Individuals with greater science literacy and education have more polarized beliefs on controversial science topics
Abstract
Public opinion toward some science and technology issues is polarized along religious and political lines. We investigate whether people with more education and greater science knowledge tend to express beliefs that are more (or less) polarized. Using data from the nationally representative General Social Survey, we find that more knowledgeable individuals are more likely to express beliefs consistent with their religious or political identities for issues that have become polarized along those lines (e.g., stem cell research, human evolution), but not for issues that are controversial on other grounds (e.g., genetically modified foods). These patterns suggest that scientific knowledge may facilitate defending positions motivated by nonscientific concerns.
- Publication:
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Science
- Pub Date:
- September 2017
- DOI:
- 10.1073/pnas.1704882114
- Bibcode:
- 2017PNAS..114.9587D