Knowledge limited

People are more likely to trust modest researchers

Researchers who say that their knowledge is limited appear more trustworthy. As a result, people are more likely to follow their scientific recommendations, according to an international study in which the University of Vienna participated.

Around 2,000 participants in the USA were surveyed for the study and involved in online experiments. The people were presented with scientific texts that were either formulated with "high intellectual modesty", "low intellectual modesty" or no particular style.

"High intellectual modesty" means that gaps in knowledge were acknowledged. The writers listened to the contributions of others and reconsidered their own findings in light of this. Anyone who had read such a text rated the scientists as more trustworthy, said psychologist Nina Vaupotič from the University of Vienna. They were then more willing to follow the recommendations or look for further information.

What else has a positive effect
The experiments involved texts from the disciplines of medicine, psychology and climate science. Other approaches to increasing the trustworthiness of researchers were also tested.

One result: it was not very helpful to point out to the participants that science is always limited in its methods and results. This had a slightly negative effect on their belief in a particular research topic. At the same time, however, it could increase confidence in the person, Vaupotič pointed out.

In general, an understanding of "not-knowing" can drive high-quality research. The study was published in the journal "Nature Human Behavior".