Public trust in government agencies affects the formation of public opinion about public policy issues. This association between trust and public support for policy development in emergent biotechnologies, such as gene drive, needs to be better understood. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are tasked with coordinating and regulating biotechnology. In this study, the research team examines how public trust in these federal agencies is associated with public opinion on various options for gene drive policy. Using original data from a 2021 nationally representative public opinion survey funded by USDA NIFA, statistical analyses show that respondents who report higher levels of trust in regulatory agencies are more likely to support policy proposals that promote gene drive research and, ultimately, may lead to regulatory policies that allow gene drive to be researched and employed to manage agricultural pests.
Buchman, Leah W., Carol L. Goldsmith, Elizabeth Heitman, Ki Eun Kang, and Xinsheng Liu. 2024. “Public Trust in Regulatory Agencies and Support for Policies on Agricultural Gene Drive.” Review of Policy Research, (2024): 00, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1111/ropr.12610.
