Climate Change: Polarization for Controversial Scientific Issues Increases With More Education (IMAGE)

Carnegie Mellon University

Climate Change: Polarization for Controversial Scientific Issues Increases With More Education

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Carnegie Mellon University researchers examined predictors of Americans' beliefs about six potentially controversial issues -- stem cell research, the big bang, human evolution, genetically modified foods, nanotechnology and climate change. And they measured education by the highest degree earned, science classes taken in high school and college and aptitude on general science facts. They found that beliefs were correlated with both political and religious identity for stem cell research, the big bang and evolution and with political identity alone on climate change. On each of these issues, individuals with more education, science education and science literacy had more polarized beliefs.

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Baruch Fischhoff

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