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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 14, 2026

Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses

Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses

Published on: September 28, 2018

Are there ideological differences in science denial?

Linda J Skitka¹

¹University of Illinois Chicago, 1046 N, Taylor Ave, Oak Park, IL 60302, United States.

Current Opinion in Psychology

|October 22, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Political ideology does not inherently predict trust in science. Differences in science trust often arise in polarized nations where specific political groups strategically promote doubt about inconvenient findings.

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Area of Science:

Environmental science
Political science
Sociology

Background:

Concerns exist regarding ideological differences in trust towards science, particularly concerning climate change.
U.S. conservatives exhibit greater skepticism towards science compared to liberals.
However, this ideological gap in science trust is not universal and varies significantly across countries.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the relationship between political orientation and trust in science.
To explore the factors contributing to ideological differences in science skepticism.
To understand the symmetry of cognitive processes underlying science denial across the political spectrum.

Main Methods:

Comparative analysis of trust in science across different political ideologies.
Examination of the role of political polarization and strategic doubt-seeding in shaping science skepticism.
Cross-national comparison of the association between political orientation and trust in science.

Main Results:

In most non-U.S. countries, there is minimal association between political orientation and trust in science.
Cognitive processes underlying science denial are symmetrical across ideological lines.
Ideological gaps in science trust emerge in highly polarized political environments where specific parties or media outlets promote skepticism.

Conclusions:

Trust in science is not intrinsically linked to political ideology.
The emergence of ideological gaps in science trust is often a consequence of political polarization and strategic disinformation campaigns.
The direction of the ideological gap (liberal vs. conservative skepticism) depends on which political side targets science findings inconvenient to their agenda.