Endorsement of scientific inquiry promotes better evaluation of climate policy evidence

Jessica E. Hughes (), James D. Sauer (), Aaron Drummond (), Laura E. Brumby () and Matthew A. Palmer ()
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Jessica E. Hughes: University of Tasmania
James D. Sauer: University of Tasmania
Aaron Drummond: Massey University
Laura E. Brumby: University of Tasmania
Matthew A. Palmer: University of Tasmania

Climatic Change, 2023, vol. 176, issue 6, No 3, 20 pages

Abstract: Abstract Public and scientific consensus about climate change do not align. Problematically, higher scientific knowledge has been associated with lower acceptance of climate information among those with more conservative socio-political ideologies. Positive attitudes towards science can attenuate this effect. We investigated the association between endorsement of scientific inquiry (ESI) and decision-making with scientific evidence about climate policies. Participants rated support for 16 climate policies accompanied by weaker or stronger evidence. In study 1 (N = 503), higher ESI was associated with greater discernment between strongly and weakly evidenced climate policies, irrespective of worldview. In studies 2 (N = 402) and 3 (N = 600), an ESI intervention improved discrimination, and, in study 3, increased ESI specifically for hierarchical/individualistic participants. Unlike ESI, the link between scientific knowledge and evaluation of evidence was influenced by worldview. Increasing ESI might improve the evaluation of scientific evidence and increase public support for evidence-based climate policies.

Keywords: Decision-making; Attitudes towards science; Motivated reasoning; Climate change policy; Deficit model; Scientific literacy; Scientific inquiry (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1007/s10584-023-03535-y

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