Physical Science Research in the News: The Effect of Explicitly Described Limitations on Public Understanding

• In Event: Poster Session 2
  In Poster Session: Contexts for Learning: A Focus on Media and After-School Programs

Abstract

Despite numerous calls for improving scientific literacy, many American adults show a lack of understanding of experiments, scientific study, and scientific inquiry. News media is one important avenue for science learning, but are inconsistent in their presentation of scientific research limitations, potentially impacting reader understanding. In this study, university staff and science faculty read one of two news articles, differing in the presentation of study limitations. Staff participants reading the article with explicit presentation of limitations were less sure of how much to trust the research conclusions, but were able to interpret the limitations better than those who read the article without limitations presented. For the science faculty, no differences were apparent based on the article read.

Authors

• Mike Hands, Purdue University

• Gabriela C. Weaver, Purdue University