Renowned Anthropologist Discusses Why People Reject Science

Dr. Eugenie C. Scott gives a lecture on Darwin's Day. 

Photo by Nipuni Gomes

By Nipuni Gomes

The primary reason for many people to reject climate change, vaccination or evolution is not science, but ideology, Dr. Eugenie Carol Scott, a renowned anthropologist, told an audience at Trinity University yesterday.

Scott, a physical anthropologist and chair of the Advisory Council for the National Center for Science Education, presented a lecture titled “Why Do People Reject Good Science,” hosted by Trinity University in honor of the 2016 Darwin Day, the 207th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birthday.


Scott discussed topics in which the public and scientists disagree, including evolution, climate change, vaccination, GMOs (genetically modified organisms), 9/11 conspiracies, and the moon landing “hoax.”

She told the audience that deniers of evolution and climate change are not denying the science itself, but the implications of the science. Their ideology means a lot to their group and, if they admit science to be correct, it would reflect unfavorably values of their peer group.

“The primary concern of people who reject evolution is not science itself,” Scott said. “They believe that evolution is unacceptable to their religious ideology.” However, “The Catholic Church has accepted evolution for decades. I sometimes think Catholic schools teach more evolution than public schools do,” she added.​

Humans, Scott noted, are social primates who have peer groups to foster support and problem solving. When an idea that threatens the predominating way of thought in the group arises, there is bound to be belief that something very great is going to be lost, be it a center for morality and behavior, friends, family, or support within the social structure.

“Ideologies aren’t all bad. They are how we shape our lives,” she said. “Factual information can be filtered through ideology.”

The anthropologist therefore called for the building of trust-based relationships between scientists and the general public in order to erase the mutual ‘us versus them’ attitude and create a supportive, cooperative environment instead.

“There has to be an emotional or ideological change. The presence of scientific data is not sufficient,” she said. Quoting American politician and sociologist Daniel Patrick Moynihan, she told the audience, “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.”

About 50 people, including Trinity students, faculty, and staff, as well as members of the San Antonio community, attended the lecture, overflowing CSI Room 282, also known as the “Innovation Cube.”

“I think [this lecture is] important,” said Brenna Dorsey, an Art Major at San Antonio College. “Science is real and it’s what makes the world go round. To reject evolution is to reject Earth’s history.”

Asmara Lehrmann, a first-year geosciences major at Trinity, also saw relevance in the lecture. “In high school, they didn’t emphasize how important it was to fact-check; everything was spoon-fed to us. I think it’s important to open everyone’s eyes.”

Scott, who refers to herself as “Darwin’s Golden Retriever,” as opposed to “Darwin’s Bulldog,” a label for Thomas Henry Huxley, served as the executive director of NCSE from 1987 to 2014. She has received several national awards in honor of her efforts to increase public understanding regarding the importance of science, as well as objecting the introduction of creationism and intelligent design into public schools’ science curricula.