---
title: "Citizen science"
chunk: 1/19
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_science"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T03:48:48.750305+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

Citizen science is research conducted with the participation of the general public, amateur or nonprofessional researchers, or participants from the fields of science, social science, and many other disciplines. The exact definition of "citizen science" varies, with different individuals and organizations having their own specific interpretations of its scope. Citizen science is employed in a wide range of areas of study, including ecology, biology, conservation, health and medical research, astronomy, media and communications, and information science.
The applications and functions of citizen science in research projects are multifaceted. Citizen science can be used as a methodology in which public volunteers help in data collection and classification, thereby improving the scientific community's capacity.  Citizen science can also involve more direct involvement from the public, with communities initiating projects researching environment and health hazards within their own communities. Participation in citizen science projects also educates the public about the scientific process and increases awareness about different topics. Some schools incorporate citizen science projects as part of their teaching curricula for this very purpose.

== Background ==
The first use of the term "citizen science" appeared in a January 1989 issue of the MIT Technology Review, which featured three community-based labs studying environmental issues. In the 21st century, the number of citizen science projects, publications, and funding opportunities has increased. Citizen science has been used more over time, a trend helped by technological advancements.  Digital citizen science platforms, such as Zooniverse and iNaturalist, store large amounts of data for many projects and are a place where volunteers can learn how to contribute to projects. For some projects, participants are instructed to collect and enter data, such as the species they observed, into large digital global databases.  For other projects, participants help classify data on digital platforms. Citizen science data is also being used to develop machine learning algorithms.  An example is using volunteer-classified images to train machine learning algorithms to identify species. While global participation and global databases are found on online platforms, the uniformity of data from contributors across different locations is not guaranteed.  Concerns over potential data quality issues in citizen science projects, including measurement errors and biases, are recognized in the scientific community. However, statistical solutions and best practices are available to assist in addressing these concerns.

== Definition ==
The term "citizen science" has multiple origins, as well as differing concepts. "Citizen" is used in the general sense, as meaning in "citizen of the world", or the general public, rather than the legal term citizen of sovereign countries. It was first defined independently in the mid-1990s by Rick Bonney in the United States and Alan Irwin in the United Kingdom. Alan Irwin, a British sociologist, defines citizen science as "developing concepts of scientific citizenship which foregrounds the necessity of opening up science and science policy processes to the public". Irwin sought to reclaim two dimensions of the relationship between citizens and science: 1) that science should be responsive to citizens' concerns and needs; and 2) that citizens themselves could produce reliable scientific knowledge. The American ornithologist Rick Bonney, unaware of Irwin's work, defined citizen science as projects in which nonscientists, such as amateur birdwatchers, voluntarily contributed scientific data. This describes a more limited role for citizens in scientific research than Irwin's conception of the term.

The terms citizen science and citizen scientists entered the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) in June 2014. "Citizen science" is defined as "scientific work undertaken by members of the general public, often in collaboration with or under the direction of professional scientists and scientific institutions". "Citizen scientist" is defined as: (a) "a scientist whose work is characterized by a sense of responsibility to serve the best interests of the wider community (now rare)"; or (b) "a member of the general public who engages in scientific work, often in collaboration with or under the direction of professional scientists and scientific institutions; an amateur scientist". The first use of the term "citizen scientist" can be found in the magazine New Scientist in an article about ufology from October 1979.
Muki Haklay cites, from a policy report for the Wilson Center entitled "Citizen Science and Policy: A European Perspective", an alternate first use of the term "citizen science" by R. Kerson in the magazine MIT Technology Review from January 1989. Quoting from the Wilson Center report: "The new form of engagement in science received the name 'citizen science'. The first recorded example of the use of the term is from 1989, describing how 225 volunteers across the US collected rain samples to assist the Audubon Society in an acid-rain awareness raising campaign."