Remember Hiroshima? Exploring the structure, antecedents, and outcomes of public perceptions of scientists

Scientists have saved and improved billions of lives. Today, they are at the forefront of combating large-scale societal challenges, from climate change and pandemics to social inequalities and conflicts. These challenges, along with proposed scientific solutions, have placed scientists in the spotlight. Nevertheless, research on perceptions of scientists remains limited, hindering our understanding of how such a prominent social group is viewed and how scientific solutions, especially needed in times of crisis, could be effectively implemented. Across 15 empirical studies (total N = 14,162), this dissertation examined the structure, antecedents, and outcomes of perceptions of scientists. We found that the public generally holds positive views of scientists (e.g., as extremely competent and very moral), but specific scientific occupations are perceived differently (e.g., economists and political scientists are least trusted scientific occupations). Perceptions of competence and morality were the strongest predictor of trust, while perceptions of morality in particular were important for trusting scientists that work on polarizing topics like climate change. Perceptions of scientists, trust, and even harassment of them, are all shaped by one’s worldviews. In particular, we found that political ideology predicts social evaluations and trust, finding that liberals (compared to conservatives) have more positive social evaluations and trust in scientists (even across dozens different scientific occupations). In conclusion, the present dissertation explored public perceptions of various scientists, the role of worldviews in these perceptions, and their potential consequences—from unconditional trust to harassment and violence. Acknowledging the crucial role scientists hold in society, this research will hopefully contribute to fostering more positive perceptions of scientists and help facilitate the implementation of scientific solutions to society's most pressing challenges.