Public Attitudes Toward Science and Technology: What Have the Surveys Told Us?

Elementary School Children's Perceptions of Scientists

“…Pion and Lipsey (1981) concluded in a review of these and other surveys that "attitudes of the general public toward science and technology are overwhelmingly favourable"; nevertheless, they noted that "the seeds of disenchantment . .…”

Understanding the Paradox in Math-Related Fields: Why Do Some Gender Gaps Remain While Others Do Not?

“…Furthermore, these stereotypes are pervasive across ages, genders, and racial groups in the U.S. (Barman 1999;Finson 2003;Fort and Varney 1989;Schibeci and Sorensen 1983) and are also seen abroad (Buldu 2006;Chambers 1983;Newton and Newton 1988). Although many stereotypes of the people in math-related fields are exaggerated and inaccurate (Borg 1999;Pion and Lipsey 1981), they endure as the dominant representation of the people who work in these fields.…”

“…This is unfortunate because stereotypes of math-related careers are largely inaccurate (Borg 1999;Pion and Lipsey 1981). Many in math-related careers such as computer science and engineering argue that their fields are fundamentally about helping society and involve frequent collaborations with others.…”

Investigating Students’ Private Perceptions of Scientists and their Work

“…For example, Pion & Lipsey (1981) reviewed the public attitudes towards science and technology and found that 'Scientists themselves are seen in stereotyped terms that more nearly describe comic book characters or computers than real people, and the core notion of basic scientific research hardly figures in the conception at all ' (p. 314). Yet in the present study the students described a diverse range of pure and applied research topics.…”