Politicization of Science in the Public Sphere: A Study of Public Trust in the US, 1974-2010

Source: American Sociological Review

This study explores time trends in public trust in science in the United States from 1974 to 2010. More precisely, the author, Gordon Gauchat, tests Mooney’s (2005) claim that conservatives in the United States have become increasingly distrustful of science.
Using data from the 1974 to 2010 General Social Survey, he examines group differences in trust in science and group-specific change in these attitudes over time. Results show that group differences in trust in science are largely stable over the period, except for respondents identifying as conservative. Conservatives began the period with the highest trust in science, relative to liberals and moderates, and ended the period with the lowest.