Nadi Suprapto, Afaurina Indriana Safitri, Hasan Nuurul Hidaayatullaah, Nabila Nur Almaida Nasution
Science Communication is needed to disseminate information correctly and effectively in the era of rapid technological advancement. This is supported by the existence of Communication Science. Communication Science is a field that studies how humans communicate through various means, both verbally and non-verbally, and encompasses both individual and public communication. Therefore, Science Communication is an application of Communication Science that focuses on explaining information in a scientific context. In this study, an exploration of student perceptions of scientists and science-based communicators was conducted through a survey method. Furthermore, this study emphasizes the need for institutions to integrate Science Communication and Communication Science courses into the academic curriculum to improve student understanding, because it is felt that students are still less involved in expressing their arguments during science discussions. Thus, it is interesting to study more deeply the correlation between the importance of Science Communication and Communication Science. This study collected data through an online questionnaire (201 responses) and analyzed it using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) with IBM Amos software version 22. The findings indicate that general perceptions of scientists (X1) and science communicators (X2) are positively and significantly correlated with challenges in science communication (Y2). Furthermore, X1 and Y2 are significantly correlated with the perceived importance of science communication (Y1). Additionally, Y2, Y1, and the comparison between scientists and communicators (X3) exhibit a positive relationship with the perception of science communication education (Y3). This study provides valuable insights for developing innovative strategies to advance science communication education and practice, ensuring the field can effectively address contemporary challenges. Copyright (c) 2026 The Authors. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Department of Physics Education, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Science, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Surabaya, Indonesia
