Transcript Powerpoint Slides (Larry Bencze)

Scientists, profit
& public enlightenment
IHPST 2007
Calgary, AB
Larry Bencze,
Mike Bowen,
& Maurice DiGiuseppe
Arguably the factor most greatly
affecting science & school science is …
Global Economization!
With: IMF,
WB, WTO
 Involving:
Neoconservative
social-political
policies
Neoliberal
economic
policies
(Carter, 2005).
Political Compass: www.politicalcompass.org/
Global Economization
Social Injustices
 Growing rich vs POOR
 Massive starvation
 Decreasing job security
 Debt in Poor countries
 Socio-techno-determinism
Environmental Degradation
 Habitat degradation/pollution (air, water, soil)
 Loss of rainforests; Water shortages; Soil
erosion; Desertification; Aquatic pollution;
Ozone depletion; Global warming
 Species loss
 Species population reduction (e.g., fish)
 ~ 125 species lost per day
(McMurtry, 1999)
Global Economization & Professional Science
Since about 1950, ‘Academic’
science has been been
replaced by ‘Post-academic’
science (Ziman, 2000).
Oriented towards generating for-profit
products & services
Collectivized
Multi-disciplinary
Privately-funded
Short-term
Effects of Profit Motive on NoS
Merton’s Norms (1942, 1973) Compromised
 ‘Communalism’:
 e.g., Dr. Nancy Olivieri, Hospital for Sick Children;




deferiprone, drug for thalassemia major; Company
suppressed negative results.
‘Universal’:
 e.g., restricted access to software by companies.
‘Disinterestedness’:
 e.g., prevent research into uncommon diseases (e.g.,
schistosomiasis) - since they are unprofitable.
‘Originality’:
 e.g., ‘Me-too’ drugs!
‘Skepticism’:
Science for Profit!
 e.g., Ghost Writers!
Research
Goal: … to determine scientists’ willingness to
enlighten members of the public and school students
about problems associated with the profit motive.
 Participants: 8 scientists (various fields)
 Data Collection:
 Interview Transcripts (90-120 min)
 Questions re: NoS, Public Education
 Used Artefacts; e.g., S&T Model, S.T.P., Merton’s
Norms
 Analyses: CCM via CGT
Results
 Participants’ willingness to educate others
about profit-driven science varied; i.e.,:
Informers (1)
Para-informers (5)
Protectionists (2)
Factors Affecting Intentions
Participants’ Direct Experiences
2 pgs
Factors Affecting Intentions
Participants’ Sense of the Vulnerability
of Science to the Profit Motive
Although they claimed their field had not been
adversely affected by the profit motive, they
felt that people should be informed about this
in order to protect the integrity of science.
Could be explained, again, by
knowledge duality theory.
Factors Affecting Intentions
Participants’ Views About Science
Status of School Science
School science systems typically portray
professional science as “pure and isolated from
culture” (Allchin, 2004, p. 939).
Conclusions
 More NoSed needed; re: profit motive
 Informers & Para-informers may assist
 Those educated should include:
School science students
Undergraduate science students
Student-teachers
Scientists
Other ‘Stakeholders’; e.g.,
government, business, etc.
The End!
 The paper is located online at:
http://fcis.oise.utoronto.ca/~lbencze
 Contact Information
[email protected]
http://www.lbencze.ca
http//www.lbencze.ca/STEPWISE.html