The Bray-and-von Storch surveys among international climate scientists

In 1942 Robert K. Merton tried to demonstrate the structure of the normative system of science by specifying the norms that characterized it. The norms were assigned the abbreviation CUDOs: Communism, Universalism, Disinterestedness, and Organized skepticism. Using the results of an on-line survey of climate scientists concerning the norms of science, this paper explores the climate scientists' subscription to these norms. The data suggests that while Merton's CUDOs remain the overall guiding moral principles, they are not fully endorsed or present in the conduct of climate scientists: there is a tendency to withhold results until publication, there is the intention of maintaining property rights, there is external influence defining research and the tendency to assign the significance of authored work according to the status of the author rather than content of the paper. These are contrary to the norms of science as proposed by Robert K. Merton.

This report presents the findings of a survey of climate scientists’ perceptions of the global warming issue. The survey was conducted in 2015/16. The survey includes the following sections: demographics of participants, participants’ assessment of climate science, the utility of models, extreme events, attribution of extreme events, climate and society, science and society.

This report presents the findings of two surveys of climate scientists' perceptions of the global warming issue. The first survey was conducted in 1996 and the second survey in 2003. A brief text section demonstrates some of the significant findings. The surveys investigate the means by which scientific conclusions are reached and the climate scientists interpretations of what these conclusions might mean. The complete responses to the surveys are presented in Appendix A: Tables and Appendix B: Figures. Each table and figure is presented in a manner to indicate statistically significant change in scientists perspectives over the period of the two surveys.

This report presents the findings of a survey of climate scientists’ perceptions of the global warming issue. The survey was conducted in 2013. The survey investigates the means by which scientific conclusions are reached and the climate scientists’ interpretations of what these conclusions might mean.

This report presents the findings of a surveys of climate scientists' perceptions of the global warming issue. The survey was conducted in 2008. The surveys investigate the means by which scientific conclusions are reached and the climate scientists interpretations of what these conclusions might mean.