Public understanding of science and technology in the Internet era

When this journal was launched in 1992, there was a growing consensus among political and academic leaders that a broad understanding of science and technology was necessary for economic prosperity and democratic governance. This was more of an intuitive judgment than an empirical one. After 30 years of data collection and analysis, it appears that these early expectations were largely correct, but the value of the last three decades of social and psychological research is that we now have a firmer empirical basis for these beliefs and expectations. This essay outlines the impact of the growth of science and technology and the development of new information technologies that have changed the ways that individuals obtain information. I will discuss the implications of these changes for democracy in the 21st century.