About the Project

Background to our Research Programme

Research at the University of Nottingham focused on publics and professions, and aimed to understand the ways in which professionals working in the laboratory (including veterinarians) understand their own role in relation to publics and also how publics imagine their relationship with animal research. This stream of research also related to other Nottingham based projects, including an ongoing ESRC DTP Collaborative Studentship. This website reports on just one aspect of this overall work.

Evolution of the Lab-Animal-Labels Activity

This activity was originally developed by Pru Hobson-West and Renelle McGlacken at the School of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Nottingham, with useful input from other Nottingham colleagues and from the rest of the Animal Research Nexus team.

The activity was originally conceived in 2018 and then trialled with social science, veterinary and bioscience colleagues at University of Nottingham in early 2019. It was then successfully piloted as part of Pint of Science in May 2019. This sold out event was held in a pub in Nottingham city centre and was open to all.

The activity was then adapted for use at an international conference (Eursafe) in Tampere, Finland in September 2019. Participants were academics with mixed disciplinary backgrounds, including philosophy, veterinary science and bioethics. One attendee has since used the tool herself (see ‘Future applications’ below).

These experiences then fed into plans to use this discussion tool as part of the ESRC Festival of Social Sciences, an online celebration of social science in November 2020. The festival is open to all and is specifically aimed at engaging non-academics with social science. In May 2021, this activity was also successfully trialled online with the University of Nottingham AWERB (Animal Welfare Ethical Review Body), the group responsible for local ethical review.

The Activity Itself

The format we have used involves six main steps:

1. Short introduction of ourselves as researchers, the format of the session, and the proposal made by some to label medicines as produced using animal research. Provide examples of common labels used in the domain of food, which also convey information about animal care.  

2. Facilitated session where participants are invited to use pen and paper to design their own label. In actually drawing a label (rather than just discussing the idea of labelling) we hope to foster an informal, more creative atmosphere. Furthermore, we hope that discussing ‘what might be’, or a ‘hypothetical’ scenario, might also encourage participants to feel comfortable talking about this sensitive topic.

3. Facilitated discussion session to explore what sort of questions this activity raises, including what information could be included on a label, as well as possible societal impacts. Detailed note taking of the session.

4. Introduction to our wider research programme, and the role of interdisciplinary social science in contributing to the animal research debate.

5. Invitation for participants to complete feedback on the session and (optionally) to leave their label with the organisers.

6. The submitted labels and notes are used as a prompt for discussion amongst the research group, and with the collaborating artist.

What Questions can it Raise?

Our experience suggests that this activity can be a useful route into discussion about animal research, and that focusing on labelling can create space for interesting conversations to take place. Indeed, it is the conversations and the questions raised (rather than the labels themselves) that are the most valuable aspects of this initiative. Examples of broad topics that were raised during the discussion session include the following;

• The relationship between labelling and choice: Could we imagine a future world where patients could choose between medicines with different animal research histories?

• The relationship between labels and knowledge: Is it more important to include quantitative information on numbers or species of animal used, or qualitative information on how animals are treated in laboratories?

• The relationship between contemporary and historical medicine production: How ‘far back’ would we need to go to estimate the role of animals in each type of medicine, given that research and knowledge is cumulative?

• The relationship between labelling and action: Could labelling result in some people deciding to avoid taking medicines?

These interesting questions, raised and discussed by participants during the activity, were not answered by the research team – that was not our aim and there are no clear ‘answers’. Rather, we consider that these questions (and many others) can help to promote engagement with the topic of animal research and with some of the issues we continue to grapple with as part of our ongoing social scientific research and collaboration. 

Future Applications

To date, this labels activity has been used in various fora. We are also delighted to hear that international colleagues have already adapted this activity for use in teaching: The labels activity was used with 150 Biology Students at Wageningen University, Netherlands, in 2020.  In 2023 it was used successfully with 25 postgraduate biology students at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. In the same year it was also demonstrated to postgraduate students at the at the University of Oxford, and to staff at a conference on research culture at the University of Nottingham.

Going forward, we hope that this tool could be used as a prompt for groups to consider the issues raised by animal research. For example, perhaps it could be used with those who work in laboratories, amongst animal welfare charity staff, or in secondary schools. If you have other ideas, please do get in touch.