This report explores areas of innovation in citizen science including in relation to new applications, methods used, approaches to recruiting participants and building capacity for citizen science. It also considers emerging themes and topical issues and their implications, including in relation to using personal health data, artificial intelligence, the diversity of participants, policymaking, governance and data security issues.

Emerging developments in citizen science

Reflecting on areas of innovation

Brandi Leach, Sarah Parkinson, Catherine A. Lichten, Sonja Marjanovic

ResearchPublished Feb 16, 2020

Citizen science — an approach whereby citizens actively contribute to the generation of knowledge about important research questions — is gaining increased attention in research and policy communities. Recent years have seen an expansion in the scale of citizen science activity globally, as well as an increase in the diversity of ways in which citizens can contribute to research endeavours. This report, informed by a literature review and interviews with selected experts, explores key areas of innovation and emerging and topical issues in citizen science, with a particular but not exclusive interest in healthcare related applications. More specifically, the report explores innovation related to new areas of applications of citizen science; novel methods of data gathering and analysis; innovative approaches to recruiting, retaining and enabling participation in citizen science projects; and building capacity for citizen science. The report also considers emerging themes and topical issues within the field and their implications.

Key Findings

  • There is a growing interest in adopting citizen science in studies that involve personal health data and in epidemiological studies, and new technological platforms and models of governance are emerging to facilitate safe and data collection and use.
  • Citizen science is also receiving increased attention in policymaking and in evidence-based advocacy by local communities.
  • Citizen science can contribute to improving research quality, for example by complementing traditional research methods.
  • Advances in smartphone capabilities and sensor technologies, together with new opportunities for integrating diverse data sources, are enabling new methods of data collection in citizen science projects. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are also allowing for efficiency gains.
  • There are also increasingly innovative approaches to recruiting and retaining participants in citizen science projects, including raising awareness about opportunities via large media organisations; using gamification; smartphone apps that remove barriers to underrepresented groups contributing; and using virtual peers (i.e. 'bots') to influence the levels of engagement.
  • As the field of citizen science evolves, opportunities are arising to increase its scope, scale and impact. However, new challenges are also surfacing, especially in relation to effective governance and management.
  • Topical issues receiving attention in the field include: enabling diverse types of involvement across the research process; ensuring that citizen science research is of an appropriate quality; supporting diversity and the involvement of hard to reach populations; ensuring effective governance and ethical practice; and managing risks and mitigating unintended consequences.

Topics

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Leach, Brandi, Sarah Parkinson, Catherine A. Lichten, and Sonja Marjanovic, Emerging developments in citizen science: Reflecting on areas of innovation. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2020. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR4401.html.
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This research was commissioned by The Healthcare Improvement Studies Institute (THIS Institute) and conducted by RAND Europe.

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