Science, myths and skepticism: Meet the researcher surveying Kiwis' beliefs

Saturday, 30 March 2019

If New Zealanders understood science better, they would make more informed choices about health and the environment. 

That's what Victoria University PhD candidate John Kerr reckons -  and with Stuff he's leading the charge on what is hoped will be a landmark study of New Zealanders' science knowledge, and how their beliefs affect that knowledge. 

With a significant background in science study Kerr became fascinated with science communication, how it affects people's understanding and views, how our individual lives prime us for our beliefs, and why anomalies (like the climate change denier who is pro vaccines) exist.  

'As such a science fanboy, I really struggle to understand how some contrarians could remain so convinced in the face of all the evidence on issues such as climate change and vaccines,' said Kerr. 'I really want to understand, on a deeper level, what is driving these 'misinformed' beliefs.'  

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New Zealand has its fair share of science deniers. The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), in its 2016-17 Annual Report, found sceptics have opinions which are reinforced and nurtured in the 'unmoderated milieu of the internet'. 

Kerr used to be almost militant about science and scepticism - and was always surprised about the amount of debate and arguing there was to be had around scientific issues - but now has more empathy for people who disagree with mainstream science and won't write them off as 'stupid or ignorant'.

Instead, he wants to study them.

The genesis for the survey came at a conference held by Kerr's now supervisor Marc Wilson, from Victoria's school of psychology, who spoke about ideology and values, and its relationship and influence on scientific beliefs. 

Wilson said the survey would help them do two things: Reveal the diversity of scientific knowledge in NZ, and identify discussion for the future. 

'These aren't just issues of scientific debate - if anthropogenic climate change is happening then we have important social, political, economic and personal decisions to make.

'If medicinal cannabis can help people, and with fewer side effects, then there are going to be important decisions to make.' 

The survey would be a snapshot of what Kiwis think and believe right now, Wilson said. 

'That's like a photograph that we will be able to go back to in years to come and see how we've grown, changed, or remained the same.'

In 2008, with Stuff Wilson conducted a large-scale survey called Believe it or Not about the public's views on supernatural phenomena and superstitions including black cats, horoscopes and Elvis Presley conspiracy theories. It received 3000 responses within 24 hours of its launch. 

And a 2011 survey focused on politics and rugby, due to it being election year and around the Rugby World Cup. 

'I see them as holding a mirror up to what's going on around us so we can see ourselves and think a little about the diversity of our natione.' 

Kerr's three-year masters research so far has included how our perceptions of scientific agreement or disagreement affect beliefs about scientific issues. Mainstream media coverage presented divisive debate around some issues, but Kerr is skeptical how much of a divide really exists.   

Water fluoridation seemed to divide Kiwis, 'but is that actually reflective of what all New Zealanders think, or is it just a few isolated voices?' 

Genetic modification, too. 'In the United States there seems to be less controversy about things like GM food, but… I think New Zealand fits more within that European side of things … we have a lot of misgivings about some genetic modification and genetic techniques.' 

People sometimes had ideas about science which were completely wrong - many don't understand what antibiotic resistance is - despite it being potentially devastating for medicine.

'My real focus now is on how a number of ideological factors can shed light on why some people gravitate to one side or another of these public debates.

'One of the things I ask in the survey isn't just what people think but also what people think other New Zealanders think. It's a really interesting question because we might think as a society we're totally split over some of these issues, and it turns out that it might not be the case. There may be fundamental differences between people who live in cities and people who live in rural areas.'  

Kerr's survey would look at how knowledge and opinions could sway other beliefs. 'We want to understand what other opinions are out there and how those opinions tie in to other beliefs about how society should work.' 

Kerr has always loved science. Born in rural Southland, his parents were both teachers with chemistry degrees. 

His parents fostered in him a sense of curiosity about the world and at school he studied as many science subjects as he could, eventually enrolling in neuroscience at Otago University - which covered chemistry, biology, anatomy, physiology and pharmacology. 

Kerr completed an honours dissertation in pharmacology looking at the effects of domoic acid in rats - a toxin that turns up in shellfish after algal blooms, and which was blamed for a poisoning outbreak in Canada where a number of (mainly older) patients lost their memories. He spent six months working in the anatomy department at Otago, studying the brain cells of stargazer mice.

After a stint in London peer reviewing scientific articles Kerr committed to science communication, and returned to New Zealand to study a masters in that subject. Then, his thesis focussed on the now-illegal BZP party pills, the rage of the early 2000s. 'IIt is something I can drone on about for hours given the chance.' A large part of his thesis focused on how the media covered the issue.   

After graduating he worked as a media advisor at the Science Media Centre where he built 'a really good understanding of the complexity of the New Zealand science system and realised how little I really knew about how the 'sausage' of science is made.'  

'People working in their own little corner of science can often miss the big picture of how everything - the government, the universities, the CRIs, the public and so on - fits together in this big tangle of funding, priorities and results.' 

The survey can be completed here on desktop of mobile devices. Survey participants will go into the draw to win an 11 inch, silver iPad pro (email addresses are stored separately to survey responses, and the survey is completely anonymous). A winner will be randomly drawn after the closure of the survey in two weeks, and will be notified by email.