A longitudinal study of attitudes toward evolution among undergraduates who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Polling data reveal a decades-long residual rejection of evolution in the United States, based on perceived religious conflict. Similarly, a strong creationist movement has been documented internationally, including in the Muslim world. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2018-11, Vol.13 (11), p.e0205798-e0205798
Main Authors: Bradshaw, William S, Phillips, Andrea J, Bybee, Seth M, Gill, Richard A, Peck, Steven L, Jensen, Jamie L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Attitude
Attitudes
Biology
Biology and Life Sciences
Christianity
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Colleges & universities
Correlation analysis
Education
Evolution
Historical account
Humans
Jesus Christ
Longitudinal Studies
Mormonism
Parents
Phylogenetics
Polls & surveys
Religion
Religious groups
Science education
Social Sciences
Students
Surveys and Questionnaires
Teaching
Trends
United States
Young Adult
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Summary:Polling data reveal a decades-long residual rejection of evolution in the United States, based on perceived religious conflict. Similarly, a strong creationist movement has been documented internationally, including in the Muslim world. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS, Mormon), a generally conservative denomination, have historically harbored strong anti-evolution sentiments. We report here a significant shift toward acceptance, compared to attitudes 30 years earlier, by students at Brigham Young University, which is owned and operated by the LDS church. This change appears to have multiple explanations. Students currently entering the university have been exposed to a much-improved introduction to evolution during high school. More importantly, there has been a significant decrease in negative messaging from Church authorities and in its religious education system. There is also evidence that current students have been positively influenced toward evolution by their parents, a large percentage of whom were BYU students, who earlier were given a strong science education deemed compatible with the maintenance of religious belief. A pre-post comparison demonstrates that a majority of current students become knowledgeable and accepting following a course experience focused on evolutionary principles delivered in a faith-friendly atmosphere. Elements of that classroom pedagogy, intended to promote reconciliation, are presented. Our experience may serve as a case-study for prompting changes in acceptance of evolution in other conservative religious groups.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0205798