Examining distrust of science and scientists: A study on ideology and scientific literacy in the European Union

被引:0
|
作者
Obreja, Dragos M. [1 ,5 ]
Rughinis, Razvan [2 ,3 ,4 ]
Rosner, Daniel [2 ,3 ]
机构
[1] Univ Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania
[2] Univ Politehn Bucuresti, Bucharest, Romania
[3] Natl Univ Sci & Technol POLITEHN BUCHAREST, Bucharest, Romania
[4] Romanian Acad Scientists, Bucharest, Romania
[5] Univ Bucharest, Fac Sociol & Social Work, 90-92 Panduri Rd 5 Sect, Bucharest 050663, Romania
关键词
Conservatism; ideology; reflexivity; scientific attitudes; scientific literacy; attitudes scientifiques; conservatisme; culture scientifique; ideologie; reflexivite; actitudes cientificas; alfabetizacion cientifica; conservadurismo; ideologia; reflexividad; TRUST; ATTITUDES; KNOWLEDGE; POLITICIZATION; CONSERVATIVES; GOVERNMENT; AMERICAN; SOCIETY;
D O I
10.1177/00113921231211582
中图分类号
C91 [社会学];
学科分类号
030301 ; 1204 ;
摘要
There is considerable evidence that, in the United States, public distrust in science is amplified by a conservative ideology and by lower levels of scientific literacy. By emphasizing the discussion on reflexive modernity and (de)politicization of science and politics, we use the Eurobarometer 95.2 to explore these relationships in present-day European Union. We document a significant relationship between conservatively oriented opinions and lower scores on the scientific literacy scale and EU respondents' levels of distrust in science. We notice that conservative attitudes - measured by dummy statements such as focus on morality instead of innovation, and national isolation due to fear of international crime instead of international co-operation - cause higher distrust in science and scientists. Unlike several studies carried out in the United States, we observe that in the European Union countries, trust in private companies to tackle with scientific issues such as climate change does not predict much when it comes to trust in science and scientists. The obtained results highlight the conceptual confluence between politicization of EU politics and expertization when it comes to policymaking at the EU level, emphasizing the debate regarding the ideological tension that fuels the distrust in science and scientists. De nombreux elements indiquent qu'aux etats-Unis, la mefiance du public a l'egard de la science est amplifiee par une ideologie conservatrice et par des niveaux faibles de culture scientifique. Faisant une large place a la discussion relative a la modernite reflexive et a la (de)politisation de la science et de la politique, nous utilisons l'Eurobarometre 95.2 pour etudier ces liens dans l'Union europeenne (UE) d'aujourd'hui. Nous constatons qu'il existe un lien significatif entre les opinions a tendance conservatrice et des resultats plus faibles sur l'echelle de competence en culture scientifique, et les niveaux de mefiance a l'egard de la science des personnes de l'UE interrogees. Nous remarquons que les attitudes conservatrices - mesurees par des enonces fallacieux tels que l'accent mis sur la moralite plutot que sur l'innovation, et l'isolement national du a la peur de la criminalite internationale plutot que la cooperation internationale - entrainent une plus grande mefiance a l'egard de la science et des scientifiques. Contrairement a plusieurs etudes menees aux etats-Unis, nous observons que dans les pays de l'Union europeenne, la confiance dans les entreprises privees pour influer sur des questions scientifiques telles que le changement climatique n'est pas tres predictive en ce qui concerne la confiance dans la science et les scientifiques. Les resultats obtenus mettent en evidence la confluence conceptuelle entre la politisation de la politique europeenne et l'expertisation lorsqu'il s'agit d'elaborer des politiques au niveau de l'UE, ce qui fait ressortir l'importance du debat concernant la tension ideologique qui alimente la mefiance a l'egard de la science et des scientifiques. Hay una evidencia considerable de que, en Estados Unidos, la desconfianza del publico en la ciencia se ve amplificada por una ideologia conservadora y por niveles mas bajos de alfabetizacion cientifica. Tratando de enfatizar la discusion sobre la modernidad reflexiva y la (des)politizacion de la ciencia y la politica, se utiliza el Eurobarometro 95.2 para explorar estas relaciones en la Union Europea contemporanea. Se documenta una relacion significativa entre las opiniones de orientacion conservadora y las puntuaciones mas bajas en la escala de alfabetizacion cientifica y los niveles de desconfianza en la ciencia de los encuestados de la UE. Se observa que las actitudes conservadoras (medidas por afirmaciones dicotomicas como centrarse en la moralidad en lugar de la innovacion, y el aislamiento nacional debido al miedo al crimen internacional en lugar de la cooperacion internacional) causan una mayor desconfianza en la ciencia y los cientificos. A diferencia de varios estudios realizados en Estados Unidos, se observa que en los paises de la Union Europea la confianza en las empresas privadas para abordar cuestiones cientificas como el cambio climatico no tiene mucho poder predictivo en el caso de la confianza en la ciencia y los cientificos. Los resultados obtenidos resaltan la confluencia conceptual entre la politizacion de la politica de la UE y la preponderancia de los expertos en la formulacion de politicas a nivel de la UE, enfatizando el debate sobre la tension ideologica que alimenta la desconfianza en la ciencia y los cientificos.
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页码:64 / 83
页数:20
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