Article Accepted Manuscript

Person- and Situation-Specific Factors in Discounting Science via Scientific Impotence Excuses

Author(s) / Creator(s)

Rosman, Tom
Kerwer, Martin
Chasiotis, Anita
Wedderhoff, Oliver

Abstract / Description

Munro (2010) found that individuals, when confronted with belief-disconfirming scientific evidence, resist this information by concluding that the topic at hand is not amenable to scientific investigation – a scientific impotence excuse. We strived to replicate this finding and to extend this work by analyzing other factors that might lead to scientific impotence excuses. As a person-specific factor, we analyzed the role of epistemic beliefs, and as a situational factor, we focused on the contradictoriness of the evidence at hand. Three sets of hypotheses were preregistered. In an experimental 2x3 online study drawing on a general population sample of N = 901 participants, we first assessed our participants’ prior beliefs on the effects of acupuncture versus massaging (pro acupuncture vs. no opinion). One experimental group then read fictitious empirical evidence claiming superiority of acupuncture, another group read evidence speaking against acupuncture, and a third group read conflicting evidence (i.e., a mix of pro- and contra-findings). Scientific impotence excuses were measured by a newly developed questionnaire. Our first hypothesis, which suggested that participants believing in the superiority of acupuncture would make stronger scientific impotence excuses when confronted with belief-disconfirming findings, was confirmed. A second hypothesis suggested that scientific impotence excuses would be stronger when individuals were confronted with evidence exhibiting a ‘nature’ that contradicts their topic-specific epistemic beliefs. This hypothesis was partially supported. A third hypothesis suggested that individuals confronted with conflicting evidence would make stronger scientific impotence excuses, and this was again confirmed. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Keyword(s)

scientific impotence excuse prior beliefs epistemic beliefs conflicting evidence discounting science trust in science

Persistent Identifier

Date of first publication

2021-03-08

Journal title

Europe's Journal of Psychology

Publisher

PsychArchives

Publication status

acceptedVersion

Review status

reviewed

Is version of

Citation

Rosman, T., Kerwer, M., Chasiotis, A., & Wedderhoff, O. (in press). Person- and situation-specific factors in discounting science via scientific impotence excuses [Author accepted manuscript]. Europe's Journal of Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.4690
  • Author(s) / Creator(s)
    Rosman, Tom
  • Author(s) / Creator(s)
    Kerwer, Martin
  • Author(s) / Creator(s)
    Chasiotis, Anita
  • Author(s) / Creator(s)
    Wedderhoff, Oliver
  • PsychArchives acquisition timestamp
    2021-03-08T16:58:09Z
  • Made available on
    2021-03-08T16:58:09Z
  • Date of first publication
    2021-03-08
  • Abstract / Description
    Munro (2010) found that individuals, when confronted with belief-disconfirming scientific evidence, resist this information by concluding that the topic at hand is not amenable to scientific investigation – a scientific impotence excuse. We strived to replicate this finding and to extend this work by analyzing other factors that might lead to scientific impotence excuses. As a person-specific factor, we analyzed the role of epistemic beliefs, and as a situational factor, we focused on the contradictoriness of the evidence at hand. Three sets of hypotheses were preregistered. In an experimental 2x3 online study drawing on a general population sample of N = 901 participants, we first assessed our participants’ prior beliefs on the effects of acupuncture versus massaging (pro acupuncture vs. no opinion). One experimental group then read fictitious empirical evidence claiming superiority of acupuncture, another group read evidence speaking against acupuncture, and a third group read conflicting evidence (i.e., a mix of pro- and contra-findings). Scientific impotence excuses were measured by a newly developed questionnaire. Our first hypothesis, which suggested that participants believing in the superiority of acupuncture would make stronger scientific impotence excuses when confronted with belief-disconfirming findings, was confirmed. A second hypothesis suggested that scientific impotence excuses would be stronger when individuals were confronted with evidence exhibiting a ‘nature’ that contradicts their topic-specific epistemic beliefs. This hypothesis was partially supported. A third hypothesis suggested that individuals confronted with conflicting evidence would make stronger scientific impotence excuses, and this was again confirmed. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
    en_US
  • Publication status
    acceptedVersion
    en
  • Review status
    reviewed
    en
  • Citation
    Rosman, T., Kerwer, M., Chasiotis, A., & Wedderhoff, O. (in press). Person- and situation-specific factors in discounting science via scientific impotence excuses [Author accepted manuscript]. Europe's Journal of Psychology. http://dx.doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.4690
    en
  • ISSN
    1841-0413
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12034/4145
  • Persistent Identifier
    https://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.4690
  • Language of content
    eng
    en_US
  • Publisher
    PsychArchives
    en_US
  • Is version of
    https://doi.org/10.5964/ejop.3735
    en
  • Is version of
    https://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.5941
  • Is related to
    https://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.5941
  • Is related to
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12034/2277.2
    en
  • Is related to
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12034/2624
    en
  • Is related to
    https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12034/2526
    en
  • Keyword(s)
    scientific impotence excuse
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    prior beliefs
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    epistemic beliefs
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    conflicting evidence
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    discounting science
    en_US
  • Keyword(s)
    trust in science
    en_US
  • Dewey Decimal Classification number(s)
    150
  • Title
    Person- and Situation-Specific Factors in Discounting Science via Scientific Impotence Excuses
    en_US
  • DRO type
    article
    en_US
  • Journal title
    Europe's Journal of Psychology
    en
  • Visible tag(s)
    PsychOpen GOLD
    en_US
  • Visible tag(s)
    Accepted Manuscript
    en_US