Bias and Misrepresentation of Science Undermines Productive Discourse on Animal Welfare Policy: A Case Study

Reliable scientific knowledge is crucial for informing legislative, regulatory, and policy decisions in a variety of areas. To that end, scientific reviews of topical issues can be invaluable tools for informing productive discourse and decision-making, assuming these reviews represent the target body of scientific knowledge as completely, accurately, and objectively as possible. Unfortunately, not all reviews live up to this standard. As a case in point, Marino et al.’s review regarding the welfare of killer whales in captivity contains methodological flaws and misrepresentations of the scientific literature, including problematic referencing, overinterpretation of the data, misleading word choice, and biased argumentation. These errors and misrepresentations undermine the authors’ conclusions and make it impossible to determine the true state of knowledge of the relevant issues. To achieve the goal of properly informing public discourse and policy on this and other issues, it is imperative that scientists and science communicators strive for higher standards of analysis, argumentation, and objectivity, in order to clearly communicate what is known, what is not known, what conclusions are supported by the data, and where we are lacking the data necessary to draw reliable conclusions.

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Given the Cold Shoulder: A Review of the Scientific Literature for Evidence of Reptile Sentience

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani9100821 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (10) ◽

pp. 821 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Lambert ◽

Carder ◽

D’Cruze

Keyword(s):

Open Access ◽

Animal Welfare ◽

Consumer Behaviour ◽

Scientific Literature ◽

Open Access Journal ◽

Future Research ◽

Welfare Impacts ◽

In Captivity ◽

Captive Welfare ◽

Selection Of

We searched a selection of the scientific literature to document evidence for, and explorations into reptile sentience. The intention of this review was to highlight; (1) to what extent reptile capability for emotions have been documented in the scientific literature; (2) to discuss the implications this evidence has for the trade in reptiles; and (3) to outline what future research is needed to maximise their captive welfare needs. We used 168 keywords associated with sentience, to search through four journal databases and one open-access journal. We recorded studies that explored sentience in reptiles and those that recognised reptile sentience in their experiments. We found that reptiles were assumed to be capable of the following emotions and states; anxiety, distress, excitement, fear, frustration, pain, stress, and suffering, in 37 articles. We also found four articles that explored and found evidence for the capacity of reptiles to feel pleasure, emotion, and anxiety. These findings show that reptiles are considered to be capable of experiencing a range of emotions and states. This has implications for how reptiles are treated in captivity, as a better understanding could help to inform a range of different operational initiatives aimed at reducing negative animal welfare impacts, including improved husbandry and consumer behaviour change programmes.

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Utility of primary scientific literature to environmental managers: an international case study on coral-dominated marine protected areas

10.31230/osf.io/hv4da ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Chris Cvitanovic ◽

Christopher Fulton ◽

Shaun Wilson ◽

Lorrae van Kerkhoff ◽

Ingrid Cripps ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Protected Areas ◽

Marine Protected Areas ◽

Scientific Literature ◽

Scientific Information ◽

Limiting Factor ◽

Decision Making Process ◽

Management Plans ◽

Efficient Integration

Integration of scientific information into the decision-making process for the management of marine resources remains a significant challenge, with the inaccessibility of primary scientific literature to environmental practitioners identified as a key limiting factor. Here, we quantify the use of primary scientific literature in environmental management plans, and explore potential barriers to the efficient integration of such scientific information into the decision-making process. Through a case study of coral dominated Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) spanning three countries (Australia, Kenya and Belize), we find that primary scientific literature represents only 14% of information cited in management plans. Such a low proportion is likely to be symptomatic of several issues regarding the accessibility of primary scientific literature to MPA managers, such as: 1. Long publication times for articles (average 40.2 ± 1.8 months); 2. Subscription-only access (up to 56% of articles behind paywalls); and/or 3. Poor articulation of management implications (only 19% of articles provided clear outcomes relevant to management). Such impediments can undermine the adaptive governance of MPAs, so we suggest improvements to knowledge transfer among scientists and managers via a diversity of approaches including knowledge brokers, boundary organisations, knowledge co-production and management-orientated summaries in research articles.

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Death by Decapitation: A Case Study of the Scientific Definition of Animal Welfare

Society and Animals ◽

10.1163/156853097x00150 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 5 (3) ◽

pp. 239-256 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Lawrence G. Carbone

Keyword(s):

Animal Welfare ◽

Scientific Knowledge ◽

Historical Case Study ◽

Historical Case ◽

Laboratory Rodents ◽

The Social ◽

Animal Welfare Science ◽

Definition Of ◽

Animal Care

AbstractAssessments of animal experience and consciousness are embedded in all issues of animal welfare policy, and the field of animal welfare science has been developed to make these evaluations. In light of modern studies of the social construction of scientific knowledge, it is surprising how little attention has been paid to date on how crucial evaluations about animals are made. In this paper, I begin to fill that gap by presenting a historical case study of the attempt to define the pain and distress of one common practice in animal research-the use of the tabletop guillotine to decapitate laboratory rodents. I describe the negotiations involved in reaching consensus on the meaning of the available data and caution animal care and use committees that they should always work with the realization that our scientific knowledge of what animals experience is partial and provisional knowledge at best.

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Conclusions

Pride and Shame in Child and Family Social Work ◽

10.1332/policypress/9781447344797.003.0009 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 187-204

Author(s):

Matthew Gibson

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Social Work ◽

Public Discourse ◽

Work Practice ◽

Social Work Practice ◽

Theory And Practice ◽

Future Directions ◽

Case Study Site ◽

And Control

This chapter reviews and summarises the theory proposed throughout this book. It considers this theory within the context of the case-study site used as an example throughout. While all child and family social work organisations will interpret the wider systemic pressures individually and have their own regional needs and local idiosyncrasies, the case example provides an illustration of how pride and shame can be used in political attempts to shape, direct and control public services. In addition, it also demonstrates the complexity of the decision-making process, where experiences, or the anticipation, of pride, shame and other self-conscious emotions drive practitioners to comply with, or resist, such pressures. These processes are not reserved specifically for child and family social work, however. Indeed, the whole welfare state and governmental apparatus has been going through a transformation as neoliberal ideas, agendas and values have become embedded into political, media and public discourse. These ideas, therefore, relate to other disciplines and practices. This chapter sketches out the conditions needed for authenticity and pride in social work practice before concluding with possible future directions in the theory and practice of pride and shame in professional practice

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Using Farm Animal Welfare Protocols as a Base to Assess the Welfare of Wild Animals in Captivity—Case Study: Dorcas Gazelles (Gazella dorcas)

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani8070111 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (7) ◽

pp. 111 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Marina Salas ◽

Xavier Manteca ◽

Teresa Abáigar ◽

Maria Delclaux ◽

Conrad Enseñat ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Animal Welfare ◽

Farm Animal ◽

Wild Animals ◽

Farm Animal Welfare ◽

In Captivity

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Stakeholder perceptions of scientific knowledge in policy processes: A Peruvian case-study of forestry policy development

Science and Public Policy ◽

10.1093/scipol/scz003 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 46 (4) ◽

pp. 504-517 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Luisa F Ramirez ◽

Brian M Belcher

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Scientific Knowledge ◽

Policy Development ◽

National Policy ◽

Problem Context ◽

Forestry Policy ◽

Policy Models ◽

Knowledge Policy ◽

Science Policy Interface

Abstract There is a need to better understand how scientific knowledge is used in decision-making. This is especially true in the Global South where policy processes often occur under high political uncertainty and where a shift toward multilevel governance and decision-making brings new opportunities and challenges. This study applies knowledge-policy models to analyse a forestry research project that succeeded in influencing national policy-making. We investigate how decisions were made, what factors affected and shaped the policy process, and how scientific knowledge was used. The results highlight the complexity of policy processes and the related challenges in crossing the science-policy interface. Perceptions of scientific knowledge differed greatly among stakeholders, and those perceptions strongly influenced how scientific knowledge was valued and used. The findings suggest a need for researchers to better understand the problem context to help design and implement research that will more effectively inform decision-making.

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Investigating Ethos and Pathos in Scientific Truth Claims in Public Discourse

Media and Communication ◽

10.17645/mac.v8i1.2444 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 129-140 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Niklas Simon

Keyword(s):

Scientific Knowledge ◽

Public Discourse ◽

The Public ◽

Rhetorical Patterns ◽

Truth Claims ◽

Scientific Competence ◽

Scientific Truth ◽

Neonicotinoid Pesticides ◽

Knowledge Claims

The article seeks to explore the role played by the rhetorical modes of ethos and pathos when scientific knowledge is constructed in public discourse. A case study is presented on the public debate in Germany on possible risks to bees from neonicotinoid pesticides, focusing especially on a detailed analysis of scientific knowledge claims found in texts produced by two lobbying groups involved. The findings indicate distinctive rhetorical patterns in the context of scientific truth claims realising, for example, appeals to concern and the display of scientific competence and integrity.

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Blockchain in Supply Chain: Case Study of Lottemart Ciputat

ACMIT Proceedings ◽

10.33555/acmit.v5i1.73 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 5 (1) ◽

pp. 38-49 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

B. K. Handoyo ◽

M. R. Mashudi ◽

H. P. Ipung

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Supply Chain ◽

Supply Chain Management ◽

Information Asymmetry ◽

New Technology ◽

Business Case ◽

Analysis Method ◽

Chain Management ◽

Production Processes

Current supply chain methods are having difficulties in resolving problems arising from the lack of trust in supply chains. The root reason lies in two challenges brought to the traditional mechanism: self-interests of supply chain members and information asymmetry in production processes. Blockchain is a promising technology to address these problems. The key objective of this paper is to present qualitative analysis for blockchain in supply chain as the decision-making framework to implement this new technology. The analysis method used Val IT business case framework, validated by the expert judgements. The further study needs to be elaborated by either the existing organization that use blockchain or assessment by the organization that will use blockchain to improve their supply chain management.

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