How do individuals decide whether to accept human causes of climate change, vaccinate their children, or practice social distancing during a pandemic? Understanding key psychological explanations for science denial and doubt can help provide a means for improving scientific literacy and understanding—critically important at a time when denial has become deadly. In Science Denial: Why It Happens and What to Do About It, the authors identify the problem and why it matters and offer tools for addressing it.
The authors focus on key psychological issues such as social identity and reasoning biases that limit a public understanding of science and describe solutions for individuals, educators, science communicators, and policy makers. If you have ever wondered why science denial exists, want to know how to understand your own biases and those of others, and would like to address the problem, this book will provide the insights you are seeking.
Dr. Barbara Hofer is a Professor of Psychology Emerita at Middlebury College and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan from the Combined Program in Education and Psychology, with a certificate in Culture and Cognition, and an Ed.M. in Human Development from Harvard University.
Dr. Gale M. Sinatra is the Stephen H. Crocker Chair and Professor of Psychology and Education at the Rossier School of Education at the University of Southern California. She received her B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
This talk took place on April 14, 2022, at 7:00 pm EDT.