Trust in scientists and doctors: The roles of faith, politics, education and gender

TL;DR

This study explores how factors like education, politics, religion, and gender influence trust in scientists and doctors in England.

Contribution

The study reveals distinct patterns in trust between scientists and doctors, emphasizing the role of demographic and ideological factors.

Findings

Higher education is linked to greater trust in scientists and doctors.

Right-wing political orientation correlates with lower trust in both professions.

Religious affiliation and gender also influence trust levels differently.

Abstract

This article examines trust in science in England, focusing on variation across demographic and ideological groups. Using survey data from 11,173 respondents, we compare trust in two domains, medical doctors and scientists, to explore whether predictors operate similarly across these professional groups. We find higher education is associated with greater trust, while right-wing political orientation predicts lower trust. Religious affiliation also matters, with some faith groups reporting lower trust relative to the non-religious baseline. Gender differences emerge as well, particularly in trust in medical doctors. Respondents selecting ‘Prefer not to say’ on the religion item report significantly lower trust in both doctors and scientists, consistent with a broader privacy-motivated disclosure style. Our results highlight the importance of considering not just overall levels of trust in science, but variation across education, ideology, religion and gender, and they suggest that trust in doctors and trust in scientists, while related, are not interchangeable.

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