• Journal of Engineering Education Research
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.42-56
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• 2022

This study aimed to investigate the views of STEM college students on the social responsibility of scientists and engineers. A total of 660 students in STEM majors at several Korean universities participated in the study. We assessed social responsibility among college students in STEM majors using the VSRoSE scale, which taps into eight different domains of social responsibility: Concern for human welfare and safety (HUMAN), Concern for environmental sustainability (ENVIR), Consideration of societal risks and consequences (CONSEQ), Consideration of societal risks and consequences (CONSEQ), Consideration of societal needs and demands (NEEDS), Pursuit of the common good (COMGOOD), Civic engagement and services (CIVIC), Communication with the public (COMMU), and Participation in policy decision-making (POLICY). Group differences in social responsibility by gender, majors, and years in school were examined. Mean scores in HUMAN, ENVIR, and CONSEQ were relatively higher than those in NEEDS, COMGOOD, CIVIC, COMMU, and POLICY. Cluster analysis identified five different groups with similar patterns of social responsibility scores. In addition to two groups with overall high and low scores across all eight factors of VSRoSE, three additional groups with different combinations of high and low scores in different factors were identified. The results indicated that students with low social responsibility are not homogeneous and these heterogeneous sub-groups of students will need tailored interventions highlighting different factors of social responsibility that they lack. Pedagogical implications of social responsibility for education were discussed.

• Journal of The Korean Association For Science Education
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.111-125
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• 2022

This study aims to investigate the effects of the ENACT project on promoting pre-service science teachers (PSTs)' views on the social responsibility of scientists and engineers. The ENACT project was designed to cultivate the social responsibility by integrating the theoretical framework of socioscientific issues (SSIs) education with problem-based inquiry approaches for the resolution of the issues. Thirty-two PSTs voluntarily participated in the project and completed the five stages over three months. Data was collected through a questionnaire to measure PSTs' view of the social responsibility of scientists and engineers (VSRoSE) and focus-group interviews. Results indicate that the PSTs presented statistically significant changes in their views of the social responsibility after the ENACT project. The mean scores of the five sub-dimensions of VSRoSE significantly increased. The interviews also supported that the PSTs had opportunities to seriously consider the social responsibility of scientists and engineers through epistemological exploration of science and technology (Cycle I), and problem-solving and action-taking (Cycle II). In particular, they agreed more on such responsibilities as consideration of societal needs and demands, pursuit of the common good, civic engagement and services using their expertise, communications with the public regarding potential risks, and participation in policy decision-making related to science and technology advances. Educational implications for SSI education and teacher education were suggested.