Conferences

27 April 2026

The expert–novice problem reveals a persistent epistemic asymmetry between scientists and the public. Non-scientists, unable to assess complex methods or evidence, must rely on expert testimony. Furthermore, trust in science extends beyond interpersonal trust in individual experts. Scientific knowledge is now produced and certified by collaborations that can function as epistemic agents in their own right. Their reliability, accountability, and trustworthiness derive not from any one member, but from shared norms, institutional structures, and distributed and often opaque practices. Understanding what it means to trust a collaboration raises distinct questions. Under what conditions can collaborations be considered trustworthy? Can a group’s internal mechanisms of knowledge production, accountability, and evaluation ground the public’s trust in scientific institutions? These issues remain underexplored in the epistemology of trust and the philosophy of science. Organizers: Haixin Dang, Siska De Baerdemaeker, Paula Muhr, Sophie Ritson

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