I am a philosopher of science investigating values and their implications for public engagement and trust in science.
I am currently a Postdoctoral Researcher with the Social Credibility and Trustworthiness of Expert Knowledge and Science-Based Information (SOCRATES) Centre for Advanced Studies at the Institute for Philosophy at Leibniz University Hannover.
Prior to my position at the Leibniz University of Hannover, I was a Postdoctoral Fellow (wissenschaftliche Mitarbeiterin) at the Cologne Center for Contemporary Epistemology and the Kantian Tradition (CONCEPT) working on the project "Moral obligation, epistemology and public health: the case of vaccine hesitancy".
I have also been a postdoctoral researcher at Institut Jean Nicod, an analytic-oriented interdisciplinary research centre combining philosophy, social science and cognitive science. This was part of the EU Horizon 2020 project: Policy, Expertise and Trust in Action (PEriTiA) studying affective and normative factors that play a role in decisions to trust.
My research on values is aimed at addressing normative questions pertaining to how values are presented in science communication. A large part of this work is informed by my doctorate. I combined historical research with philosophical critique to examine the erasure of non-epistemic (e.g. personal, social, political) values from science communication.
I argue that the value-free ideal (VFI) for science --the dominant ideal for science from the Cold War until the end of the 20th century-- minimizes the importance of non-epistemic values in science, which influences the selection of science education and communication models.
This is a philosophical problem because although the VFI been identified as the wrong ideal for science, its legacy continues to misrepresent science as value-free, making it less engaging, and contributing to a crisis of trust in science.
My dissertation "Contextualizing Science for Value-Conscious Communication" about this topic, can be found here.
Credit: Samatha Franson (Leibniz University Hannover).
Tsai, S.-M. J., Branch, T. Y. and Rowe, S. (2024). Public Perceptions of Ocean Science as insight into Discovery Science. Journal of Science Communication, 23(07), N04. https://doi.org/10.22323/2.23070804.
Douglas, H. & T.Y. Branch (2024). The Social Contract for Science and the Value-Free Ideal. Synthese, 203, 40. https://www.doi.org/10.1007/s11229-023-04477-9. [Open Access]
Branch, T.Y., & H. Douglas (2023). Rethinking the Conceptual Space for Science in Society after the VFI. Philosophy of Science, 1-10. https://www.doi.org/10.1017/psa.2023.130.
Branch, T.Y. & G. M. Duché (2022) Affective Labor in Integrative STS Research. Science, Technology, & Human Values. https://doi.org/10.1177/01622439221143804. [Open Access]
Branch, T.Y. (2022) Enhanced Epistemic Trust and The Value-Free Ideal as a Social Indicator of Trust. Social Epistemology 36:5. https://doi.org/10.1080/02691728.2022.2114114. [Open Access]
Holst, Susan Owens, Folco Panizza, Silje Maria Tellmann, José van Dijck & Maria Baghramian (2022) A New Dark Age? Truth, Trust, and Environmental Science. Annual Review of Environment and Resources 47:1. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-120920-015909. [Open Access]
Branch, T.Y., Gloria Origgi & Tiffany Morisseau (2022) Why Trust Raoult? How Social Indicators Inform the Reputations of Experts. Social Epistemology 36:3, 299-316. https://doi.org/10.1080/02691728.2022.2042421.
"Openness but not Transparency: Attitudes and Accountability for Science Communication" (November 11)
Departmental Colloquium
University of Salzburg
Salzburg, Austria
(INVITED)
"TBD" (November 10)
Interdisciplinary Challenges: Bridging Philosophy and Science Education Workshop
University of Salzburg
Salzburg, Austria
(INVITED)
"TBD" (November 4-5)
Workshop on Values and Institutions
Philosophisches Seminar und Interdisziplinäres Zentrum für Wissenschafts und Technikforschung (IZWT)
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
Wuppertal, Germany
(INVITED)
"The Language of Trust: Academic Culture and Communication in Public Philosophy for Social Change " (October 17-19)
Public Philosophy Network (PPN) conference
McMaster University
Hamilton, Canada
"TBD" (September 8-9)
Trusting Science and Trusting God Project Workshop
Online
(INVITED)
Smallpox and an Environment for Basic and Applied Science" (July 20-25)
International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPSSB)
University of Porto
Porto, Portugal.
Tensions in Communicating Discovery Science - Changes over Time" panel (May 27-29)
Public Communication of Science and Technology (PCST) Conference
University of Aberdeen
Aberdeen, Scotland.
"Values in Science and Science Communication Models" (January 27)
Science Studies Reading Group
Cornell University
Ithica, USA.
"Openness but not Transparency - A Response to John’s Ethics of Science Communication" (January 14)
Socially Engaged Philosophy of Science (SEPOS) Work-in-Progress workshop
Michigan State University
East Lansing, USA.
"Hylozoic Ground", part of the Canada Pavilion Facility designed by Philip Beesley for the Venice Biennale. Image by Jean-Pierre Dalbéra.
Near-living architecture incorporates biological features into environments that are responsive to occupants in that space. The structures pictured, are mini ecosystems — chemically infused with biologically active layers — that undergo actions like osmosis. They react and change in relation to inhabitants of the space. My research asked what applications near-living architecture might have with respect to understanding theories of emergence.
For information and interviews about my Philosopher-in-Residence research in architecture see here, here, and here. For more on near-living architecture, see Philip Beesley Studio Inc.
I also have ongoing work in the philosophy of data science. By integrating myself in a data science laboratory I uncovered how the non-epistemic values of scientists impact research decisions and the consequences of these values in a broader societal context.
As part of this research project, I developed a novel 'value-conscious' methodological contribution to collaborative socio-technical integration --a science and technology studies (STS) method for humanities scholars wanting to engage scientists directly.
With the transactional expertise in data science earned from this project, and my work on values in science as social indicators of trust, my upcoming research in this area will reconstruct the value-rich relationship between developers, AI and publics to understand how this interaction can go beyond mere reliance and encourage socially responsible data-based innovation.
For an interview about my integrated work in computer science and values see here.
Credit: Leibniz Universität Hannover
The acquisition and creation of knowledge is a social endeavour. To develop and refine knowledge, individuals rely on information shared by others and provide information to others. This course integrates the philosophy of science (e.g. artificial intelligence, the right to science), social epistemology (e.g. trust in experts) and science communication (e.g. scientific testimony) by discussing social indicators of trustworthiness (e.g. reputation), types of expertise, how knowing works on an individual and group-levels, and consider broader institutional structures for authenticating and communicating knowledge, with a focus on science.
This course offers a contemporary examination of critical issues related to the dynamics of information sharing, analyzed through the lens of social epistemology. We will explore questions surrounding who shares information, how it is disseminated, and what types of information are prioritized. Key topics will include the challenges of communicating specific information about pressing issues such as climate change, the implications of artificial intelligence, and the role of communicators as knowledge brokers. We will also connect these contemporary concerns to established themes in social epistemology, such as trust in experts and the nature of uncertainty.
with Anke Bueter (Aarhus University), Stephen John (Cambridge University), Quill Kukla (Georgetown University), Mathias Frisch (Leibniz University Hannover), Torsten Wilholt (Leibniz University Hannover).
Three-day training programme designed for early-career researchers and PhD students working on topics related to ignorance, uncertainty, and public trust in science. This programme offers a unique opportunity to engage with peers and senior researchers in the field, fostering in-depth discussions on how scientists address or contribute to uncertainty and ignorance, the ways these uncertainties and blind spots are communicated to the public, and their impact on public trust in science.
branch[AT]philos.uni-hannover.de
Leibniz University Hannover
Institute of Philosophy / SOCRATES
Lange Laube 32
30159 Hannover
Germany