THE IMPACT OF CARTOONS ON THE SOCIAL REPRESENTATION OF SCIENTISTS

Abstract

This article presents the impact of cartoons on the social representation of the scientist and the way in which these representations are constituted and conditioned in the social imaginary. This is a bibliographic, exploratory research, using scientific documents found on the CAPES platform. For data analysis, the content analysis proposed by Bardin was used. Among the main considerations, the social representation of the scientist found in this research differs from the reality found in scientific spaces. The way in which the scientist has been presented to society through cartoons and other means of communication is the result of social representations that were conceived and disseminated over the centuries, since the constitution of the scientist stereotype was slow and gradual, as such representations were formed from characteristics, objects, anchors and actions. Notes and considerations are presented on the need for investment in research on the subject, so that the data indicates the need for interventions with the media, which performs a formative task in the social imagination, which can end up confusing society and undermining the credibility of reliable sources of information.