Creating creationists: The influence of ‘issues framing’ on our understanding of public perceptions of clash narratives between evolutionary science and belief

Fern Elsdon-Baker

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

    8 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Clash narratives relating to evolutionary science and personal belief are a recurrent theme in media or public space discourse. However, a 2009 British Council poll undertaken in 10 countries worldwide shows that the perception of a necessary clash between evolutionary worldviews and belief in a God is a minority viewpoint. How then does the popular conception that there is an ongoing conflict between evolution and belief in God arise? One contributing factor is the framing and categorization of creationism and evolutionism within large-scale surveys for use within media campaigns. This article examines the issue framing within four polls conducted in the United Kingdom and internationally between 2008 and 2013. It argues that by ignoring the complexity and range of perspectives individuals hold, or by framing evolutionary science as atheistic, we are potentially creating ‘creationists’ – including ‘Islamic creationists’ – both figuratively and literally.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)422-439
    JournalPublic Understanding of Science
    Volume24
    Issue number4
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - May 2015

    Fingerprint

    narrative
    worldview
    science
    god
    campaign
    minority
    discourse
    Creationist
    Evolutionary
    Public Perception
    Polls
    World View
    Minorities
    Creationism
    Discourse
    Deity
    British Council
    Media Use
    Conception
    Evolutionism

    Keywords

    • atheism auto-ethnography creationism evolution Islam issue framing philosophy of science science communication

    Cite this

    Creating creationists: The influence of ‘issues framing’ on our understanding of public perceptions of clash narratives between evolutionary science and belief. / Elsdon-Baker, Fern.

    In: Public Understanding of Science, Vol. 24, No. 4, 05.2015, p. 422-439.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Article

    Elsdon-Baker, F 2015, 'Creating creationists: The influence of ‘issues framing’ on our understanding of public perceptions of clash narratives between evolutionary science and belief' Public Understanding of Science, vol. 24, no. 4, pp. 422-439. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662514563015
    Elsdon-Baker F. Creating creationists: The influence of ‘issues framing’ on our understanding of public perceptions of clash narratives between evolutionary science and belief. Public Understanding of Science. 2015 May;24(4):422-439. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662514563015
    Elsdon-Baker, Fern. / Creating creationists: The influence of ‘issues framing’ on our understanding of public perceptions of clash narratives between evolutionary science and belief. In: Public Understanding of Science. 2015 ; Vol. 24, No. 4. pp. 422-439.
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