科学公信力的生成逻辑与实证检验

Tentative Exploration and Empirical Investigation into the Generating Logic of Scientific Credibility

科学公信力概念的提出既是创造性地将"公信力"移植入科学、技术与社会研究领域的结果,也是审视理解现代社会科学与公众紧张关系的一个崭新视角。从公众优位的立场出发,科学公信力可被视为公众在理性权衡科技进步的影响后果的基础上,对科学知识及其生产者的信任度。具体而言,公众对科学的工具性信任、伦理性信任和符号性信任的相互作用机制推动了科学公信力的生成与演进。公众对科学的工具性信任亦即对"科学带给人类诸多福音"的效果的信任,是科学公信力产生的基础。而伦理性信任亦即公众对科学家人格能力等美德的信任,它既是工具性信任过渡到对人的信任的结果,也是确保工具性信任持续存在的重要条件。符号性信任亦即公众对科学知识与方法的客观准确性的信任,是工具性与伦理性信任得以实现的认识论和方法论保障,将科学公信力限定在与真理有关的框架范围内,使得对其的探究能与其它公信力区别开来。经过实证检验,尽管影响三个维度的因素有些差异,但三者之间有着显著的正相关关系,相互之间的影响力和解释力都达到了较高的水平,任何一个维度的缺失都会引起科学公信力的损耗流失。因此,当代科学技术的发展要赢得公众的信任,必须重视科技风险的治理,优化完善科学共同体的考评机制,加强对科研不端行为的监管,提升公众参与科学的兴趣和能力,捍卫科学的客观公正形相。

The concept of scientific credibility results from imaginatively transferring credibility into the studies of science,technology and society.It provides us with one new perspective of understanding the relationship between science and public in modern society.It can be defined as the extent of public trust in scientific knowledge and its makers based on evaluating the effects of S&T progress.The mechanism of interaction between instrumental trust,ethical trust and symbolic trust drives the creation and development of scientific credibility.The public’s credibility of science as a tool means the public’s credibility of“bringing blessings to human beings by science”,which is the base of scientific credibility.Meanwhile,ethical credibility refers to the trust of scientists’moralities,which is the transference from the trust in science as a tool to the trust in human beings,and is the essential qualification for the continuity of trust in science as a tool.Symbolic trust is equal to the credibility of the objectivity and preciseness of the public towards scientific knowledge and methodology,which is the guarantee of the realization of instrumental trust and ethical trust.Results show that there is a significantly positive correlation between the three dimensions of scientific credibility which will be confronted with loss and damage without any one dimension.The government should value the management of S&T risks,optimize evaluation system for scientists,prevent the misconducts in scientific research,encourage the public to engage in science proactively and maintain the objective and impartial image of science.