TY - JOUR
T1 - Undergraduate Science Students’ Scientist–Practitioner Gap
T2 - the Role of Epistemic Curiosity and Cognitive Flexibility
AU - Hong, Jon Chao
AU - Hwang, Ming Yueh
AU - Szeto, Elson
AU - Tai, Kai Hsin
AU - Tsai, Chi Ruei
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - The scientist–practitioner gap refers to the phenomenon of individuals with a scientific background exhibiting non-scientific beliefs. Informed by the social-cognitive process model, this study aimed to develop a more coherent understanding of how such non-scientific beliefs can be predicted by individuals’ cognitive flexibility mediated by their epistemic curiosity. A questionnaire was administered to 332 undergraduate students majoring in science at 2 universities in Taiwan. It included items on cognitive flexibility, 2 types of epistemic curiosity, and non-scientific beliefs. After the reliability and validity of the items and constructs were validated, structural equation modeling was applied to verify the research model. Results indicated that the 2 types of epistemic curiosity, interest-type and deprivation-type, were positively predicted by cognitive flexibility but were negatively reflected in the students’ non-scientific beliefs. The study also tested the gender difference for each factor and found that female students majoring in science tended to have stronger non-scientific beliefs than their male counterparts. The results imply that if a higher level of cognitive flexibility is attained, the scientist–practitioner gap may be reduced.
AB - The scientist–practitioner gap refers to the phenomenon of individuals with a scientific background exhibiting non-scientific beliefs. Informed by the social-cognitive process model, this study aimed to develop a more coherent understanding of how such non-scientific beliefs can be predicted by individuals’ cognitive flexibility mediated by their epistemic curiosity. A questionnaire was administered to 332 undergraduate students majoring in science at 2 universities in Taiwan. It included items on cognitive flexibility, 2 types of epistemic curiosity, and non-scientific beliefs. After the reliability and validity of the items and constructs were validated, structural equation modeling was applied to verify the research model. Results indicated that the 2 types of epistemic curiosity, interest-type and deprivation-type, were positively predicted by cognitive flexibility but were negatively reflected in the students’ non-scientific beliefs. The study also tested the gender difference for each factor and found that female students majoring in science tended to have stronger non-scientific beliefs than their male counterparts. The results imply that if a higher level of cognitive flexibility is attained, the scientist–practitioner gap may be reduced.
KW - Cognitive flexibility
KW - Epistemic curiosity
KW - Non-scientific beliefs
KW - Scientist–practitioner gap
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85085341434&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85085341434&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/1aa61b93-1f02-3dfc-9711-6415ec5e2604/
U2 - 10.1007/s10763-020-10096-4
DO - 10.1007/s10763-020-10096-4
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85085341434
JO - International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education
JF - International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education
SN - 1571-0068
ER -