Abstract
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we are fighting not only the novel coronavirus, but also the “infodemic” induced by the pandemic. Therefore, it is urgent to explore approaches for enhancing individual immunity against science-related misinformation. We conducted a cross-sectional study to examine the relationship between public engagement with science (PES) and scientific information literacy (SIL) during the COVID-19 pandemic from college students (N = 8075) in China. The results showed that there was a significant difference between attitudes toward and activities of PES. More importantly, both PES activities and PES attitudes were found positively associated with SIL, especially the PES attitudes. The empirical study is significant in demonstrating the predictive effect of PES on individual ability to recognize science-related misinformation, which is crucial for mitigating harm from the “infodemic.” Our study indicated that other than a science communication model in order to restore public trust in science, PES is promising to be incorporated into informal science education to facilitate individual SIL.
Highlights
Human society has been experiencing considerable challenges in public health, politics, and economics due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide
Results of Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) Measure of Sampling Adequacy test and the Bartlett Test of Sphericity showed that the data was suitable for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) (KMO = 0.81; χ2 = 29,069.34, df = 78, p < 0.001)
Based on a cross-sectional study conducted in China during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study investigated the effects of public engagement with science (PES) on scientific information literacy (SIL)
Summary
Human society has been experiencing considerable challenges in public health, politics, and economics due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide. From severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and Ebola to COVID-19, epidemics have never been a simple medical or epidemiological concern but rather a comprehensive social governance issue causing major public crises. Because science is deeply embedded in the modern society, the epidemic and associated public crises cannot be eliminated without the help of science. Haidian District, 100081 Beijing, China 3 Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
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