Public awareness of science

It is a comparatively new approach to the task of exploring the multitude of relations and linkages science, technology, and innovation have among the general public.

[3] A 2020 survey by the Pew Research Center found varying levels of trust in science by country, political leanings, and other factors.

[6] The report led to the founding of the Committee on the Public Understanding of Science and a cultural change in the attitude of scientists to outreach activities.

[7] In the 1990s, a new perspective emerged in the field with the classic study of Cumbrian Sheep Farmers' interaction with the Nuclear scientists in England.

Instead of large scale public opinion surveys, researchers proposed studies informed by sociology of scientific knowledge (SSK).

Proponents of greater public deliberation argue it is a basic condition for decision making in democratic societies, even on science and technology issues.

[9] There are also attempts to develop more inclusive participatory models of technological governance in the form of consensus conferences, citizen juries, extended peer reviews, and deliberative mapping.

[13][14] These "wicked" issues often require regulatory and policy decisions that have no single correct solution and often involve numerous interest groups – none of whom are clearly positioned to decide and resolve the problem.

[17] Under the civic science model, there are five key lessons for scientists committed to public engagement:[14][18][19][20] Social scientists use various metrics to measure public understanding of science, including: The key assumptions is that the more individual pieces of information a person is able to retrieve, the more that person is considered to have learned.