The gap between expert analysis and public opinion seems to be widening by the day. In the US, there is significant popular support for the policies of Donald Trump which the vast majority of experts regards as questionable, to say the least. In the UK there has been a broad consensus of economics experts warning that a vote to leave Europe will be disastrous, but many members of the public still intend to vote to leave. The global scientific community continues to warn about the catastrophic dangers of climate change, yet many members of public see human-created climate change as a hoax.

These are just three examples of an increasingly wide-spread phenomenon: well-informed experts put forward a view on a topic based on the best evidence available and public opinion jumps the other way. Why does this happen?

One possible answer is that the general public is just stupid. To put this in more acceptable terms, the public do not have a sufficient IQ, enough education or the right information to accurately weigh up the arguments. This explanation may appeal to experts whose opinion is ignored, but it is not correct. Most of the public have sufficient raw intelligence to weight up basic arguments. General levels of education have never been higher – and almost any information is readily available to anyone with an internet connection.

A second answer is that public trust in experts is declining. A closer look at the evidence suggests this is not so. The annual Edelman trust barometer shows that academics and industry experts continue to be trusted by 70% of the public. This compares to 43% for CEOs and 38% for government officials.

Please read more here: http://theconversation.com/why-do-you-make-stupid-decisions-when-the-experts-tell-you-otherwise-60020

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