How can the problematic science stereotypes be dismantled? With selfies!

It’s National Selfie Day and we’re marking the occasion with my co-author, Dr. Paige Brown Jarreau. Paige and I along with Lance Porter from the LSU Manship School, Imogene Cancellare from the University of New Hampshire, Dr. Samantha Yammine from the University of Toronto, and Daniel Toker from the University of California Berkeley, explored the role of science self portraits play in addressing problematic stereotypes. The project was crowdfunded through Experiment.com and launched the #ScientistsWhoSelfie hashtag. The hashtag has been used over 14k times on Instagram and formed a community of scientists and science enthusiasts sharing discoveries! Check out @ScientistSeflies on Instagram to see more!

Paige and I discuss the inspiration behind the project, the results, and the next steps for changing stereotypes of scientists. The study, “Using selfies to challenge public stereotypes of scientists” in PLOS One (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0216625)