The (Mis)understanding of Scientific Uncertainty? How Experts View Policy-Makers,the Media and Publics

Abstract

Frequent claims that publics ‘misunderstand’ science ignore the contested definition of scientific uncertainty itself. Scientific uncertainty means different things in the natural sciences, social sciences and the humanities, while public controversies show that interpretations of scientific uncertainty have different implications for policy and decision-making. This prompts analysis of the ways that experts view scientific uncertainty and how they characterise the (mis)understandings of this uncertainty by policy-makers, media and publics. Experts from diverse academic fields define scientific uncertainty differently depending on their disciplinary background. For example, mathematics provides experts from the natural sciences with a practice language that facilitates communication with those sharing this cultural competence, but it does not suffice for engaging with wider audiences. Further, experts’ views of diverse publics come across as folk theories, in Arie Rip's terms, which, compiled from disparate pieces of information, can be used to fill a gap in the knowledge about publics.     

Honesty about God: Theological reflections on violence in an evolutionary universe

Theodicy has become problematic in light of scientific theories of evolution, and all theologies are doomed to failure unless and until they are “honest, and ever-vigilant against the temptation … to excise from [nature] … violence and indifference to suffering” simply because it does not suit our theological systems or political goals.1 1 B. Jill Carroll, The Savage Side: Reclaiming Violent Models of God (New York: Rowman & Littlefield, 2001), 116. View all notes In this theological attempt to deal directly with the violence inherent in the evolutionary process, I suggest a cautious retrieval of Martin Luther's God Hidden/God Revealed in order to allow for a more honest appraisal of suffering in this evolutionary universe.     

Suffering by comparison: Twitter users’ reactions to the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

Social comparison theory suggests that evaluating the self in comparison with others (e.g., peers, celebrities, models) can influence body image. Experimental studies that have tested effects of viewing idealized images in the media often show that women feel worse about themselves after seeing images that illustrate the beauty ideal. Twitter presents a naturally occurring opportunity to study viewers’ reactions. An analysis was conducted of 977 tweets sent immediately before and during the 2011 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show that reference the show. Although the majority were idiosyncratic remarks, many tweets contain evidence of upward social comparisons to the fashion models. There were tweets about body image, eating disorders, weight, desires for food or alcohol, and thoughts about self-harm. The results support social comparison theory, and suggest that vulnerable viewers could experience negative affect, or even engage in harmful behaviors, during or after viewing the show or others like it.     

The effects of exposure to slender and muscular images on male body dissatisfaction

This research examined the effects of appearance-based comparisons to muscular and slender idealized male bodies and the contribution of internalization and social comparison to change in body dissatisfaction. Participants were 111 male undergraduates who completed measures of body dissatisfaction, internalization, and social comparison and viewed images of either muscular or slender men in advertisements or product-only advertisements. Results indicated that exposure to both muscular and slender images was associated with an increase in body dissatisfaction, with no significant differences in the change in body dissatisfaction between the two image conditions. Internalization and trait social comparison were each associated with an increase in body dissatisfaction; however, upward social comparison was only a significant predictor of a change in body dissatisfaction for the males who viewed muscular images. These results highlight the impact of slender models on young men's body dissatisfaction and support the examination of media literacy interventions with this population.     

The frontal lobe and aggression

Frontal lesions often lead to psychosocial problems. It is not surprising that frontal lobe dysfunctions have been proposed to underlie antisocial behaviour in individuals without apparent lesions. However, physical aggression and violence have never been systematically related to acquired lesions. Whereas, traditional neuropsychological testing identifies problems in cognitive and emotional information processing, recent brain-imaging studies have revealed both the frontal structural and functional underpinnings of antisocial behaviour. Careful characterization of antisocial behaviour subtypes seems to indicate that cognitive-neuropsychological function is systematically poor in physical aggression and hyperactivity. Recent refinements point to biological and genetic moderators of that association.     

Validation of Dating Violence Questionnarie-R (DVQ-R)

Background/Objective

Despite the growing interest in the study of dating violence, relatively few psychometrically sound instruments are available to researchers. To provide an instrument to researchers and professionals to assess victimization in dating relationships, with adequate psychometric properties. Method: Participants were 6,138 adolescents drawn from the general population, 25% of which were university students. Participants responded to the original Dating Violence Questionnaire (DVQ). Results: Confirmatory analyses results provided evidence of a clear factorial structure that was invariant through sex groups. The DVQ-R measures with 20 items five dimensions of abuse in affective interpersonal relationships of adolescents and youth: Detachment, Humiliation, Coercion, Physical and Sexual violence. Internal consistency indexes were adequate for both each one of the five dimensions as well as for the general scale. Conclusions: The DVQ-R is an useful assessment to be applied in adolescents and youth. Implications for research and intervention are discussed in light of the results obtained.     

Evaluating Violent Conduct in Sport: A Hierarchy of Vice

The landscape of sport shows conspicuous discursive and material disparities between the responses to openly violent on-field transgressors and the responses to other kinds of transgressor, most notably drug users. The former gets off significantly lighter in terms of ideological framing and formal punishment. The latter—and drug users in particular—are typically demonised and heavily punished, whilst the former are regularly lionised, dramatised, celebrated and punished less severely. The preceding disparities cannot be upheld from the standpoint of morality in general or from that of a Broad Internalist sport ethic. Consideration of the consequences, actions, motives and vices involved in the respective categories fails to support them. Nor is support provided by the notion that sports are tests of the physical skills and virtues that the obstacles presented are designed to foster and promote, and behaviour that threatens the opportunity to exercise those excellences or have competitions determined by them should be the subject of critical moral scrutiny. Openly violent on-field transgression does not fare at all well by the yardstick of Broad Internalism. Robust investigation of and ultimate change in the values underpinning the disparities is warranted.     

Thinking About the Future as a Way to Succeed in the Present: A Longitudinal Study of Future Orientation and Violent Behaviors Among African American Youth

Previous research has linked higher levels of hopelessness about one's future to violent behavior during adolescence; however, little is known about this relationship over time for adolescents. Using growth curve modeling, we tested the association between future orientation and violent behavior across the high school years of adolescence in a sample of African American youth (n = 681). Variation based on demographic characteristics (i.e., sex, SES, previous violence) was explored. At baseline, differences in violent behavior varied by demographic characteristics. Overall, violent behavior decreased with age. Higher levels of future orientation were associated with greater decreases in violent behavior over time. Demographic characteristics were not associated with change in violent behavior overtime. Our findings suggest that future orientation can act as a promotive factor for at risk African American youth. Interventions that help support the development of future goals and aspirations could play a vital role in violence prevention efforts.     

Mentalizing Family Violence Part 2: Techniques and Interventions

This is the second of two companion papers that provide an overview of mentalization‐based concepts and techniques when working with the seeming “mindlessness” of intra‐family violence. The focus of this paper is on general mentalization‐oriented approaches and specific interventions that aim to (1) disrupt the non‐mentalizing cycles that can generate intra‐family violence and (2) encourage the emergence of patterns of family interactions that provide the foundation for non‐violent alternatives. Various playful exercises and activities are described, including the taking of “mental state snapshots” and “selfies” in sessions and staging inverted role‐plays, as well as using theatrical masks and creating body–mind maps and scans. These can make “chronic” relationship issues come alive in session and permit “here and now” experiences that generate a safe context for mentalizing to take place. At the core of the work is the continuous focus on integrating experience and reflection. Without acute awareness of the thoughts and feelings occurring in the sessions, mere reflection is not likely to enable change. By increasing mentalizing in the family system, family members’ trusting attitudes grow, both within and outside the family.     

Violent and nonviolent video games produce opposing effects on aggressive and prosocial outcomes

Experimental studies routinely show that participants who play a violent game are more aggressive immediately following game play than participants who play a nonviolent game. The underlying assumption is that nonviolent games have no effect on aggression, whereas violent games increase it. The current studies demonstrate that, although violent game exposure increases aggression, nonviolent video game exposure decreases aggressive thoughts and feelings (Exp 1) and aggressive behavior (Exp 2). When participants assessed after a delay were compared to those measured immediately following game play, violent game players showed decreased aggressive thoughts, feelings and behavior, whereas nonviolent game players showed increases in these outcomes. Experiment 3 extended these findings by showing that exposure to nonviolent puzzle-solving games with no expressly prosocial content increases prosocial thoughts, relative to both violent game exposure and, on some measures, a no-game control condition. Implications of these findings for models of media effects are discussed.