GSS 1972-2021 Cumulative Datafile - Release 3b

1035. I'm going to read to you some statements like those you 
might find in a newspaper or magazine article. For each 
statement, please tell me if you strongly agree, agree, 
disagree, or strongly disagree. d. Science is too concerned with 
theory and speculation to be of much use in making concrete 
government policy decisions that will affect the way we live.

1035. I'm going to read to you some statements like those you 
might find in a newspaper or magazine article. For each 
statement, please tell me if you strongly agree, agree, 
disagree, or strongly disagree. e. Government decision makers 
should pay attention only to those scientific theories that have 
been accepted

1035. I'm going to read to you some statements like those you 
might find in a newspaper or magazine article. For each 
statement, please tell me if you strongly agree, agree, 
disagree, or strongly disagree. f. Research results from 
industry scientists are less reliable than those from university 
scientists.

1036. Now, for a new subject. Do you ever read a horoscope or 
your personal astrology report?

1037. Would you say that astrology is very scientific, sort of 
scientific, or not at all scientific?

1038. Now for another type of question. People have frequently 
noted that scientific research has produced benefits and harmful 
results. Would you say that, on balance, the benefits of 
scientific research have outweighed the harmful results, or have 
the harmful results of scientific research been greater than its 
benefits?

1038a. Would you say that the balance has been strongly in favor 
of the benefits, or only slightly?

1038b. Would you say that the balance has been strongly in favor 
of the harmful results, or only slightly?

1039. Now, for a slightly different type of question. When you 
read news stories, you see certain sets of words and terms. We 
are interested in how many people recognize certain kinds of 
terms. First, some articles refer to the results of a scientific 
study. When you read or hear the term scientific study, do you 
have a clear understanding of what it means, a general sense of 
what it means, or little understanding of what it means?

1040. In your own words, could you tell me what it means to 
study something scientifically?

1041. Now, please think about this situation. Two scientists 
want to know if a certain drug is effective against high blood 
pressure. The first scientist wants to give the drug to one 
thousand people with high blood pressure and see how many of 
them experience lower blood pressure levels. The second 
scientist wants to give the drug to five hundred people with 
high blood pressure, and not give the drug to another five 
hundred people with high blood pressure, and see how many in 
both groups experience lower blood pressure levels. Which is the 
better way to test this drug?