Awe-inspiring documentaries could turn people away from science

Image via KayYen/Flickr By Christian Jarrett Science documentaries often go heavy on awe. In his immensely popular TV shows, the pop star turned physicist Brian Cox is frequently depicted in awesome landscapes, staring into the distance, moody music in the background, reflecting on awe-inspiring facts about nature, such as that we are all essentially made of star dust. It seems like a powerful way to engage people in science. Just one problem. A new study in Emotion suggests that when people who hold religious beliefs experience feelings of awe, this makes them even less likely to believe in science as a valid way to understand the world. Moreover, feelings of awe could encourage the non-religious to endorse less credible scientific theories that emphasise order over randomness in the universe.  Piercarlo Valdesolo at Claremont McKenna College and his colleagues began by asking 127 university students to rate their strength of religious and supernatural beliefs, and then had them watch one of three 5-minute nature videos, designed either to inspire awe, amusement or no particular emotion. The awe-inspiring video featured a montage of clips from the BBC’s Planet Earth series, mainly featuring sweeping shots of awesome landscapes, while the amusing video featured comedic clips from the BBC’s Walk On The Wild Side show, and the neutral video was an unexceptional news clip from 1959. Emotional checks confirmed the videos had the desired effects. After they watc...
Source: BPS RESEARCH DIGEST - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Tags: Educational Emotion Religion Source Type: blogs