Amidst the Pandemic, Confidence in the Scientific Community Becomes Increasingly Polarized

Political divisions on confidence in the scientific and medical communities have widened, according to an analysis of the 2021 General Social Survey (GSS) by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The survey, conducted a year into the pandemic, finds confidence in the scientific community has increased among Democrats between 2018 and 2021, but fell among Republicans.

Forty-eight percent of Americans overall have a great deal of confidence in the scientific community. But there is now a 30-point gap in confidence between Democrats and Republicans, up from a 9-point gap in 2018. In 2021, 64% of Democrats have a great deal of confidence in the scientific community, whereas only 34% of Republicans say the same. CONTINUED

AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research


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