Abstract Visualizations are influential in the interaction between environmental science and policy. Research on framing in environmental visualizations (visual framing) is expanding. These studies typically focus on ‘static’ images; the visualizations themselves. However, framing already occurs during their production through the choices made by their producers, and visualizations may be reframed while traveling across boundaries between science, policy and society. So far, visual framing during the production process and reframing during their circulation remains relatively unexplored and undertheorized, a gap which the current research aims to address. As an empirical case, we studied visualizations produced by a boundary organization, the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL). We conducted interviews, focus groups, and a media-analysis. Our results show that although producers of visualizations were aware of potential framing through the objects depicted or simplifications in data, they were less aware of conceptual and ideological levels of visual framing and potential reframing when their visualizations circulate. Visual framing during production involved trade-offs in clarity, correctness and relevance, and contrasting perspectives among producers on intended audiences. When visualizations circulated, they were republished by multiple audiences and modified in various ways such as adjusting color, form and aggregating data. These reproductions and modifications resulted in different and contrasting frames compared to the original images. We demonstrate that environmental visualizations are powerful framing devices that can easily transcend the boundaries between science, policy and society. We thus highlight the need for boundary organizations to acknowledge visual framing effects in influencing these science-policy-society interactions.

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环境可视化：科学、政策和社会之间的框架和重新框架

摘要 可视化在环境科学与政策之间的相互作用中具有影响力。环境可视化（visual framing）中的取景研究正在扩大。这些研究通常侧重于“静态”图像；可视化本身。然而，框架已经通过生产者的选择在它们的生产过程中发生，并且可视化可能在跨越科学、政策和社会之间的界限时被重新框架。到目前为止，生产过程中的视觉框架和流通过程中的重新框架仍然相对未被探索和理论化，这是当前研究旨在解决的差距。作为一个实证案例，我们研究了由荷兰环境评估局 (PBL) 边界组织制作的可视化效果。我们进行了访谈、焦点小组、和媒体分析。我们的结果表明，尽管可视化的制作者通过所描绘的对象或数据的简化意识到潜在的框架，但当他们的可视化循环时，他们不太了解视觉框架和潜在的重新框架的概念和意识形态层面。制作过程中的视觉框架涉及清晰度、正确性和相关性的权衡，以及制作人对目标受众的不同观点。当可视化传播时，它们被多个受众重新发布，并以各种方式进行修改，例如调整颜色、形式和聚合数据。与原始图像相比，这些复制和修改导致了不同且对比鲜明的帧。我们证明环境可视化是强大的框架设备，可以轻松超越科学、政策和社会之间的界限。因此，我们强调边界组织需要承认视觉框架效应在影响这些科学-政策-社会相互作用方面。