The Communication of Research in Italy The Efforts of Academia and Research Institutes

In this paper, a description is offered of the communication activities undertaken by the main Italian research institutes. The main research questions are: (a) Which activities are research institutes engaged in? (b) Which channels and instruments do they use to communicate to the public? (c) Which human resources are involved in the activities? (d) Who are the recipients of the information communicated by the research institutes? (e) What resources are invested in these activities? (f) What “image” of the public do the institutions have? The results show that Italian institutes are including public science communication among their priorities; however, the proposed initiatives emphasise the dissemination of the results of research and to a marginal extent have the aim of actively involving the public. The recipients of communication concerning research are mainly students. It is more difficult for researchers to reach the business world, public administrations and the organisations of civil society. The capacity to broaden the range of users of information that is communicated to the public represents a real challenge for the next few years in Italy.