Mirjam Jenny

Scientific Manager Science2Society, Erfurt University

Department of Health Communication

Mirjam Jenny is a cognitive decision scientist, science communicator, science lobbyist, and networker. Her goal is to empower individuals and organizations to make evidence-informed, risk-savvy, and sustainable decisions in our globalized and increasingly digitalized world. She aims to serve our democratic society by engaging with citizens, journalists, expert decision–makers, research organizations, funders, government organizations, private and public stakeholders, and policy makers. Her areas of focus are public, global, and planetary health; and science, health, and crisis communication.

Mirjam Jenny leads our focus area Science2Society and recently built and lead the science communication unit at the Robert Koch Institute (Germany’s Public Health Institute) and consulted communications at the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence. She consults several government and non-government organizations including the Centre for Planetary Health Policy by the German Alliance on Climate Change and Health.

Selected Publications

Felgendreff, L., Rebitschek, F. G., Geiger, M., Shamsrizi, P., Jenny, M. A., & Betsch, C. (2024). Explaining the Mechanism Behind mRNA Vaccines Influences Perceived Vaccine Effectiveness but not Vaccination Intentions: A Randomized Experiment. European Journal of Health Communication, 5(1), 21-45.

Shamsrizi, P., Jenny, M. A., Sprengholz, P., Geiger, M., Jäger, C. B., & Betsch, C. (2023). Heatwaves and their health risks: knowledge, risk perceptions and behaviours of the German population in summer 2022. European journal of public health, 33(5), 841-843.

Rebitschek, F. G., Ellermann, C., Jenny, M. A., Siegel, N. A., Spinner, C., & Wagner, G. G. (2022). Fact boxes that inform individual decisions may contribute to a more positive evaluation of COVID-19 vaccinations at the population level. PloS one, 17(9), e0274186.

Jenny, M. A., & Betsch, C. (2022). Large-scale behavioural data are key to climate policy. Nature human behaviour, 6(11), 1444-1447.

Maier, B. F., Wiedermann, M., Burdinski, A., Klamser, P. P., Jenny, M. A., Betsch, C., & Brockmann, D. (2022). Germany’s fourth COVID-19 wave was mainly driven by the unvaccinated. Communications medicine, 2(1), 116.