Does it Harm Trust to Openly Communicate Scientific Uncertainty?

Saturday, 15 February 2014
Regency A (Hyatt Regency Chicago)
Michaela Maier , University of Koblenz-Landau, Landau, Germany
To ensure informed decision making, citizens should know about uncertainties that accompany scientific innovations. However, scientists and journalists fear adverse effects from the presentation of scientific uncertainties on citizens’ attitudes towards science. Our presentation summarizes the research on how media reports that include information about scientific uncertainty affect citizens’ trust and other related dimensions such as interest in science or beliefs about scientific knowledge.