Learning Right from Wrong: A Cross-national Analysis of Education, National Scientific Investment, and the Morality of Science

Abstract

Opposition to and skepticism of science have important social consequences, as highlighted by contemporary debates about vaccines and climate change. Recent studies suggest that opposition to science is rooted in moral concerns and reflects a belief that science breaks down traditional conceptions of right and wrong. This article turns attention to the education system and to national contexts to examine how people see science as a moral threat. We analyze data from the World Values Survey using multilevel regression models and find that individuals with higher levels of education are less concerned about the effects of science on morality. Yet, education differences in moral concern about science are more than twice as large in countries with the highest levels of scientific investment compared to those with the lowest. We conclude that although the link between education and the moral consequences of science is not limited to specific countries, its intensity varies across national contexts. We discuss these findings in light of recent scholarship on political and religious opposition to science, noting the importance of understanding publics’ views of the moral consequences of science.