimensional Approach. Science Communication, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/10755470241302758
  • Reif, A., Guenther, L. and Yokoyama, H. M. (2024). Public (dis)trust in science in digital media environments JCOM 23(09), E. https://doi.org/10.22323/2.23090501
  • Schröder, J, T. & Guenther, L. (2023). Science and health journalism in the digital age and its implications on public trust [Angenommene Publikation]. In K. Walsh-Childers & M. McKinnon (Hrsg.), The Palgrave handbook of health and science journalism. Palgrave Macmillan.
  • Reif, A. (2023). Twitternde Wissenschaftler*innen, Algorithmen und Desinformation: Die Bedeutung von Onlineumgebungen für die Wissenschaftskommunikation. In M. Schladebach & A. Thiele, Digitalisierung der Medienordnung. 1. Berlin-Potsdamer Konferenz zu interdisziplinären Rechtsfragen (S. 23-31). Mohr Siebeck.
  • Reif, A., Schröder, J. T., Guenther, L., Taddicken, M. & Weingart, P. (2023). Wie sehr interessieren sich Internetnutzende in Südafrika für den Klimawandel? Unterschiede zwischen fünf Bevölkerungssegmenten mit verschiedenem Wissenschaftsvertrauen. In J. Wolling, M. Becker & C. Schumann (Hrsg.), NEU – Nachhaltigkeits‐, Energie‐ und Umweltkommunikation: Bd. 8. Klima(wandel)kommunikation: Im Spannungsfeld von Wissenschaft, Medien und öffentlicher Meinung (S. 80–101). Universitätsverlag Ilmenau. https://doi.org/10.22032/dbt.55228
  • Guenther, L., Reif, A., Taddicken, M. & Weingart, P. (2022). Positive but not uncritical: Perceptions of science and technology amongst South African online users. South African Journal of Science. https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2022/11102
  • Reif, A. & Guenther, L. (2022). How representative surveys measure public (dis)trust in science: A systematisation and analysis of survey items and open-ended questions. Journal of Trust Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/21515581.2022.2075373