Deliberation of the Scientific Evidence for Breastfeeding Online Comments as Social Representations

This mixed-methods study examines online comments (The Atlantic online, N = 326; NYTimes.com, N = 596) generated by two widely read articles challenging the scientific basis for U.S. government breastfeeding recommendations. The analysis focuses on commenter evaluations of the scientific evidence fo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inScience communication Vol. 36; no. 6; pp. 778 - 801
Main Authors Len-Ríos, María E., Bhandari, Manu, Medvedeva, Yulia S.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.12.2014
SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects
Breast Feeding
Breastfeeding & lactation
Communication
Internet
Journalism
Science
social representation
news
breastfeeding
online comments
science
journalism
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Summary:This mixed-methods study examines online comments (The Atlantic online, N = 326; NYTimes.com, N = 596) generated by two widely read articles challenging the scientific basis for U.S. government breastfeeding recommendations. The analysis focuses on commenter evaluations of the scientific evidence for breastfeeding. Results demonstrate that commenters socially represented breastfeeding science as a means for manufacturing convenience and also as a process that is prone to flaws in its production and application. Online commenters discussed their personal experiences (42%) with breastfeeding more than its evidence base (16%). Personal and social experiences were used as filters to judge the merits of scientific arguments.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
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ISSN:1075-5470
1552-8545
DOI:10.1177/1075547014556195