Members from the GYA working group on Measuring Excellence in Science Engagement have published an article on “Researcher engagement in policy deemed societally beneficial yet unrewarded” in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. Based on a survey which the group conducted the authors find that science engagement and teaching are perceived to be societally beneficial, but go largely unrewarded in the current science systems. Most researchers and almost all students surveyed felt that measurements of science engagement activities missed several of seven dimensions (reach, rigour, innovation, number, depth, prominence, and outcomes).
Reported motivations for science engagement are high and largely socially-oriented. Career benefits and status are minor considerations for most respondents, but greater for those who need them (greater for students than established researchers, and greater for un-tenured than tenured faculty).