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5 news posts in Frontiers in Political Science

Prof Jeff Camkin: ‘The biggest misconception is that open science is just for researchers and academics. It’s not.’

Prof Jeff Camkin Prof Jeff Camkin, of the University of Western Australia, is a water and sustainable development specialist. He is co-founder and editor-in-chief of the World Water Policy Journal – a platform for the world’s emerging water leaders and thinkers. Jeff’s focus is on promoting the connection between policy, research, and community connectivity through transdisciplinarity, better utilization of local knowledge, more effective collaboration, and capacity building. Today, he tells us about the importance of democratizing science worldwide and implementing open science with the help of UNESCO. What inspired you to become a researcher? Frankly, I’m not really inspired to be a researcher, per se. Perhaps 20 years ago, I realized that what I wanted from my career was to understand water and natural resource management from as wide a range of viewpoints as possible to be more effective in influencing positive change. Sometimes the best way to do that is through research, sometimes it’s by directly advising decision-makers, and other times by working more closely with community or industry stakeholders. So, my career has been a mix of activities, ranging from positions in government agencies responsible for water and fisheries policy development, providing policy advice directly to ministerial decision-makers, […]

Voters perceive political candidates with a disability as qualified for elected office

Image: Shutterstock By Suzanna Burgelman, Frontiers science writer Political candidates with a disability have historically been underrepresented. A new study has found for the first time that voters do not apply certain stereotypes associated with disability to such candidates. Voters see them as honest, hard-working, and concerned with social welfare issues. The results show that the cause of under-representation may not lay with voters’ perceptions, but with a lack of support from governments and political parties. Worldwide, over one billion people live with a disability. Historically, they have been discriminated against and stigmatized by society. To improve their rights, they should be included in political decision-making, yet there is a lack of political representatives who are known to have a disability. This under-representation may be due to several factors, including how voters perceive a political candidate with a disability. However, a new study published in Frontiers in Political Science, found for the first time that voters do not apply negative stereotypes when evaluating candidates with a disability. Rather, voters tend to perceive candidates with a disability as capable, honest, and caring. Stereotypes as information short-cuts To form an impression of others, and with a lack of motivation and resources to […]

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