NSF Report: The American Public's Attitudes Towards Science and Engineering
The National Science Board -- which governs the National Science Foundation -- released its 2014 Science and Engineering Indicators, highlighting major developments in International and US science and engineering. In Chapter 7, Science and Technology: Public Attitudes and Understanding, the NSB outlines recent trend over time with the population's comprehension of and engagement with S&T issues ranging from climate change to evolution. Here are some highlights:
In general:
Levels of factual knowledge in the United States are comparable to those in Europe and are generally higher than levels in countries in other parts of the world.
Four out of five Americans say they are interested in “new scientific discoveries.”
About 4 in 10 Americans cited the Internet as their primary source of S&T information in 2012 compared with about one-third in 2010.
The percentage of Americans saying they relied on television as their primary source of S&T information dropped between 2010 and 2012.
On confidence in the sciences and scientists and engineers themselves:
A survey experiment showed that 48% of respondents said they thought it was true that “human beings, as we know them today, developed from earlier species of animals,” but 72% gave this response when the same statement was prefaced by “according to the theory of evolution.” Similarly, 39% of respondents said that “the universe began with a huge explosion,” but 60% gave this response when the statement was prefaced by “according to astronomers.”
Americans are more likely to have a “great deal of confidence” in leaders of both the scientific community and the medical community than in leaders of any group except the military.
The scientific and medical communities are also among the most highly regarded groups in most other countries surveyed.
Less than half of Americans say they have an “excellent” or “good” understanding of what scientists and engineers do at work. Americans say they have a better understand ing of engineers’ work than scientists’ work.
Most Americans see scientists and engineers as “dedicated people who work for the good of humanity.”
On government funding of science and technology:
Most Americans continue to say that the benefits of science outweigh the potential harms and that the federal government should fund research that “advances the frontiers of knowledge.”
As in past years, about 4 in 10 Americans said the government was spending “too little on research.” In 2012, about half of respondents said government spending on scientific research was “about right,” and about 1 in 10 said there was too much research spending.
Majorities have also consistently said that they believe health, “alternative energy,” and environmental improvement and protection receive too little funding.
On climate change:
Americans are about as concerned about the overall environment as respondents in many other developed countries.
About 3 in 10 Americans say that “dealing with global warming” should be a priority for the president and Congress.
Many of the other countries surveyed show more concern than the United States about climate change.
Americans are more likely than residents of other countries to say they believe that any apparent change in temperatures is the result of natural rather than man-made causes.
And on other issues:
Americans are less concerned about “modifying the genes of certain crops” than residents of most other countries surveyed, although most still see potential danger.
In 2013, 6 in 10 of Americans saw using stem cells from human embryos as acceptable. This percentage has stayed relatively stable since 2005.
Most Americans continue to express support for nuclear energy as “one of the ways to provide electricity,” although support remains lower than before the 2011 nuclear accident in Fukushima, Japan.
What do you think of Americans' perceptions of science? Are you surprised by any of the report's findings? Do any of the results give you hope or inspiration for conversations you have to have with the general public about science and engineering?
The full text of the Science and Technology: Public Attitudes and Understanding report can be viewed here. Click here for the other sections of the 2014 Science and Engineering Indicators report, including chapters on higher education statistics in STEM and national R&D trends.