TY - JOUR
T1 - "Post or Perish"? An Early Career Researcher's Guide to Using Social Media
AU - Cowley, Emma S.
AU - McNulty, Kelly
AU - Fairman, Ciaran M.
AU - Stoner, Lee
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Human Kinetics, Inc.
PY - 2024/1/1
Y1 - 2024/1/1
N2 - Social media usage has soared in the last decade, with the majority of adults having an account on at least one platform. Sites such as LinkedIn, X, and TikTok allow users to share content using different forms, for example, written or video, long form or short form. Social media can be used by researchers to forge collaborations, rapidly disseminate new research, and demonstrate societal impact. This opinion piece aims to highlight the value of social media, in particular for early career researchers, and offer suggestions on how early career researchers can strategically use social media to build a network and an online presence. We reflect on our own experiences of social media and include some of the reasons we have been deterred from it in the past, such as fear of making a mistake, being misunderstood, or painted as being an overconfident "know it all." As the demonstration of impact and engagement becomes ever more important in grant applications and job security, social media competency is a powerful professional skill that will be important for all scientists.
AB - Social media usage has soared in the last decade, with the majority of adults having an account on at least one platform. Sites such as LinkedIn, X, and TikTok allow users to share content using different forms, for example, written or video, long form or short form. Social media can be used by researchers to forge collaborations, rapidly disseminate new research, and demonstrate societal impact. This opinion piece aims to highlight the value of social media, in particular for early career researchers, and offer suggestions on how early career researchers can strategically use social media to build a network and an online presence. We reflect on our own experiences of social media and include some of the reasons we have been deterred from it in the past, such as fear of making a mistake, being misunderstood, or painted as being an overconfident "know it all." As the demonstration of impact and engagement becomes ever more important in grant applications and job security, social media competency is a powerful professional skill that will be important for all scientists.
KW - dissemination
KW - networking
KW - science communication
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85181165116&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1123/jpah.2023-0533
DO - 10.1123/jpah.2023-0533
M3 - Article
C2 - 37939707
AN - SCOPUS:85181165116
SN - 1543-3080
VL - 21
SP - 1
EP - 6
JO - Journal of Physical Activity and Health
JF - Journal of Physical Activity and Health
IS - 1
ER -