The Death of Expertise: The Campaign against Established Knowledge and Why it Matters
Abstract
In The Death of Expertise: The Campaign against Established Knowledge and Why It Matters, Tom Nichols explores the rejection of experts and the ongoing assaults against knowledge and critical thinking. He notes several influences, including the ubiquity of the Internet, the emergence of a customer satisfaction model in higher education, and the transformation of the news industry into a continual entertainment machine, among others. In this updated and expanded edition, Nichols returns to these themes and he is more alarmed than ever, especially in the aftermath of a pandemic and the outbreak of war in Europe. The rejection of expertise—in which people are hobbled by narcissism and reliant on an overestimation of their own knowledge—is now the foundation for populist political movements. The attacks on science and knowledge have become attacks on democracy itself by an army of ill-informed and angry citizens who are lost in a maze of misinformation, conspiracy theories—and even paranoia.
... The traditional pathway to expertise generally runs through accredited organizations and institutions (Nichols, 2024). Here, expertise is conferred through credentialling processes that are overseen by bona fide experts, reinforced by titles, roles, and offices, organized within a hierarchical structure. ...
... The result is a proliferation of expertise, such that there are more experts than ever, resulting in competing claims that may be treated as having equal weight, even though some views are vetted in traditional ways while others are not. Expert knowledge, traditionally understood and elevated, thus loses stature and authority (Nichols, 2024). Some of this problem is illustrated in Friedman's (2023) recent work on mammography. ...
... With the rise of identity politics, authoritarian tendencies, and the pervasiveness of social media, the post-truth denial of facts complicates the work of the engaged scholar (Giroux & DiMaggio, 2024;Thompson & Smulewicz-Zucker, 2018). Anti-intellectualism refers to the increasing mistrust toward expertise in society (Herzog, 2024;Nichols, 2024). The expansion of higher education, rapid technological advancements, open access to the internet, and widespread social media use have given people unprecedented access to information. ...
... These societal gains, however, have eroded trust in experts and crippled informed public debates. As Nichols (2024) observed, the democratic spread of information has paradoxically brought about a wave of misinformed, resentful citizens who disparage expert knowledge and intellectual achievement. Polarised views about the constitution of knowledge and truth make the task of engaged scholars difficult. ...
Engaged scholarship plays a crucial role in shaping collective narratives and fostering inclusive societies. This article explores the concept of engaged scholarship, highlighting both its transformative potential and the discontents that accompany it. Informed by existing literature and personal reflections, the discussion is divided into three key sections. The first section provides a concise overview of engaged scholarship and outlines the conditions that enable its practice. The second section delves into the main discontents of engaged scholarship: narrow definitions of academic work, polarised views on knowledge and truth, restrictive professional guidelines, the potential for backlash, and the risk of burnout. These pitfalls create an environment where scholars may hesitate to engage fully, despite the pressing need for their contributions to public discourse. In the third and final section, the article emphasises the moral imperative of using research for social change and advocates for the creation of supportive ecosystems to help scholars navigate the challenges of public engagement.
... Macroeconomic Analysis and Factors of Economic Growth than the theories underlying them. Moreover, the illusion of information availability undermines trust of society in expert knowledge [Nichols, 2017]. Therefore, when examining narratives related to economic policy on innovation, one should realise that some of these narratives may intentionally or unintentionally distort information and facts. ...
... The influence of narratives that reflect the "folk understanding" of innovation processes can be particularly strong in a situation where there is a general decline in expert knowledge [Nichols, 2017]. According to the quadruple helix model, this impact is observed in the development of the national innovation system through the mechanisms of civil society and information networks. ...
Comparing recommendations coming from the theoretical research on economic modeling of the national innovation system with suggestions based on the narrative analysis of actors from the Russian innovation system (RIS) may help design a strategy for the regulation of innovative development. The study aims to produce recommendations for the state innovation policy by examining actors’ perceptions. Narrative economics combined with elements of original institutionalism constitutes the methodological basis of the research. The paper uses qualitative methods of narrative analysis. The evidence base is narratives of the RIS actors contained in rating and specialised Russian media and Internet resources, as well as in 27 in-depth interviews, selected during the online expert sampling. According to the study’s findings, the RIS actors note a significant role of the state in the development of innovation in the narratives, but at the same time point to such problems as inconsistency of government actions, instability of innovation policy, lack of effective mechanisms for increasing financing of innovation projects. Respondents attach particular importance to business involvement in innovation, creation and promotion of entrepreneurial initiative, expansion of economic freedom. The results of the study allow identifying the most critical factors in and methods for boosting activity in the national innovation system.
... This is, of course, not an immediately achievable feat across the profession. However, education, training, practice, and experience have been posited as four domains by which definitive expertise should be vetted among peers (Nichols, 2017). One potential avenue to recommend is for institutions to financially support their pharmacists taking board certification exams or obtaining additional practice-related certifications. ...
... We must also avoid the temptation to fall into the vicious cycle of selfreviewing one another's papers and instead recruit qualified professionals from outside of our immediate circles, and provide unbiased feedback to each other. For this aim, it may be necessary to implement an element within the educational/programming committees of professional organizations to ensure that standards of equitable representation are being upheld (Nichols, 2017). Similarly, health and pharmacy media content creators have a responsibility to minimize the extent of medical misinformation disseminated on pharmacists' stated practice expertise through their platforms (Sheng et al., 2021;Johnson et al., 2024). ...
... It is a tough time to work in higher education. The bleeding of funding from public universities, record student debt, and the disrespect of expertise (Nichols, 2017) presents debilitating challenges for teachers and researchers. This is only one part of the suite of institutional problems. ...
... The challenge to this argument that values reading, thinking, education and learning is that our universities have changed. Nichols (2017) argues that our degrees now affirm attendance not education. Consider the Rate My Professor website. ...
Student attrition figures are a hidden metric in universities. They signify institutional failure, inhibit branding and marketing campaigns, and displace blame onto individual students. Behind the thousands of cases of attrition are individual stories of shame, guilt, failure, confusion, and lost future hopes and aspirations. This article explores how students – in and through their diversity - can be supported to succeed. Critiquing the deficit model of teaching and learning and deploying both universal design and the abundance model of teaching and learning, this article provides new strategies for student success. We offer innovative methodologies to understand and enable productive pathways for students through a curriculum. The goal is to enhance and enliven science education and demonstrate the gift and power of well qualified university academics aligning innovative research and teaching.
... The outcomes can benefit professionals by allowing for a better understanding of the technical aspect, on the patient side, as well as how they relate and engage during the process. This way of visualizing the data could also help address the growing distrust of expert opinions in society [7], where data visualized as intuitive imagery might encourage individuals to reconsider their views. ...
This study is the result of the need to research the visualization of brainwaves. The aim is based on the idea of using generative AI art systems as a method. Data visualization is an important part of understanding the evolution of the world around us. It offers the ability to see a representation that goes beyond numbers. Generative AI systems have gained the possibility of helping the process of visualizing data in new ways. This specific process includes real-time-generated artistic renderings of these data. This real-time rendering falls into the field of brainwave visualization, with the help of the EEG (electroencephalogram), which can serve here as input data for Generative AI systems. The brainwave measurement technology as a form of input to real-time generative AI systems represents a novel intersection of neuroscience and art in the field of neurofeedback art. The main question this paper hopes to address is as follows: How can brainwaves be effectively fed into generative AI art systems, and where can the outcome lead, in terms of progress? EEG data were successfully integrated with generative AI to create interactive art. The installation provided an immersive experience by moving the image with the change in the user's mental focus, demonstrating the impact of EEG-based art.
... Becoming an expert is just not the same as it used to be. Eroding public trust in experts has led some to herald the "death" of expertise (Nichols, 2017), while movements to incorporate more diverse sources of expertise into policy decisions have led to a purported "crisis" of expertise (Eyal, 2019). Amidst this uncertainty, those organizations that can instill confidence that stakeholders will have access to expert knowledge, services, and results are at a market advantage (Alvesson, 2001;Stehr & Grundmann, 2011). ...
Multiple facets of the current social and technical environment challenge traditional orientations toward understanding both expertise and experts. Digital and informated workplaces produce contexts that necessitate workers enact process expertise, expertise that is applicable to managing information and communication both within and across domains but does not, in itself, represent those domains' practices. This essay describes the double-edged consequences of this context for would-be process experts through two objectives. First, we explicate why process expertise has become an increasingly essential source of value for contemporary organizations. Second, we describe how process expertise's dynamic and relational qualities produce challenges for legitimating individuals who enact process expertise as experts within organizational contexts. We use empirical examples to describe three dynamics by which process experts may position themselves alongside domain experts: assimilation, brokerage, and commodification. We show how each of these mechanisms produces distinct tensions associated with the identity, visibility, and accessibility of work, which delegitimize this important form of knowing. Our essay motivates a call for further research and policy development aimed toward understanding ways in which process experts come to be more valued by organizations.
... Additional research has also focused on the impact of social motives, suggesting conspiracies allow individuals to feel unique and special by having exclusive information, thus bolstering ingroup identities by denigrating outgroups (Douglas et al., 2019). Unfortunately, conspiracy groups and political extremists take advantage of this conspiracy psychology and the modern media landscape (Nichols, 2017), using online platforms to proliferate disinformation and conspiracy narratives. ...
As radical messaging has proliferated on social networking sites, platforms like Reddit have been used to host support groups, including support communities for the families and friends of radicalized individuals. This study examines the subreddit r/QAnonCasualties, an online forum for users whose loved ones have been radicalized by QAnon. We collected 1,665 posts and 78,171 comments posted between 7/2021 and 7/2022 and content coded top posts for prominent themes. Sentiment analysis was also conducted on all posts. We find venting, advice and validation-seeking, and pressure to refuse the COVID-19 vaccine were prominent themes. 40% (n=167) of coded posts identified the Q relation(s) of users as their parent(s) and 16.3% (n=68) as their partner. Posts with higher proportions of words related to swearing, social referents, and physical needs were positively correlated with engagement. These findings show ways that communities around QAnon adherents leverage anonymous online spaces to seek and provide social support.
... Much of this work has focused on the dual logics of science and politics and the various ways these complement or contradict each other (Jasanoff 1990). In recent years, there has been lively academic debate about the extent to which academic experts enjoy an authoritative position in society, or whether their role has been undermined by political ideology or populism (Nichols, 2017). Yet, systematic empirical work on the extent to which decisions are based on academic expertise is lacking. ...
Academic expertise is a key pillar of governance processes around the world. A goal of policy and public sector actors is to draw on research to improve decision making, and correspondingly, a goal of public policy and public administration researchers is to provide relevant expertise. It is not clear, however, to what extent these goals are achieved. This study uses the Overton database to analyse the influence of public policy and administration research on policy documents (broadly defined as documents published by policy and public sector organizations). It considers which research is cited by policy documents and which organizations cite research more than others to justify their decisions. The findings show that measuring the influence of academic expertise is not straightforward conceptually or methodologically. However, they emphasise the role of different organization types for achieving a greater correspondence between research and policy. Specifically, our study shows that think tanks use public policy and administration research more often than government organizations when justifying decisions. The findings provide insight into the utility of new policy databases in illuminating how academic experts can influence the ideas and actions of policy and public sector actors.
... Much of this work has focused on the dual logics of science and politics and the various ways these complement or contradict each other (Jasanoff, 1990). In recent years, there has been lively academic debate about the extent to which academic experts enjoy an authoritative position in society, or whether their role has been undermined by political ideology or populism (Nichols, 2017). Yet, systematic empirical work on the extent to which decisions are based on academic expertise is lacking. ...
Academic expertise is a key pillar of governance processes around the world. A goal of policy and public sector actors is to draw on research to improve decision making, and correspondingly, a goal of public policy and public administration researchers is to provide relevant expertise. It is not clear, however, to what extent these goals are achieved. This study uses the Overton database to analyse the influence of public policy and administration research on policy documents (broadly defined as documents published by policy and public sector organisations). It considers which research is cited by policy documents and which organisations cite research more than others to justify their decisions. The findings show that measuring the influence of academic expertise is not straightforward conceptually or methodologically. However, they emphasise the role of different organisation types for achieving a greater correspondence between research and policy. Specifically, our study shows that think tanks use public policy and administration research more often than government organisations when justifying decisions. The findings provide insight into the utility of new policy databases in illuminating how academic experts can influence the ideas and actions of policy and public sector actors.
... The perceived lack of respect for truth in general, and certified or scientific expertise in particular, has become an important topic of debate in recent years (Kakutani, 2018;Nichols, 2017;Nurse, 2011). Within the context of an alleged 'post-truth society' (Harsin, 2018), it is often claimed that the authority or perceived credibility of personal experience has grown at the expense of trust in certified expertise (Nelson et al., 2023). ...
In this paper, we analysed Dutch and British radio phone-in conversations on ADHD and vaccination between radio hosts and callers, focusing on how interactants dispute the authority of both scientific and experiential claims to expertise. We found that interactants never challenged the authority of science and experience as such, but resisted their normative relevance. When callers offered expertise in the form of personal experience, hosts challenged its relevance for the overhearing audience by treating the experience as mere belief. When callers offered expertise in the form of scientific knowledge, hosts carefully patrolled the boundaries of ‘real’ science and who may speak for it. We discuss how our findings can explain the frequent contestation of factual sources in semi-public exchanges and offer a new perspective on the supposed diminished authority of scientific knowledge.
... Tom Nichols señala este fenómeno en su libro de 2017 The Death of Expertise (13). Observa que, si bien hoy en día todo el mundo puede acceder a muchos conocimientos, se resiste más que nunca a aprender. ...
La polarización de opiniones y posturas durante la pandemia de COVID-19 es inconfundible. Aunque hay muchas áreas de debate, nuestro enfoque principal gira en torno a las controversias de la vacuna COVID-19. El Informe SAGE (OMS 2014) sobre la indecisión ante las vacunas enumeró tres factores críticos, complacencia, conveniencia y confianza, que se repitieron durante la pandemia. De ellos, la confianza emerge como el motor central de la polarización. La desconfianza abarca varias dimensiones: el gobierno, la ciencia, las empresas farmacéuticas, las nuevas vacunas y las fuentes de información vinculadas a los grupos homólogos y los medios sociales. La polarización no se debe a la escasez de información, sino que está profundamente entrelazada con la identidad social. El efecto de cámara de eco exacerba este fenómeno, reforzando las creencias dentro de círculos afines. El documento explora cómo las diferentes facetas de la confianza influyeron significativamente en la indecisión ante las vacunas durante el COVID. Por último, es necesario reevaluar la eficacia de los mandatos de vacunación y el control de las redes sociales: ¿reducen las dudas o empeoran inadvertidamente la polarización al erosionar la confianza?
... Rather than halting technological progress, we should make sure to accompany it, bringing together, in a multi-disciplinary supervision effort, teams of experts including AI experts, informaticians, mathematical and social scientists, psychologists, lawmakers and more. We should be careful who we trust [2] and, above all, we should not lose our faith in expertise [20]. Only then will the "magnificent and progressive fate of the human race" [17] stand a chance to materialize in its full glory. ...
What if we delegated so much to autonomous AI and intelligent machines that They passed a law that forbids humans to carry out a number of professions? We conceive the plot of a new episode of Black Mirror to reflect on what might await us and how we can deal with such a future.
... The rise of online communities has been associated with a phenomenon some scholars term the "decline of expertise" (Nichols, 2017;Collins and Evans, 2002;Sunstein, 2006). This concept reflects a shift in which traditional experts and authorities are increasingly questioned or disregarded, with lay perspectives gaining prominence, particularly on social media platforms. ...
Introduction
This study examines online communities as arenas where diverse forms of expertise converge to influence discourse and public opinion. Using the case of social media activism advocating for justice in the wrongful conviction of Roman Zadorov for the murder of Tair Rada, it highlights how these communities serve as platforms for “professional amateurs” and demonstrates their similarities and differences from participants in the formal legal arena.
Methods
The study employs a netnographic approach to analyze seven years of social media activity across 15 Facebook groups comprising over 300,000 members. Data collection included participant observation, interviews with 25 group administrators, and thematic content analysis of posts and interactions. This methodological triangulation provides a comprehensive understanding of the discourse and dynamics within these activist communities.
Results
Six categories of experts were identified in the online discourse: 1. Court-admissible experts, including People directly connected to the case, people who are knowledgeable about the involved parties and the surrounding area, expert witnesses who are professionals testifying based on their field-specific expertise, and circumstantial witnesses who have experienced relevant events firsthand. 2. Non-court-admissible experts, including people with deep, self-taught expertise and people relying on nonrational sources, such as supernatural insights. The findings highlight the unique character of online activism as a dialogic space where conventional and unconventional forms of expertise coexist, contributing to public narratives around justice.
Discussion
The study offers a novel conceptualization of online communities as platforms for expert-driven discourse. It underscores the importance of “pro-am” expertise and symbolic capital in shaping public understanding of contentious issues. While focused on a specific legal case, the study provides broader insights into the dynamics of expertise in online activism, emphasizing the duality of court-admissible and non-court-admissible expertise. Future research should explore these dynamics across varied contexts to further understand the role of online communities in social discourse and activism.
... 18 The recent "RT (Reinvent Toilet)" project co-developed by 16 For more comprehensive discussion of these solutions, see Piketty (2021) and Acemoglu and Johnson (2023). 17 Growing distrust of, if not outright hostility toward, expert knowledge of any kind is an important component of the new political landscape (Nichols, 2024). 18 Here we are dealing with just one example of energy technology, even though there could be many other cases of new technologies such as AI. ...
... And so, today's thought leader has come to replace the public intellectual of yore. Drezner further distinguishes thought leaders from academic experts, yet another group declining in public esteem (Nichols, 2017). Experts are less effective in the marketplace of ideas, Drezner argues, because they tend to focus on why policies will not work. ...
Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, commentators in broadly accessible media have offered a surfeit of predictions about the future of higher education. Due to the absence of accountability mechanisms, however, the accuracy of these claims has been heretofore unknown. Research shows that op-eds and other forms of public scholarship influence public policy, heightening the significance of predictions. This paper asks who makes predictions about higher education, in what venues they issue them, on what topics they make predictions, and how accurate they are. It answers these questions by drawing from an original data set of 91 distinct predictions issued by 22 unique authors in 31 separate texts across a 19-month time span from March 2020 to October 2021. It finds that predictions most often appeared in op-eds written by senior academic white men in higher education trade journals. More than half of predictions could not be evaluated a year or more after they were first issued. Still, predictions with determinable outcomes tended to bear out accurately. Enrollment patterns and teaching modalities were the most common topics. Women and people of color were significantly under-represented among predictors. The paper concludes with suggestions for improving equity and performance.
... This phenomenon eventually might usurp the scientific authority of scholars, scientists, lecturers, teachers, educators, or mentors in transforming information into knowledge. Scientists fear this phenomenon because it marks academics' "death of expertise", as it becomes captured by technological products and artificial intelligence (Nichols, 2017;Pulliam, 2017). The reality, however, is that not all scholars and institutions worldwide share this concern, because ChatGPT is used as a means, tool, and medium that foster learning across disciplines from elementary school to university levels (Strzelecki, 2023;Firaina & Sulisworo, 2023). ...
Several studies have investigated digital learning management, but few did so, using OpenAI ChatGPT together with a systematic literature review. The research reported here, aimed to explore the current literature related to the concept, use, and impact of OpenAI ChatGPT. The Systematic Literature Review (SLR) and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) methods were applied in this research with the stages of identification, screening, eligibility, and inclusion assisted by the Publish or Perish 7, VOSviewer 1.6.18, and NVIVO 12 Plus applications. The findings of Scopus-indexed articles amounted to 2,852 pieces which were filtered into 51 pieces according to themes. The 51 articles were analysed according to the specified topics through the NVIVO 12 Plus application, and the results are presented here. The findings indicate that digital learning management is an online-based learning management system, e-learning, using LMS, AI, and ChatGPT in learning activities from elementary school to university. ChatGPT fosters academic performance, text preparation, curriculum development, compiling academic papers and texts, answering cross-cutting problems, assisting research, assisting educational administration, and using assessment tools in medical education. ChatGPT has positive and negative impacts of which the education community must take cognisance. Thus, future research needs to explore digital learning management based on OpenAI ChatGPT in various cross-disciplines and from various perspectives for comparative results and triangulation.
... Ба більше, може одноосібно брати участь у формуванні та розповсюдженні знань. Демократизація науки поступово призводить до «смерті фаховості» [1], за якої рівноцінною вважається думка осіб незалежно від їх професійної підготовки. Проблема верифікації знань є актуальною і для географії та картографії [2], але відображає лише один спектр викликів поряд з пошуком нових концепцій освіти та стратегіями пошуку інформації загалом. ...
У публікації розглядаються переваги електронних атласів як основних комунікаційних засобів географів. Здійснено короткий огляд стану електронного атласного картографування в Україні. Виділено низку викликів, подолання яких сприятиме збільшенню кількості колективів географів з власними електронними атласами |
The publication discusses the advantages of electronic atlases as the main communication tools for geographers. The current status of electronic atlas cartography in Ukraine is briefly reviewed. Several challenges have been identified, the overcoming of which will help to increase the number of geographers with their own electronic atlases
... The Occasional Human Sacrifice joins a chorus of critical analyses of academic medicine and medical power. [1][2][3][4][5] However, as a bioethics text, the style is Elliott's own. This is not a stodgy technical manual stuffed with jargon, but a page-turner combining riveting characters, moral outrage, folksy storytelling, and a magnanimous curiosity. ...
... Theoretical conversations and efforts of knowledge building should not depend on sensationalized claims about the crisis, overthrow, or death of expertise (Eyal, 2019;Nichols, 2017). 4 How we perform our own expertise will have implications for how others approach and talk about expertise (Preda, 2023). ...
... A common explanation for this state of affairs -this gap between expert claims and what lay publics believe-is that the publics are ignorant, even willfully so, because they loath experts (Nichols, 2017). However, although it seems uncontroversial that scientific experts should be granted authority in scientifically related issues, determining what constitutes appropriate expertise, or who should count as a relevant expert, is not an easy or uncontroversial task (de Melo-Martín & Intemann, 2018). ...
Science is our most reliable producer of knowledge. Nonetheless, a significant amount of evidence shows that pluralities of members of publics question a variety of accepted scientific claims as well as policies and recommendation informed by the scientific evidence. Scientific misinformation is considered to play a central role in this state of affairs. In this paper, I challenge the emphasis on misinformation as a primary culprit on two grounds. First, the phenomenon of misinformation is far less clear than what much discussion about the topic would lead one to believe. The evidence regarding the amount of misinformation that exits as well as its role in people's harmful behaviors is at best conflicting and at worst completely useless. Second, the prominence given to misinformation and its harms on people's behaviors disregards the role of values in policymaking and treats scientific information as if it were the only information necessary to make policy decisions. At a minimum, these problems call for caution regarding the emphasis on this phenomenon. After all, if the problem is incorrectly diagnosed, the solutions that are being offered to address the problem of misinformation are bound to at best inadequate and at worst dangerous.
... Inclusion alone, however, may not be enough to address the lack of sufficient evidence-based information for under-represented groups in health-related research. It may be necessary to enhance the efficiency of biomedical trials by implementing new, and potentially controversial, clinical trial designs [46,47]. More efficient designs could, in theory, collect sufficient data from under-represented groups in a shorter period and provide an opportunity to determine if differences in treatment efficacy and safety exist for those groups. ...
The CIOMS book “International Ethical Guidelines for Health-related Research Involving Humans”, published in 2016 (IEG2016), provides information to assist research ethics committee members and research practitioners with pragmatically implementing ethical considerations while planning and conducting their research. To identify which aspects of research IEG2016 has had the greatest impact since its publication, we analyzed metadata from 942 papers that cited IEG2016 (English language title only) from Web of Science (WoS, Clarivate). Using VOSviewer, we mapped the co-occurrence of keywords to derive the network of all keywords that co-occurred at least five times in the set of citing papers. We found that the keywords ethics, research ethics, informed consent, and clinical trials had high co-occurrence scores in this set of publications. Strong links were also observed between ethics, research ethics, and informed consent. We identified fifteen human-related (HR) keyword nodes in this keyword network. Analysis of the subset of 273 IEG2016-citing articles containing these fifteen HR keywords showed later-date publications were focused on the youngest humans (children, adolescents, young people, minors) and the humans typically responsible for those youngest humans, namely women and parents. Seventy-nine of the 110 networked countries/regions associated with IEG2016-citing articles were home to HR keyword articles. We conclude that IEG2016 has had significant impact in health and medical science literature and has served as a foundation for health-related research around the world in the areas of ethics, informed consent, and research ethics and the linkage of these topics to under-represented populations in such research.
... Anti-scientific individuals base their decisions on their sources of knowledge and beliefs rather than on established scientific facts (Nichols, 2017). Skepticism of vaccines is an example of anti-science. ...
Purpose
This study aims to extend the cognitive appraisal theory by developing and validating a conceptual framework to illustrate how travelers' behavioral intention is generated via a multi-stage evaluation of health-related variables.
Design/methodology/approach
SEM and moderator analysis were conducted to examine the theoretical framework (post-intervention event travel intention) and to investigate how the appraisal process differs across travelers with various attitudes toward vaccination.
Findings
This study found that cruise travel intention was positively influenced by the perceived hedonic value and perceived trustworthiness and negatively influenced by perceived infection risk. Furthermore, whereas perceived hedonic value, perceived trustworthiness and perceived risk of infection were all predicted by crisis management, the dimensions of crisis management operated differently. In addition, vaccination attitudes amplified the unfavorable effect of perceived risk on intention.
Originality/value
Drawing on the CAT, this study developed and validated a conceptual framework to integrate crisis management with customers' behavioral intentions. This study extends existing cruise travel intention theory by demonstrating how post-pandemic travelers' behavioral intention is generated via a multi-stage appraisal-reappraisal process based on the evaluations of infection risks and cruise line crisis management.
... Differences in estimated body size across these studies are not minor (Figure 1), with revised size estimates often being half or less than their originally proposed value (e.g., Cidade et al., 2019; see Table S2). These situations feed into a broader problem regarding scepticism and mistrust towards scientists -the 'death of expertise' (Nichols, 2017). The frequency and magnitude with which size estimates for megafauna need to be revisited poses difficulty for scientists in maintaining public trust and confidence, potentially bleeding into public opinion on other matters of importance including climate change and conservation issues. ...
Body size is of fundamental importance to our understanding of extinct organisms. Physiology, ecology and life history are all strongly influenced by body size and shape, which ultimately determine how a species interacts with its environment. Reconstruction of body size and form in extinct animals provides insight into the dynamics underlying community composition and faunal turnover in past ecosystems and broad macroevolutionary trends. Many extinct animals are known only from incomplete remains, necessitating the use of anatomical proxies to reconstruct body size and form. Numerous limitations affecting the appropriateness of these proxies are often overlooked, leading to controversy and downstream inaccuracies in studies for which reconstructions represent key input data. In this perspective, we discuss four prominent case studies (Dunkleosteus, Helicoprion, Megalodon and Perucetus) in which proxy taxa have been used to estimate body size and shape from fragmentary remains. We synthesise the results of these and other studies to discuss nuances affecting the validity of taxon selection when reconstructing extinct organisms, as well as mitigation measures that can ensure the selection of the most appropriate proxy. We argue that these precautionary measures are necessary to maximise the robustness of reconstructions in extinct taxa for better evolutionary and ecological inferences.
... A stream of ominous titles, many appearing in the wake of the watershed events of 2016 (the Brexit vote and the election of Donald Trump), go as far as questioning whether democracy can survive (see della Porta 2013;Coggan 2014;Levitsky, Ziblatt 2017;Grayling 2018; Is democracy dying 2018; Runciman 2018). Others pronounce The Death of Truth (Kakutani 2018) and The Death of Expertise (Nichols 2019). For many of the authors, but by no means all, the crisis is not so much one of democracy as it is one of liberal democracy, a decoupling of democracy from liberal institutions (constitutionalism and the rule of law) and the enlightenment values of truth, reason and tolerance. ...
Resurgent populism – with crime as a core theme - is depicted as a dangerous perversion of liberal democracy. But by avoiding a definition of populism, critics tend to simply conflate populism with contemporary right-wing authoritarianism. Academic analysis, including criminological, is not free of such tendencies. After a brief consideration of criminology’s engagement with penal populism and the recent spread of a more far-reaching authoritarian political populism, the article argues for the need to more carefully conceptualise populism. Theoretical clarity is needed for assessing the character of contemporary populism; for grasping its drivers in, for example, neo-liberal globalization and what Crouch calls “post democracy”; and for discerning its possible future trajectories, progressive as well as regressive. It is also argued that simple denunciations of populism often reflect a complacent liberal mentality that contributes to political disaffection fuelling populist movements, and overlooks legitimate grievances, including the (often criminal) failings of liberal institutions. Rather than being a political aberration, populism, it is argued, should be seen as a “normal” dimension of democratic politics with implications for criminal policy (as well as politics at large).
... It's all about communication or the "art of small steps" (Saint-Exupé ry, 1948), and for the contemporary teacher this is an extraordinary challenge. Communicating with children, with their parents who "stuff" them with books in order to become somebody, or who are indifferent, or worse still, who intervene in the education and obtain grades that are not covered (a situation also pointed out by American sociologists who point out that in today's American society "competence is dead" (Nichols, 2017), because it is possible with less books, if you have a job, even if you don't know how to write Romanian, because there are also people with diplomas who don't practice what they have learned and work in other fields, for example, as sales clerks in shopping malls (Miron & Mistrean, 2023). ...
Science, technology, and humanism are interconnected forces shaping our world. This chapter reflects on their historical and contemporary dialogue, emphasizing the enduring relevance of scientific inquiry, critical thinking, and ethical considerations. Through the lens of Galileo’s defiance and Brecht’s dramatization, it explores the tension between knowledge and authority. The chapter argues for a balanced approach to technological advancements, integrating humanistic values to navigate the complexities of the digital age. Highlighting the role of education, interdisciplinary collaboration, and responsible governance, it advocates for a future where innovation and humanism coexist to address global challenges and enhance societal welfare.
Science is crucial for evidence-based decision-making. Public trust in scientists can help decision makers act on the basis of the best available evidence, especially during crises. However, in recent years the epistemic authority of science has been challenged, causing concerns about low public trust in scientists. We interrogated these concerns with a preregistered 68-country survey of 71,922 respondents and found that in most countries, most people trust scientists and agree that scientists should engage more in society and policymaking. We found variations between and within countries, which we explain with individual- and country-level variables, including political orientation. While there is no widespread lack of trust in scientists, we cannot discount the concern that lack of trust in scientists by even a small minority may affect considerations of scientific evidence in policymaking. These findings have implications for scientists and policymakers seeking to maintain and increase trust in scientists.
Continuous concerns about intolerance among religious communities have given rise to new models of dialogue facilitated by religious communities on social media. Habib Ja'far al Hadar and Onadio Leonardo are unique and contemporary representations of the commitment to interreligious dialogue on social media for peace between religious communities. This research is qualitative, descriptive-exploratory. The data source for this study was obtained through the Log-in podcast content, while secondary data was taken from books, journals, and media related to interreligious dialogue. Data collection techniques are divided into Observation and Documentation. Data analysis techniques include data reduction and presentation using a pluralism approach. Log-in discussions between religious communities are comedic, honest, open, and enthusiastic about learning from different people without demanding absolute truth and not patronizing each other. The model of interreligious dialogue practiced in the Log-In Podcast is love dialogue. The term Love Dialogue is an exploratory meaning of several podcast episodes. It is taken from Habib Ja'far's sect of love, which has the principles of compassion and brotherhood in humanity. Interreligious dialogue shifts to religious recognition because of the same vision and mission.
This chapter examines the complex relationship between eugenic fears and vaccine hesitancy, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. It traces the historical roots of eugenics programs in Nazi Germany and the United States, exploring how these legacies inform contemporary concerns about vaccines as potential instruments of population control. The analysis reveals how historical injustices and ongoing inequities in healthcare access and vaccine distribution have reinforced mistrust among marginalized communities. The chapter discusses how eugenic concerns about vaccines often manifest as conspiracy narratives, sharing key features such as attributions of malevolent intent to powerful actors and positioning believers as victims. These narratives prove particularly resistant to refutation, adapting to incorporate counterarguments and evidence into their explanatory framework. To counteract eugenic fears driving vaccine hesitancy, the author proposes strategies to restore agency to marginalized communities and build trust through representation and engagement. Recommendations include increasing the participation of minoritized populations throughout the vaccine development and distribution process, leveraging trusted local institutions and community leaders, and utilizing social media to amplify empowering narratives about vaccination.
Zusammenfassung
Im Zentrum der Philosophiedidaktik von Bettina Bussmann steht die Vermittlung von Philosophie, Lebenswelt und Wissenschaft. Um dieses Spannungsverhältnis zu verdeutlichen, entwirft Bussmann ein „Philosophiedidaktisches Dreieck“, an dessen Spitze die Philosophie steht (Bussmann 2014, 2015). Auf der einen Seite bezieht sich die Philosophie auf die Lebenswelt, deren Probleme sie reflektiert. Wichtig ist dabei, dass sich die Lebenswelt nicht auf das individuelle und subjektive Erleben der Menschen beschränkt, sondern jetzt die gesellschaftliche Dimension mit einschließt, zu der wesentlich der Umgang mit den Wissenschaften gehört.
Universities have historically been pivotal in societal development, serving primarily as (1) ‘knowledge generating institutions’, (2) structural elements of the welfare state promoting the democratization of education, and (3) direct contributors to economic development and social integration. Despite their consolidated and expanded roles, the 21st century presents a series of profound challenges that threaten these traditional functions and the legitimacy of their position. These challenges include (1) increased competition from non-academic actors, (2) shifts in political ideologies, and (3) rapid technological advancements, particularly artificial intelligence. Collectively, these factors pose a potential existential threat to the traditional model of the university. This essay critically examines the current position of universities amidst these disruptive changes and explores the pressures to reinvent themselves to preserve their role as essential contributors to human development.
RESUMO: O cenário de desinformação científica e política vivenciado nos últimos anos, principalmente durante a pandemia de coronavírus iniciada em 2020, acendeu um alerta vermelho para as instituições dos diversos setores do poder público que se preocupam com o bom funcionamento das democracias. No âmbito acadêmico e educacional, em particular na área de Ensino de Ciências, a preocupação tem se materializado por meio do aumento do número de cursos voltados para a formação inicial e continuada de professores, da produção de artigos, dissertações, teses e por meio de congressos em que a temática tem se tornado amplamente discutida por pesquisadores e professores da área. Nesse sentido, este trabalho tem como objetivo contribuir para a produção de conhecimentos na área de Educação em Ciências no que diz respeito à apresentação de uma proposta teórico-conceitual, baseada em um conjunto de conceitos e critérios para se analisar a credibilidade de alegações supostamente científicas disseminadas pela Internet e mídias sociais. A fundamentação teórica desta proposta tem como pressuposto principal que, no contexto atual de pós-verdade midiática, somos todos dependentes epistemologicamente uns dos outros e, desse modo, nos apoiamos nos trabalhos da Epistemologia Social, principalmente os de John Hardwig, Elisabeth Anderson, Helen Longino e Alvin Goldman, e em seus desdobramentos na área de Educação em Ciências por Stephen Norris e Douglas Allchin.
According to prevalent post-truth concerns, social media is often perceived as a particularly hostile environment for established expertise. Instead of following the advice of scientists or other established experts, there is a fear that laypeople may turn to alternative claims from online communities, influencers, or even populists and conspiracy theorists. However, this study demonstrates that laypeople not only circumvent or challenge the epistemic authority of established expertise online, they also engage in ways aiming to uphold it. Drawing on a two-year digital ethnography of an online community organized in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, I conceptualize such engagement as that of allies of expertise. When taking on this role, laypeople perceive the epistemic authority of established expertise as threatened and defend it against post-truth phenomena on social media platforms. Thereby, they aim to convince others to favor scientific expertise over alternative claims when informing their opinions and decisions. With this concept I contribute to expertise scholarship, especially to understandings of a crisis of expertise.
This dissertation focuses on the use of evidence and expertise in the recent school reforms in the Nordic countries, and the co-creation of global policy space and national policy contexts through the social interactions and networks of knowledge and experts. The study positions itself at the intersection of several disciplines, including education,
sociology, geography, and political sciences. Drawing inspiration from previous research in education policy transfer, globalization studies, spatiotemporal theories, and assemblage thinking, this research sheds light on the interwoven and assemblage nature of the national, Nordic, and international policy contexts.
A novel approach to data analysis (both quantitative bibliometric data and qualitative interview data) is employed to trace moments when the global dimension surfaces within the national context. With this reading this dissertation explores instances where, in processes of globalization, global evidence produced especially by the international organizations influences national policy formation or where national actors engage in shaping global policy within the realms of national, regional, and global policy creation spaces.
In essence, the findings of this dissertation underscore that globalization is not merely an overarching force superseding national autonomy and actors but, rather, a process that transforms national actors into accomplices of global forces through the amalgamation of evidence, expertise, and educational reforms.
Aim/Purpose: The disruptive era is an uncertain condition in social, political, and religious life that creates a new trend regarding monolithic religious understanding. A suitable proselytizing approach based on sustainable development goals is needed to improve the dignity of human life. Background: Social media plays an important role in the spread of a more monolithic religion. This triggered a significant conflict, so efforts are needed to improve religious understanding and experience, one of the fields affected by the disruptive era. Methodology: Various scientific research materials are reviewed to understand how proselytizing strategies are used in the disruptive era. Secondary data analysis was carried out for this qualitative and descriptive study. Contribution: This paper helps understand the right proselytizing strategy to minimize conflicts in the disruptive era by utilizing social media. Findings: The practice of humanist proselytizing through religious moderation and the strengthening of preachers is fundamental to strengthening literal religious understanding in the disruptive era. This study finding helps us understand how to apply proselytizing appropriately in this era of uncertainty. Recommendation for Practitioners: Implementing humanist proselytizing through religious moderation can reduce the monolithic understanding of society due to one of the negative impacts of social media. Recommendation for Researcher: To ensure the relevance of research studies, practitioners and researchers must maintain a collaborative approach with research insights to apply relevant proselytizing strategies in the disruptive era . Impact on Society: Analyze how the proselytizing approach is relevant to society in a disruptive era due to the dark side of social media in the religious. Technology evolves, so society must proactively address this problem with more literacy. In addition, the role of government policymakers, clerics, and ulama is important to reduce the monolithic understanding and cause conflict. Future Research: The study's scope will be better if it can determine the effectiveness of humanist proselytizing through religious moderation with a quantitative approach. In general, this study discusses the best proselytizing strategy in the disruptive era. The significant role of the media can be analyzed to dive deep. Similar studies could be conducted on other religious issues because of technological advancements.
This chapter is a theoretical and conceptual contribution to the research on post-truth politics and populism studies, with an emphasis on epistemic questions (especially those focused on ‘disinformation’/‘misinformation’). It proceeds in two parts. The first part critically analyzes the much-cited Oxford Dictionaries’ definition of post-truth, which authorizes a study of ‘post-truth politics.’ The definition is dismissed as unusable, and a different definition and theory of post-truth is proposed, which sees it as only secondarily epistemic. Arendt’s concept of public truth is proposed as a better starting point, with the caveat that current treatments of post-truth misunderstand how public truth can be known (since it is not ‘scientific’ truth), which requires acknowledging its crucial technologically and socially mediated status depending on performative trust. Thus, post-truth is an affective state, an anxious and future-looking public mood about the difficulty of trust-making for securing publicly accepted facts. The ‘post’ refers to an anxiety about what might be on the horizon. Part II, exploring a potential theoretical overlap between post-truth and populism studies, reverses the epistemic focus of populism studies from populists’ ‘counter-knowledge’ problems taken as self-evident by researchers. Instead, it explores epistemic problems in populism studies on the researcher side : the epistemic risks built into the ‘ideational’ definition of populism; and in the tacit understandings of political rhetoric reduced to ‘information’ (transmission and reception) at the expense of more complex notions of mediated communication as performance or ritual, speech acts, and, especially, political rhetoric. The latter is unrigorously reduced to ‘false information,’ and it requires a very different interpretive analytical approach for comprehending the empirical phenomena being called ‘populist’ and ‘post-truth’—disinformation, misinformation, lying, rumor, and conspiracy theory.
This article examines the distortion of data and its visualization in the context of Covid-19 in Italy. While data visualization has become prevalent across various scientific disciplines, it often suffers from being overly intricate, inappropriate for the data type, or capable of causing perceptual biases and data falsification. The surplus of digital data and its subsequent visualization can lead to the manipulation of information, crafting narratives that diverge from official communications and aim to undermine their credibility and accuracy. This article highlights the necessity for properly disseminating data literacy and investigates data visualization’s epistemological and methodological dimensions, focusing specifically on the Italian scenario. Misrepresentation of COVID-19 data is characterized by the distortion and misrepresentation of the pandemic data collected, processed, and presented. Through an empirical case study, the article underscores the imperative to develop and utilize data visualization techniques that faithfully and accurately depict data.
The government of Indonesia has taken some strategies to prevent the spread of Covid-19, one of them is vaccination. In the era of information abundance facilitated by digital media or social media, there is polarization of perceptions and attitudes in the community about the Covid-19 vaccination program policy. Hoaxes and disinformation make people rejection or doubtful about Covid-19 vaccinations. Religious leaders have a significant role in providing explanations and constructing counter-narratives about Covid-19 vaccination. This study aims to explain persuasive communication strategy of the religious leader (“Tuan Guru”) in Lombok with an Islamic da'wah approach. This study is a qualitative research. The method is discourse analysis. The data analyzed from books, scientific journals, news articles and interview transcripts. The results showed that the persuasive da'wah and communication strategy aims to change the beliefs, attitudes and behavior of people who are in latitude of non-commitment groups. This strategy can strengthen discourse or information (as education) for the community, subjective norms and counter-narrative hoaxes about vaccinations on social media. The persuasive da'wah and communication strategy of Tuan Guru in Lombok is carried out through two methods, namely the direct communication method at the recitation forums and creating positive narratives “Ayo Vaksin” in online media and social media.
У статті здійснено спробу дослідити феномен чуток у ХХІ ст. Проаналізовано доробок західних науковців, які окреслюють контекст, зміст та особливості чуток у світі постправди. Проаналізовано сучасні дослідження феномену чуток в українській та закордонній науковій думці. Виокремлено особливості інформаційного простору, де виникають чутки. Здійснено спробу продемонструвати трансформацію феномену чуток та особливості підходів до них із появою інтернету і соціальних медіа. У праці окреслено особливості «постправдового» дискурсу та дискурсу популізму, які необхідно враховувати в дослідженні феномену чуток.
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