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Opinion

Nature 420, 719 (19 December 2002) | doi:10.1038/420719a

Trust and how to sustain it

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Against a background of declining public trust in traditional institutions, scientists must work to retain their high public-confidence ratings. There are warnings and lessons to be learned from the events of 2002.

If opinion polls are to be believed, scientists enjoy great public respect and trust. In an August Harris poll, Americans ranked 'scientist' as the most prestigious profession, edging out 'doctor', which had topped the list for the previous five years.