Creationism, Scientism, Christianity and Science: a study in adolescent attitudes

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Abstract
Both religious educators and science educators show concern for the development of positive pupil attitudes towards their respective curriculum areas, both as an educational objective in its own right and as a key predisposition for realising other educational objectives. While growing bodies of research have charted the personal, social, environmental and curriculum correlates of the development of attitudes towards science and religion, little attention has been given to the empirical relationship between these two attitudinal areas. This is surprising given the vast theoretical debate on the relationship between science and religion. In the present study attitude towards Christianity and interest in science are measured among a sample of 729 16‐18 year olds in Scotland. The data demonstrate a significant negative correlation between attitude towards Christianity and interest in science. Path analysis is then employed to explore the antecedents of this observed relationship. After taking into account sex differences, parental socio‐economic status, parental religious example and encouragement and the pupils' personal church attendance, two key factors which help to explain this apparent negative relationship are the perception of Christianity as necessarily involving creationism and the view that science attains to absolute truth (scientism). The implications of these findings for curriculum development in science and religion are discussed.