The coronavirus pandemic created a situation in which virological and epidemiological science became highly politically relevant but was uncertain and fragmented. This raises the question as to how science could inform policymaking and public debate on societal crisis management. Based on an online survey of Germans ( N = 1513) representative for age, gender, education, and place of residence, we investigate citizens’ prescriptive views of the relationships between science, policymaking, and the media. Views differ depending on their informational needs and epistemic beliefs. People with a need for definite information and a view of scientific knowledge as static wanted scientists to dominate policymaking and journalists to deliver definite information about the coronavirus. People with an informational need to construct their own opinions wanted journalists to question policy and scientific advice. Furthermore, they rejected the idea of scientists dominating policymaking. Results are discussed with reference to theories of science and democracy.

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Objectives The dual-hormone hypothesis suggests that associations of testosterone (T) with certain behavioral tendencies are stronger when cortisol (C) levels are low simultaneously. A range of studies provided supporting evidence for TxC interaction effects for example on dominance and risk-taking behaviors. However, concerning perceptions of facial characteristics the evidence is mixed, with a recent study reporting a positive association between perceived facial dominance and T among men with higher C.Methods We sought to further examine links of observer-rated facial attractiveness, dominance and health (based on photographs of N = 165 men) with baseline T, competition-induced T reactivity, and their interaction with baseline C.Results There was some evidence that baseline T and the interaction of T reactivity with baseline C positively predicted facial dominance, however these were not robust when including control variables.Conclusions Since no effects were found for attractiveness and health, our results suggest that associations of perceived facial characteristics with baseline T, T reactivity and their interactions with baseline C are rather weak.