Scholars Disprove Existence of ‘Crisis of Trust’ in Science
An international team of researchers, including specialists from HSE University, has conducted a large-scale survey in 68 countries on the subject of trust in science. In most countries, people continue to highly value the work of scientists and want to see them take a more active role in public life. The results have been published in Nature Human Behaviour.
Research by Arthur Lupia and David Allison had previously indicated that trust in science and scientists has been declining over the past five years, with the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbating this crisis. To study the issue in more detail, the international multidisciplinary consortium TISP (Trust in Science and Science-Related Populism) conducted a survey to provide reliable data on attitudes toward science.
More than 71,000 people answered questions about trust in scientists, rating their competence, honesty, and concern for the common good. The survey design also accounted for characteristics such as respondents’ education, income, and political views.
The study included 68 countries, including those in the Global South, which are often overlooked in similar research. This approach made it possible to identify not only global trends in attitudes toward science but also regional differences.
According to the survey, 78% of respondents worldwide consider scientists competent, 57% see them as honest, and 56% believe they care about people’s well-being. Respondents also emphasised the importance of prioritising research aimed at improving public health, addressing energy issues, reducing poverty, and combating climate change.
Many participants expressed a desire to see scientists involved in decision-making processes: 83% supported open science, and 52% endorsed researchers' participation in shaping public policy. However, less than half (42%) were confident that scientists consider public opinion in their work.
The study shows that the authority of science remains high in most countries, though the degree of trust varies across nations and social groups. In places where people relied more on scientific data, crises such as the pandemic were managed more smoothly, with citizens more likely to follow vaccination and safety recommendations. Tackling mistrust in scientific findings is crucial, as societies with higher trust in scientists tend to handle medical and climate challenges more effectively.
Researchers identified several key factors contributing to the erosion of trust in science: misinformation, conspiracy theories, the reproducibility crisis in scientific research, and science-related populism, which pits popular opinion against expert knowledge. These issues were particularly evident during the pandemic, when some influencers promoted folk remedies over vaccination.
Albina Gallyamova
‘Our results show that most people in most countries display a relatively high level of trust in scientists and want them to play an active role in society and politics,’ says Albina Gallyamova, Junior Research Fellow at the HSE Centre for Sociocultural Research. ‘One reason for the decline in trust is the insufficient engagement of scientists in public education. It is clear that overcoming current challenges requires actively and effectively communicating research findings to the public.’
To present the findings visually, the scientists developed an interactive dashboard where users can compare levels of trust in science across different countries and explore the links between trust and factors such as income, education, and political beliefs. The dashboard also highlights which areas (healthcare, energy, defence technologies) people would like to see prioritised in research and how these expectations align with actual scientific projects.
See also:
When a Virus Steps on a Mine: Ancient Mechanism of Infected Cell Self-Destruction Discovered
When a virus enters a cell, it disrupts the cell’s normal functions. It was previously believed that the cell's protective response to the virus triggered cellular self-destruction. However, a study involving bioinformatics researchers at HSE University has revealed a different mechanism: the cell does not react to the virus itself but to its own transcripts, which become abnormally long. The study has been published in Nature.
Researchers Identify Link between Bilingualism and Cognitive Efficiency
An international team of researchers, including scholars from HSE University, has discovered that knowledge of a foreign language can improve memory performance and increase automaticity when solving complex tasks. The higher a person’s language proficiency, the stronger the effect. The results have been published in the journal Brain and Cognition.
Artificial Intelligence Transforms Employment in Russian Companies
Russian enterprises rank among the world’s top ten leaders in AI adoption. In 2023, nearly one-third of domestic companies reported using artificial intelligence. According to a new study by Larisa Smirnykh, Professor at the HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences, the impact of digitalisation on employment is uneven: while the introduction of AI in small and large enterprises led to a reduction in the number of employees, in medium-sized companies, on the contrary, it contributed to job growth. The article has been published in Voprosy Ekonomiki.
Lost Signal: How Solar Activity Silenced Earth's Radiation
Researchers from HSE University and the Space Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences analysed seven years of data from the ERG (Arase) satellite and, for the first time, provided a detailed description of a new type of radio emission from near-Earth space—the hectometric continuum, first discovered in 2017. The researchers found that this radiation appears a few hours after sunset and disappears one to three hours after sunrise. It was most frequently observed during the summer months and less often in spring and autumn. However, by mid-2022, when the Sun entered a phase of increased activity, the radiation had completely vanished—though the scientists believe the signal may reappear in the future. The study has been published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics.
Banking Crises Drive Biodiversity Loss
Economists from HSE University, MGIMO University, and Bocconi University have found that financial crises have a significant negative impact on biodiversity and the environment. This relationship appears to be bi-directional: as global biodiversity declines, the likelihood of new crises increases. The study examines the status of populations encompassing thousands of species worldwide over the past 50 years. The article has been published in Economics Letters, an international journal.
Scientists Discover That the Brain Responds to Others’ Actions as if They Were Its Own
When we watch someone move their finger, our brain doesn’t remain passive. Research conducted by scientists from HSE University and Lausanne University Hospital shows that observing movement activates the motor cortex as if we were performing the action ourselves—while simultaneously ‘silencing’ unnecessary muscles. The findings were published in Scientific Reports.
Russian Scientists Investigate Age-Related Differences in Brain Damage Volume Following Childhood Stroke
A team of Russian scientists and clinicians, including Sofya Kulikova from HSE University in Perm, compared the extent and characteristics of brain damage in children who experienced a stroke either within the first four weeks of life or before the age of two. The researchers found that the younger the child, the more extensive the brain damage—particularly in the frontal and parietal lobes, which are responsible for movement, language, and thinking. The study, published in Neuroscience and Behavioral Physiology, provides insights into how age can influence the nature and extent of brain lesions and lays the groundwork for developing personalised rehabilitation programmes for children who experience a stroke early in life.
Scientists Test Asymmetry Between Matter and Antimatter
An international team, including scientists from HSE University, has collected and analysed data from dozens of experiments on charm mixing—the process in which an unstable charm meson oscillates between its particle and antiparticle states. These oscillations were observed only four times per thousand decays, fully consistent with the predictions of the Standard Model. This indicates that no signs of new physics have yet been detected in these processes, and if unknown particles do exist, they are likely too heavy to be observed with current equipment. The paper has been published in Physical Review D.
HSE Scientists Reveal What Drives Public Trust in Science
Researchers at HSE ISSEK have analysed the level of trust in scientific knowledge in Russian society and the factors shaping attitudes and perceptions. It was found that trust in science depends more on everyday experience, social expectations, and the perceived promises of science than on objective knowledge. The article has been published in Universe of Russia.
Scientists Uncover Why Consumers Are Reluctant to Pay for Sugar-Free Products
Researchers at the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience have investigated how 'sugar-free' labelling affects consumers’ willingness to pay for such products. It was found that the label has little impact on the products’ appeal due to a trade-off between sweetness and healthiness: on the one hand, the label can deter consumers by implying an inferior taste, while on the other, it signals potential health benefits. The study findings have been published in Frontiers in Nutrition.