Australian R&D Review
March, 2008 Page: 6
The Swinburne National Technology and Society Monitor (SNTSi\1) has provided its 2007 snapshot' of public perceptions of new technologies, science and technological change. The main findings arc that Australians are comfortable with the rate of technological change in general, but the degree of comfort varies for specific technologies. They are much more comfortable with the thought of wind farms than with the thought of nuclear energy in Australia.
Significant differences in comfort ratings for nuclear energy are related to gender and political affiliation - men and Liberal voters are more comfortable with nuclear energy than women and Labour voters. The degree of comfort with genetically modified (GM) plants and animals for food is relatively low, but is higher for GM plants for food than with GM animals for food.
Australians trust scientific institutions and the non-commercial media for information about new technologies. They report high levels of trust in their family doctors and report similar levels of trust in medical specialists as in scientific institutions. They do not trust government institutions, major companies or the churches, and have the least trust in the commercial media.
The specific aims of the SNTSXM are to gauge public attitudes and perceptions of emerging technologies and science in order to compare Australia with other countries, examine attitudes toward controversial technologies (e.g., stem cell research, DNA paternity testing) and emerging technologies with important social consequences (e.g., the digital divide, internet relationships). The surveys also examine patterns of change in attitudes and perceptions over time, and explanations for these changing patterns.
More information: www.swinburne.edu.au/Iss/acets/monitor.html
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