Educational Issues, Vol. 7 No. 2, 2024.
Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.53577/oot.7.2.4
Over the Edge: Scientific Literacy, Trust in Science, and Paranormal Beliefs
Mirjana Tonković
orcid.org/0000-0002-9145-175X
Abstract
Belief in paranormal phenomena is a type of scientifically unfounded belief that involvesattributing supernatural causes to everyday and natural phenomena. The aim of this research was to examine the role of trust in science and scientific literacy in explaining belief in the paranormal. Scientific literacy is defined as the ability to reason scientifically and understand scientific methodology, a predictor of scientifically unfounded beliefs that has rarely been investigated until now. The participants in the study were students who completed the actively open-minded thinking scale, the science credibility scale, and the scientific reasoning scale, and who assessed the importance of faith in their lives and their political orientation. The results of the hierarchical regression analysis showed that both trust in science and scientific reasoning had a significant independent contribution in explaining the variance in belief in the paranormal beyond that explained by gender, religiosity, political orientation, and actively open-minded thinking.
Keywords
scientific reasoning; credibility of science; paranormal phenomena; actively open-minded thinking
Hrčak ID:
325454
URI
Publication date:
27.12.2024.
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