NSMB on the US public's attitude to science research
The Editorial in the August issue of Nature Structural & Molecular Biology (16, 797; 2009) highlights a Pew/AAAS survey revealing striking differences between the public's and scientists' views of US scientific achievement and its societal benefits. According to the Editorial, this conclusion reinforces the fact that more must be done to effectively communicate with, educate and engage the public.
The survey involved 2,000 people from the general public and 2,500 scientists, including teachers, researchers and administrators, aiming to discover how we think about science and its impact on society. One of the disparities revealed was that whereas many participants from the general public (84%) acknowledged the importance of scientific contributions to society, only 17% felt that US scientific achievements are best in the world, in striking contrast to US scientists' own assessment — 94% of respondents thinking that US scientific achievements are best best or better than average compared to other industrialized nations.
The Editorial asks why there is an apparent disconnect between the public view of science's contributions and how scientists perceive the quality and importance of US-based research? Education may be one factor. Of the scientists surveyed, 85% viewed the lack of understanding of science by the general public as a major problem. Indeed, the general public barely passed a short 12-question quiz of basic textbook science (example question: "True or False: Electrons are smaller than atoms"). Scientists are also critical of science communication via television and newspaper coverage .
Some of the greatest differences in perception are on issues such as climate change and evolution. Whereas 97% of the scientists surveyed believe that humans and living things evolve over time, 61% of the public agreed, but roughly a third of these people felt that this was guided by a supreme being, with more than a quarter believing that there is lack of scientific consensus on this issue. Although most of the public respondents feel that climate change is occurring, only half think that this is due to human activity, as opposed to 84% of scientists surveyed.
The NSMB Editorial concludes that although improving the quality of education is obviously important, "the survey clearly reveals that the general public applies its own beliefs when absorbing and filtering scientific information. As scientists, rather than speaking down or lecturing to the general public (or even worse, throwing our hands up in despair), we may be better off showing them a bit more of the respect they have for us and trying to see things from their perspective."
