RETHINKING LAY SUMMARIES: BOTH JARGON AND READABILITY MATTER FOR ACCESSIBLE WRITING

Scientific publishing seeks to communicate research broadly, yet accessibility remains a challenge. Journals increasingly request Lay Summaries to help make findings understandable to non-specialists, but these are often no more effective than traditional Abstracts due to persistent jargon and low readability. In this study, conducted under the Raelyn Cole Editorial Fellowship, we analysed Lay Summaries across multiple journals and found most scored poorly on jargon and readability metrics, limiting their effectiveness. We identified key barriers to accessibility and offered practical recommendations for authors, editors, and publishers. These included: adopt plain language principles, use readability tools to assess drafts, and integrate editorial support. Improving accessibility is essential for enhancing communication between researchers and society, allowing authors to better serve diverse audiences, including policymakers, educators, and the public.

Presentation Preference: Standard Oral (12 Minutes)

Primary Presenter: Laura Falkenberg, University of South Australia (laurafalkenberg@cuhk.edu.hk)

Authors:

Laura Falkenberg, University of South Australia  (laura.falkenberg@unisa.edu.au)

Patrick Joyce, University College Cork  (pjoyce@ucc.ie)

Patricia Soranno, Michigan State University  (soranno@msu.edu)