Study on the factors that divide pseudoscience from scientific attitude and its application to education of critical thinking

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K03170
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 09080:Science education-related
• Research Institution: Shinshu University
• Principal Investigator: Satoru Kikuchi 信州大学, 学術研究院人文科学系, 教授 (30262679)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 疑似科学 / 批判的思考 / 二重過程モデル / 超常信奉

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Some surveys of "pseudoscientific belief" and related variables were conducted with university students to clarify the structure of pseudoscientific belief and its relationship to adaptive cognitive variables. First, three factors of pseudoscientific belief were extracted, depending on the subject: paranormal, medical health and everyday life. These pseudoscience beliefs were positively associated with intuitive information-processing tendencies based on the dual-process model, and with inquisitiveness of critical thinking attitudes and prosocial behavioural tendencies. Paranormal belief was positively associated with time discounting tasks. These were interpreted as complementing the general lack model, which considers the reinforcement of pseudoscience beliefs to be due to a lack of scientific knowledge and education.

Free Research Field

認知心理学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

疑似科学は医療や健康、教育、環境問題など広汎な領域で社会に深刻な影響を与える場合があり、これに適切に対処することは、現代の教育や行政の喫緊の課題でもある。特に近年は陰謀論や反ワクチン運動などに疑似科学が深く関与していると考えられる。こうした疑似科学信奉に対抗するためには、正しい科学知識の教育で修正していくだけでは不十分であり、人が自然に備えている適応的な認知システムの副産物と理解する必要性が本研究の結果から示された。さらに、こうした疑似科学信奉が生じる過程についての知見は、汎用的な批判的思考(クリティカル・シンキング）の教材として有用であると考えられる。