Thinking scientifically in a changing world
Shifting people’s judgments toward the scientific involves teaching them to purposefully evaluate connections between evidence and alternative explanations.
Contemporary challenges — such as climate change, and food, energy and water security — demand that people think scientifically. These challenges are often complex and interrelated; for example, society’s increasing demand for energy contributes to human-induced climate change, which in turn, limits freshwater and food supplies (Wheeler & Von Braun, 2013). While many socio-scientific challenges are seriously impacting local, regional and global communities, an increasing availability of information has contributed to what many call a “Post-Truth Era,” where emotions and personal beliefs override scientifically valid evidence and explanations. Combating mythological and unproductive thinking in the face of current change requires increased scientific literacy, which involves knowing both what scientists know and how scientists come to know what they know.