This paper describes evidence suggesting that science curiosity counteracts politically biased information processing. This finding is in tension with two bodies of research. The first casts doubt on the existence of “curiosity” as a measurable disposition. The other suggests that individual differences in cognition related to science comprehension - of which science curiosity, if it exists, would presumably be one - do not mitigate politically biased information processing but instead aggravate it. The paper describes the scale-development strategy employed to overcome the problems associated with measuring science curiosity. It also reports data, observational and experimental, showing that science curiosity promotes open-minded engagement with information that is contrary to individuals’ political predispositions. The paper concludes by identifying a series of concrete research questions posed by these results.
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Dan Kahan
Author
Yale University
Asheley Landrum
Author
Annenberg Public Policy Center
Katie Carpenter
Author
Yale University
Laura Helft
Author
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Kathleen Hall Jamieson
Author
University of Pennsylvania
Citation
Publication Name:
Yale Law & Economics Research Paper No. 561
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