Complementarity or substitution? The interaction effects between knowledge and trust on public attitudes toward genetic modification

Abstract

Abstract Knowledge and trust are generally viewed as key drivers of favorable attitudes toward technology, but it remains uncertain whether and how different types of knowledge and trust interact with each other in predicting public acceptance. To address this gap, the present study hypothesized that knowledge and trust would exert both main and interaction effects on public opinion. Data from a national survey of public attitudes toward genetic modification (GM) in China were used to test an interactive model of attitudes. We have found that factual knowledge of and perceived familiarity with GM and trust in university scientists interacted as complements, with knowledge impacting positive attitudes more strongly for people who had high levels of trust; while we found no such interaction for knowledge/familiarity and trust in industry scientists and governmental officials. The implications of these findings for future research and policymaking in the domain of science and risk communication are discussed.