Belén Laspra

Abstract The ways that humans acquire information is undergoing a fundamental change comparable to the introduction of Gutenberg’s printing press and broadcast systems. Using the literature and a growing body of empirical evidence, we describe a model of information acquisition that specifies the roles of education, salience, subject-matter literacy, and navigation skills in the decision to seek information. We refer to this model as a just-in-time information acquisition system. We focus on the acquisition of health information and science information separately and discuss the similarities and differences. We utilize a national U.S. survey to describe adult information acquisition behaviors empirically.

Supplemental material, sj-pdf-1-pus-10.1177_09636625211035919 for Public acceptance of evolution in the United States, 1985–2020 by Jon D. Miller, Eugenie C. Scott, Mark S. Ackerman, Belén Laspra, Glenn Branch, Carmelo Polino and Jordan S. Huffaker in Public Understanding of Science

The public acceptance of evolution in the United States is a long-standing problem. Using data from a series of national surveys collected over the last 35 years, we find that the level of public acceptance of evolution has increased in the last decade after at least two decades in which the public was nearly evenly divided on the issue. A structural equation model indicates that increasing enrollment in baccalaureate-level programs, exposure to college-level science courses, a declining level of religious fundamentalism, and a rising level of civic scientific literacy are responsible for the increased level of public acceptance.

Plurality and divergence of opinion, based on freedom of thought and information, are nowadays broadly recognized as requirements for the healthy performance of a democratic society. The aim of this chapter is to take this idea somewhat further by characterizing the agents of such performance. We do so by highlighting a culture of risk with respect to the Science and Technology System. In our view, risk culture implies having a skeptical awareness grounded on sound information towards science and technology, combining an overall positive attitude and awareness of their limitations and threats, and adapting one’s behavior accordingly. We argue that risk culture is a key element for democratic governance in contemporary risk societies with increasingly pressing technical issues open to social debate. Accordingly, we first review the concept of risk culture within the framework of scientific and technological culture, and then proceed to examine the role of this risk culture in social ...