Interactions between researchers and practitioners can lead to the increased use of climate science in decision-making. Past studies on these interactions have focused on the information needs of decision-makers, but less is known about why and how climate researchers choose to engage with decision-makers. Understanding the experiences, beliefs and constraints on both sides of the ‘knowledge-action gap’ is critical for implementing robust climate adaptation strategies. This study thus examines the perspectives and experiences of researchers regarding practitioner engagement, drawing from an original survey of California's climate research community (N= 991) and supplemental interviews. Given a history of support for climate research and climate change adaptation, analysis of the California case is useful as a means of characterizing the relationship between climate research and practitioner engagement. We find that most scientists want to engage more with practitioners but are constrained by several factors, including resource limitations and the challenge of building relationships. Additionally, we find that the level of interest and frequency of engagement with stakeholders varies significantly across academic disciplines. We demonstrate that building capacity within research organizations and integrating stakeholder engagement in funding criteria and professional development can help foster relationship-building between scientists and decision-makers. The analysis suggests that the social structure of climate research warrants further examination of the ways that climate researchers relate to practitioners at present.

研究人员和从业人员之间的互动可以导致在决策过程中对气候科学的更多使用。过去有关这些相互作用的研究都集中在决策者的信息需求上，但是对于气候研究者为何以及如何选择与决策者互动的了解较少。了解“知识行动差距”两侧的经验，信念和制约因素对于实施强有力的气候适应战略至关重要。因此，本研究从对加利福尼亚州气候研究界的原始调查中得出研究者对从业人员参与的观点和经验（N= 991）和补充访谈。在支持气候研究和适应气候变化的历史上，对加利福尼亚案例的分析可作为表征气候研究与从业人员参与之间关系的一种手段。我们发现，大多数科学家希望与从业者更多地互动，但受到一些因素的限制，包括资源限制和建立关系的挑战。此外，我们发现各学科之间的兴趣水平和与利益相关者互动的频率差异很大。我们证明，研究组织内部的能力建设以及将利益相关者的参与整合到筹资标准和专业发展中，可以帮助促进科学家与决策者之间的关系建立。