Why join a learned society?
A survey that examined membership in learned societies attracted a total of 1,655 responses in spring 2022. The findings show that society members represent the Finnish academic and research community across a broad front. Learned societies bring together researchers, experts, professionals and citizens interested in science. They create communities for learning, building networks and promoting research.
- Almost 70% of the respondents said that networking or being part of a community motivated them to join.
- More than one half are motivated by a desire to learn something new about their field of science and to promote research.
- For over 40%, professional development, participation in events and the society's publications were important reasons.
Exerting influence in society was emphasised particularly among respondents who represented medicine and health sciences, social sciences and the humanities.
Members operate in different sectors of society
Learned societies in Finland have around 270,000 individual members in total. The societies are very different: some count their membership in a few dozens, others in thousands.
The members also vary by field of science. In addition to researchers, professors and lecturers, the members of learned societies include experts working in the public and private sectors and in foundations. Many of them belong to more than one learned society, and roughly one third of the members in Finnish societies also belong to international scientific societies.
Publications, events and popular science
Publishing and organising events are the key operating forms of learned societies:
- more than 80% of the societies organise events
- more than 70% publish scholarly journals or books.
The societies' publishing activities make research-based knowledge available to both the research community and wider public. Many societies publish open-access scholarly journals and books that can be read free of charge.
Other aspects that members consider important are popularisation of science, promoting the openness of research-based knowledge and giving societies visibility on social media. In the fields of medicine and health sciences, the societies' role as providers of education is also highlighted.
Making the benefits of joining visible
Changes in society are affecting learned societies' activities. In the past, people took joining the research community of their field for granted, but this is no longer the case. Many learned societies are operated by volunteers. Rush and the demands of working life may reduce people’s opportunities to participate in a society's activities.
The importance of communication is stressed as open access publishing becomes more common. The possibility to read publications without paying a membership fee may reduce interest in joining. This is why it is important for the societies to also make visible the other benefits of joining: belonging to a community, networking, learning new things, and an opportunity to promote research and their own field of science. Active communication can bring new people, perspectives and competence to societies.
Read a report on the findings of the survey for learned society members