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Dr. Niels G. Mede

Science Communication Researcher
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The SciPop Scale for measuring science-related populist attitudes in surveys: Development, test, and validation

Journal article

Niels G. Mede, Mike S. Schäfer, Tobias Füchslin
International Journal of Public Opinion Research, vol. 33, 2021, pp. 273-293
DOI: 10.1093/ijpor/edaa026
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Cite

APA   Click to copy
Mede, N. G., Schäfer, M. S., & Füchslin, T. (2021). The SciPop Scale for measuring science-related populist attitudes in surveys: Development, test, and validation. International Journal of Public Opinion Research, 33, 273–293. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijpor/edaa026

Chicago/Turabian   Click to copy
Mede, Niels G., Mike S. Schäfer, and Tobias Füchslin. “The SciPop Scale for Measuring Science-Related Populist Attitudes in Surveys: Development, Test, and Validation.” International Journal of Public Opinion Research 33 (2021): 273–293.

MLA   Click to copy
Mede, Niels G., et al. “The SciPop Scale for Measuring Science-Related Populist Attitudes in Surveys: Development, Test, and Validation.” International Journal of Public Opinion Research, vol. 33, 2021, pp. 273–93, doi:10.1093/ijpor/edaa026.

BibTeX   Click to copy 

@article{mede2021a,
  title = {The SciPop Scale for measuring science-related populist attitudes in surveys: Development, test, and validation},
  year = {2021},
  journal = {International Journal of Public Opinion Research},
  pages = {273-293},
  volume = {33},
  doi = {10.1093/ijpor/edaa026},
  author = {Mede, Niels G. and Schäfer, Mike S. and Füchslin, Tobias}
}
Populism typically pits political elites against “the virtuous people.” A distinct variant of populism (“science-related populism”) extends beyond politics, targeting academic elites and suggesting they ignore people’s common sense and will. Individual endorsement of such a worldview (“science-related populist attitudes”) has been conceptualized but not yet measured. Hence, we developed the SciPop Scale, a survey instrument to measure science-related populist attitudes. We tested 17 survey items in a first representative survey and developed an 8-item scale. We then tested German, French, and Italian versions of this scale in a second representative survey, employing confirmatory factor analysis, Item Response Theory, and external validity tests. Findings show that the SciPop Scale is a robust and reliable measure of populist demands toward science.