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ScienceQuiet 9d · day 13

UK study: people trust scientists who align with their values

A King's College London survey finds that perceived alignment with personal views matters more to public trust than scientific expertise.

newest coverage 9d agosummary written 4d ago6 pieces2 likes & upvotes NewswiresMastodonReddit

What to know

  • A King's College London survey of 4,262 UK adults finds that 63% trust scientists highly, but trust is driven primarily by perceived alignment with personal values, not scientific expertise.
  • Bobby Duffy attributes this dynamic to political polarization, noting people in divided societies ask 'What's in it for me?' rather than evaluating scientists on their broad societal contributions.
  • Trust declines sharply for scientists working on vaccines, climate, and space; those with low trust in scientists are more likely to believe conspiracy theories about these fields.
some voices

Trust in scientists depends on the field—hard sciences like biology and physics warrant trust, but social sciences do not due to perceived ideological capture.

  • “Depends on the scientist Biology, physics etc yes 100% Social science no, that was clear when they tried changing the definition of racism”

    TomorrowSpecial255 · Reddit ↗

“trust in scientists was less associated with scientists being eager to work for the good of society in general (12%) and had more to do with whether they are on the side of people like the respondent (21%).”

Bobby Duffy, Director, Policy Institute at King's College London · Nature News ↗

Bobby Duffy Director, Policy Institute at King's College London; study authorPolicy Institute at King's College London & Sense about Science Study organizers

UK study: people trust scientists who align with their values
nature.com

How it unfolded 3 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlespostscomments

Peak 2 pieces in 3h at Sep 10, 7 PM; 6 pieces over 13 days (1 article · 4 posts · 1 comment) Sep 10, 7 PM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Mastodon 1, Newswires 1Sep 10, 10 PM — quietSep 11, 1 AM — quietSep 11, 4 AM — quietSep 11, 7 AM — quietSep 11, 10 AM — quietSep 11, 1 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 11, 4 PM — quietSep 11, 7 PM — quietSep 11, 10 PM — quietSep 12, 1 AM — quietSep 12, 4 AM — quietSep 12, 7 AM — quietSep 12, 10 AM — quietSep 12, 1 PM — quietSep 12, 4 PM — quietSep 12, 7 PM — quietSep 12, 10 PM — quietSep 13, 1 AM — quietSep 13, 4 AM — quietSep 13, 7 AM — quietSep 13, 10 AM — quietSep 13, 1 PM — quietSep 13, 4 PM — quietSep 13, 7 PM — quietSep 13, 10 PM — 2 pieces · 1 post · 1 comment — Reddit 2Sep 14, 1 AM — quietSep 14, 4 AM — quietSep 14, 7 AM — quietSep 14, 10 AM — quietSep 14, 1 PM — quietSep 14, 4 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 14, 7 PM — quietSep 14, 10 PM — quietSep 15, 1 AM — quietSep 15, 4 AM — quietSep 15, 7 AM — quietSep 15, 10 AM — quietSep 15, 1 PM — quietSep 15, 4 PM — quietSep 15, 7 PM — quietSep 15, 10 PM — quietSep 16, 1 AM — quietSep 16, 4 AM — quietSep 16, 7 AM — quietSep 16, 10 AM — quietSep 16, 1 PM — quietSep 16, 4 PM — quietSep 16, 7 PM — quietSep 16, 10 PM — quietSep 17, 1 AM — quietSep 17, 4 AM — quietSep 17, 7 AM — quietSep 17, 10 AM — quietSep 17, 1 PM — quietSep 17, 4 PM — quietSep 17, 7 PM — quietSep 17, 10 PM — quietSep 18, 1 AM — quietSep 18, 4 AM — quietSep 18, 7 AM — quietSep 18, 10 AM — quietSep 18, 1 PM — quietSep 18, 4 PM — quietSep 18, 7 PM — quietSep 18, 10 PM — quietSep 19, 1 AM — quietSep 19, 4 AM — quietSep 19, 7 AM — quietSep 19, 10 AM — quietSep 19, 1 PM — quietSep 19, 4 PM — quietSep 19, 7 PM — quietSep 19, 10 PM — quietSep 20, 1 AM — quietSep 20, 4 AM — quietSep 20, 7 AM — quietSep 20, 10 AM — quietSep 20, 1 PM — quietSep 20, 4 PM — quietSep 20, 7 PM — quietSep 20, 10 PM — quietSep 21, 1 AM — quietSep 21, 4 AM — quietSep 21, 7 AM — quietSep 21, 10 AM — quietSep 21, 1 PM — quietSep 21, 4 PM — quietSep 21, 7 PM — quietSep 21, 10 PM — quietSep 22, 1 AM — quietSep 22, 4 AM — quietSep 22, 7 AM — quietSep 22, 10 AM — quietSep 22, 1 PM — quietSep 22, 4 PM — quietSep 22, 7 PM — quietSep 22, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 1 AM — quietYesterday, 4 AM — quietYesterday, 7 AM — quietYesterday, 10 AM — quietYesterday, 1 PM — quietYesterday, 4 PM — quietYesterday, 7 PM — quietYesterday, 10 PM — quietToday, 1 AM — quietToday, 4 AM — quiet 1–23
Sep 11Sep 12Sep 13Sep 14Sep 15Sep 16Sep 17Sep 18Sep 19Sep 20Sep 21Sep 22now · 6:44 AM ET
  1. 3

    Study identifies specific fields where trust drops sharply

    The survey finds that trust declines for scientists working on vaccines, space, and climate. People also trust academics more than scientists in government (42%) or private companies (34%). Those with low trust in scientists are more likely to believe conspiracy theories about climate change, vaccines, and 5G.

    “Depends on the scientist Biology, physics etc yes 100% Social science no, that was clear when they tried changing the definition of racism…”
    — TomorrowSpecial255, Reddit commenter · source
    • edwiebe@scribili.masto.host

      Too many of us are a problem for the rest. Two stories today. “In a politically divided society, people become much more interested in, ‘What’s in it for me?’” From, https://www. nature.com/articles/d41586-026 -02883-w and ... "reminding individuals of their personal responsibility to act on climate change did little to convince people to…

      edwiebe@scribili.masto.hostMastodon9d ago1▲view on Mastodon ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch

    • Depends on the scientist Biology, physics etc yes 100% Social science no, that was clear when they tried changing the definition of racism

      TomorrowSpecial255r/europe10d agoview on r/europe ↗
    all of them →
  2. 2 days quiet
  3. 1

    Bobby Duffy attributes shift to political polarization and self-interest

    Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King's College London and lead author, explains that in politically divided societies, people prioritize whether scientists align with their personal interests over whether they work broadly for societal good.

    “In a politically divided society, people become much more interested in, 'What's in it for me?'”
    — Bobby Duffy
  4. 2

    King's College London releases study on what drives public trust in scientists

    A survey of 4,262 UK adults led by the Policy Institute at King's College London and Sense about Science finds that 63% trust scientists highly. The study identifies the most influential factor in building trust: whether respondents perceive scientists as "on the side of people like them."

    “The most influential factors were whether respondents felt that scientists were "on the side of people like them" and whether they thought of scientists as open and transparent. Both outweighed perceptions of scientific expertise.”
    — Study authors
    1. 1 outlet People trust scientists seen to be 'on their side', UK study find

      first by Nature News, 13d ago

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