# Intellectual Humility May Restore Crucial Trust in Science, Research Reveals
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, public faith in science has significantly diminished. A recent study featured in *Nature Human Behavior* indicates that scientists might be able to recover this lost trust by exhibiting greater intellectual humility. The research implies that recognizing the bounds of one’s knowledge and being receptive to new ideas may be essential for restoring confidence in the scientific sector.
## The Trust Decline
The COVID-19 pandemic placed science in the limelight, yet it also revealed the public to the uncertainties and changing nature of scientific understanding. Consequently, trust in scientists has waned. Data from the Pew Research Center shows that confidence in scientists fell from 87 percent in April 2020 to just 73 percent by October 2023. Though recent findings suggest a minor recovery to 76 percent, the path to fully restoring trust remains challenging.
This decline in trust is alarming, as public confidence in scientists is closely associated with the willingness to adhere to research-based advice, especially in critical fields like public health, climate science, and technological innovations. The latest study in *Nature Human Behavior* provides insights into how scientists can mend this trust through intellectual humility.
## Defining Intellectual Humility
Intellectual humility denotes the acknowledgment of the limitations of one’s knowledge and a readiness to concede when one lacks all the answers. It encompasses being open to constructive feedback, contemplating alternative perspectives, and updating beliefs in light of new evidence. Unlike general humility, which pertains to modesty concerning personal successes, intellectual humility specifically relates to one’s approach to knowledge and learning.
For scientists, intellectual humility is particularly vital because science is fundamentally uncertain. Scientific understanding develops over time as new data comes to light, and individual studies seldom deliver conclusive answers. Recognizing these uncertainties and limitations can enhance the perception of trustworthiness among scientists in the eyes of the public.
## The Research: Correlation Between Intellectual Humility and Trustworthiness
The study, spearheaded by Karina Schumann, a psychology professor at the University of Pittsburgh, consisted of five smaller investigations that analyzed the connection between intellectual humility and public attitudes toward scientists’ trustworthiness. The researchers sought to ascertain how intellectual humility might shape individuals’ readiness to trust scientists and adhere to their recommendations.
“These are anxiety-inducing times, and people feel uncertain about whom to trust and which guidance to follow,” Schumann stated. “We aimed to uncover what might help individuals feel more secure in placing their trust in scientists striving to address some of the complex global issues we face.”
### Study 1: Intellectual Humility in Controversial Subjects
In the initial study, researchers surveyed 298 participants to determine whether the perception of intellectual humility was tied to trust in scientific issues often characterized by division, such as climate change, vaccinations, and genetically modified organisms. The findings indicated strong associations between perceived intellectual humility, trustworthiness, and support for these topics. This means that individuals were more inclined to trust scientists and endorse their recommendations when they believed the scientists exhibited intellectual humility.
### Studies 2-4: Experimental Assessment of Intellectual Humility
In the subsequent three studies, the researchers conducted experiments to evaluate how displays of intellectual humility influenced trust. Participants read articles about a fictional scientist, Dr. Susan Moore, engaged in research on long COVID treatments. The articles differed in the degree of intellectual humility Dr. Moore demonstrated. In the high intellectual humility scenario, Dr. Moore was portrayed as someone who “is not afraid to acknowledge when she lacks certain knowledge.” Conversely, in the low intellectual humility scenario, she was depicted as someone who “is confident in asserting what she knows.”
The findings were unmistakable: participants exhibited greater trust in Dr. Moore when she displayed high intellectual humility. Notably, there was no significant difference in trust between the high intellectual humility scenario and a neutral control group, indicating that people may inherently expect scientists to embody intellectual humility. However, a lack of intellectual humility—characterized by overconfidence or arrogance—was particularly detrimental to trust.
### Studies 3 and 4: Impact of Gender and Race
To investigate whether gender or race influenced perceptions of intellectual humility, the researchers replicated the experiment with variations in the scientist’s gender and race. The results revealed that intellectual humility’s significance for trust remained consistent, irrespective of the scientist’s gender or race. This indicates that intellectual humility is a universally esteemed characteristic among scientists.
## The Difficulty in Conveying Intellectual Humility
In the final study, the researchers examined various methods through which scientists could exhibit intellectual humility. They investigated whether emphasizing research methods or result limitations would enhance perceptions of humility and trust. Interestingly, while these strategies did indeed elevate perceptions of intellectual humility, they concurrently diminished trust in the research itself. Only when scientists conveyed intellectual humility as a personal quality—such as acknowledging personal gaps in knowledge—did they enhance trust without compromising confidence in the research.
This conclusion suggests that, while intellectual humility is crucial, scientists must tread carefully in how they communicate it. Highlighting the
