Effects of knowledge and emotion on support for novel synthetic biology applications

There is sometimes an inherent assumption that the logical head will overrule the emotional heart in matters of science and technology. However, the literature on decision making under risk and uncertainty suggests that emotional responses may be more potent. A representative sample of Australians participated in a large, national, online survey (n = 8037), in which we measured the influence of knowledge and emotion in predicting support for possible synthetic biology (synbio) solutions to conservation, environmental, and industrial problems. A hierarchical regression model was used to examine the relative influence of affect‐ and emotion‐related factors beyond the influence of knowledge factors in predicting support for synbio solutions. Subsequently, interaction analyses were conducted to examine the potentially moderating role of emotions in the knowledge–support relationship. There was 64% variance in overall support for synbio solutions (R2 = 0.64, p < 0.001). The most influential predictor of support in the model was positive emotion. Feeling hopeful, excited, and curious toward a synbio technology was related to greater overall support for the development of that technology. The second strongest set of predictors was affect‐related measures that evaluate the technology as bad or good, harmful or beneficial, and risky or safe. Positive emotion and an assessment that the technology was good significantly moderated the effect of knowledge on support. These findings suggest that, at least initially, people are more likely to be guided by their emotions when considering support for synbio technologies, which has implications for how researchers design and implement engagement and communication strategies more broadly. Efectos del Conocimiento y las Emociones sobre el Respaldo a las Aplicaciones Novedosas de la Biología Sintética Resumen A veces existe la suposición intrínseca de que la mente lógica anulará al corazón emocional cuando se trata de temas de ciencia y tecnología. Sin embargo, la literatura sobre la toma de decisiones durante situaciones de riesgo e incertidumbre sugiere que las respuestas emocionales pueden ser más potentes. Una muestra representativa de australianos (n = 8,037) participó en una encuesta en línea realizada a nivel nacional y a gran escala. En esta encuesta medimos la influencia del conocimiento y las emociones sobre la predicción del respaldo a posibles soluciones de biología sintética (synbio) para problemas ambientales, in