The “replication crisis” in the public eye: Germans’ awareness and perceptions of the (ir)reproducibility of scientific research

Several meta-analytical attempts to reproduce results of empirical research have failed in recent years, prompting scholars and news media to diagnose a “replication crisis” and voice concerns about science losing public credibility. Others, in contrast, hoped replication efforts could improve publi...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public understanding of science (Bristol, England) England), 2021-01, Vol.30 (1), p.91-102
Main Authors: Mede, Niels G., Schäfer, Mike S., Ziegler, Ricarda, Weißkopf, Markus
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Barometers
Crises
Empirical analysis
Humans
Mass Media
News media
Public concern
Public opinion
Quality
Quality control
Replication
Reproducibility
Reproducibility of Results
Research methodology
Science
Secondary analysis
Surveys and Questionnaires
Trust
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Several meta-analytical attempts to reproduce results of empirical research have failed in recent years, prompting scholars and news media to diagnose a “replication crisis” and voice concerns about science losing public credibility. Others, in contrast, hoped replication efforts could improve public confidence in science. Yet nationally representative evidence backing these concerns or hopes is scarce. We provide such evidence, conducting a secondary analysis of the German “Science Barometer” (“Wissenschaftsbarometer”) survey. We find that most Germans are not aware of the “replication crisis.” In addition, most interpret replication efforts as indicative of scientific quality control and science’s self-correcting nature. However, supporters of the populist right-wing party AfD tend to believe that the “crisis” shows one cannot trust science, perhaps using it as an argument to discredit science. But for the majority of Germans, hopes about reputational benefits of the “replication crisis” for science seem more justified than concerns about detrimental effects.
ISSN:0963-6625
1361-6609
DOI:10.1177/0963662520954370