The future might be female: how does the public perceive experts?
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Author (Corporation)
Publication date
2024
Type of student thesis
Course of study
Type
01A - Journal article
Editors
Editor (Corporation)
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Parent work
Journal of European Public Policy
Special issue
DOI of the original publication
Link
Series
Series number
Volume
32
Issue / Number
4
Pages / Duration
843-869
Patent number
Publisher / Publishing institution
Routledge
Place of publication / Event location
Edition
Version
Programming language
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Practice partner / Client
Abstract
Recently, scientific experts have become increasingly influential in political decision-making. Although previous research has examined the extent and conditions under which politicians use scientific evidence, we know less about how citizens perceive scientific experts. In this study, we argue that the credibility of experts depends not only on the message they deliver or the medium they use, but also on the individual characteristics of the experts. Using data collected from an original survey experiment among Swiss citizens on climate change (N = 1,854), this study analyses whether the gender and discipline of experts influence citizens’ perceptions of their credibility. The results show that, contrary to our assumptions, citizens do not perceive female experts as less credible than their male colleagues. However, this effect is mainly driven by female citizens who consider female and social science experts as more credible. These findings have important implications for the role of experts in policy-making.
Keywords
Scientific expertise, expert credibility, evidence-informed policy making, climate change, gender bias
Subject (DDC)
Event
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ISBN
ISSN
1466-4429
1350-1763
1350-1763
Language
English
Created during FHNW affiliation
No
Strategic action fields FHNW
Publication status
Published
Review
Peer review of the complete publication
Open access category
Hybrid
License
Citation
Bundi, P., Hanimann, A., Portmann, L., & Varone, F. (2024). The future might be female: how does the public perceive experts? Journal of European Public Policy, 32(4), 843–869. https://doi.org/10.1080/13501763.2024.2324014