A tale of "two cultures"?: A critical assessment of gender-education-cultural divergence in energy perception

Risk perception is socially constructed. Socialization influences at individual, group and societal levels can thus play a significant role in shaping how a person views his/her surrounding /environment, and lead to the development of different "cultures" in risk perception. While the term "two cultures" was originally used by Snow in 1956 to describe the gap between the natural/physical sciences and the humanities, a cultural divide has also been observed in risk analysis and assessment approaches by experts from different professional backgrounds (e.g. technical vs. social sciences). There is some evidence that the two cultures phenomenon has considerable relevance in the energy context. An education-induced cultural difference in energy perception has been demonstrated for nuclear energy between experts from different disciplines. Previous research furthermore suggests that a cultural divide in energy perception extends beyond education boundaries – a gender difference has been consistently observed in nuclear perception. Studies have also reported international differences in the perception and acceptance of nuclear energy It appears that gender (individual-level), education discipline (group-level) and culture-specific (societal-level) socialization play a significant role in shaping nuclear perception and contributing to divergence in how this energy source is being evaluated – and, in definitive, accepted. However, progress has been slow in explaining how such socialization influences could interact and plant the seeds for an eventual cultural divide in nuclear perception. Nor could previous studies provide insight into whether this three level / layer divergence (gender-education-cultural) is unique to nuclear perception or applies more generally across a range of energy sources. In the present research, our objective is an assessment of the two cultures phenomenon in energy perception. We examined the interaction of gender, education discipline and culture in influencing the perception of nuclear, coal and wind energy sources. 729 young adults (university students from engineering and business disciplines) from France, Germany and Russia took part in the survey study between February 2012 and January 2013. Findings indicated that gender, education discipline and culture-specific socialization contribute to the development of a "two cultures" in nuclear perception which is already detectable in young adults at the beginning of their higher education path. In contrast, this new cross-national and cultural approach, showed that societal norms appear to play a considerable role in shaping how young adults (irrespective of gender and education discipline) view coal and wind. Implications of findings for energy policy and industry decision-makers, educators as well as future research will be discussed.