Social Science Matters - Welcome

Episode overview

This episode welcomes listeners to the podcast "Social Science Matters," which is dedicated to exploring the important world of social science research in the marine environment. In this episode we outline the purpose of the series, which aims to demystify social science methods and make them accessible to marine researchers, practitioners, and anyone interested in the human dimensions of the ocean. We tell listeners what is to come in the series and introduce the ‘shownotes’ – the complimentary materials – which will accompany each podcast, offering a bank of (hopefully!) helpful resources for extending understanding. We hope you enjoy this opening episode and the series to come. This podcast is not about turning you into a social scientist overnight. It's about empowering you to ask better questions, understand complex social issues, and integrate social science insights into your work.

 

You can tag us on social media #SocialScienceMatters.

 

Resources

Supporting readings

• This reading aims to provide an introduction to the social sciences, not least for those coming from natural science backgrounds. A must read!
• Moon, K., & Blackman, D. (2014). A guide to understanding social science research for natural scientists. Conservation Biology, 28(5), 1167-1177. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12326

These readings make the case for why social science matters to the marine realm! Essential!

• Markus, T., Hillebrand, H., Hornidge, A. K., Krause, G., & Schlüter, A. (2018). Disciplinary diversity in marine sciences: the urgent case for an integration of research. ICES Journal of Marine Science, 75(2), 502-509. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsx201
• Bennett, N. J., Roth, R., Klain, S. C., Chan, K., Christie, P., Clark, D. A., ... & Wyborn, C. (2017). Conservation social science: Understanding and integrating human dimensions to improve conservation. Biological Conservation, 205, 93-108. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320716305328
• Gómez, S., & Köpsel, V. (Eds.). (2022). Transdisciplinary Marine Research: Bridging Science and Society. Taylor & Francis. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003311171 (Open Access content)

Supporting websites

Do you want to see how the marine social sciences are shaping research on marine environments? Check out this website of the Consortium for Marine Research in Germany!

• KDM Marine Social Science Group https://www.deutsche-meeresforschung.de/en/strategy/strategy-groups/social-sciences/

Other podcasts

For some general podcasts covering interesting topics across the natural and social marine sciences -- see the links below. We recommend our own series but cannot take responsibility for external content.

• https://hifmb.de/news/podcast/ You, Me and HIFMB Stories of Science and the Seas
• https://sites.nicholas.duke.edu/seastheday/ Seas the Day, A podcast of the Duke University Marine Lab