Why many professional scientists dislike amateur scientists?

Question

I read an article online and it mentions that many amateur scientists are dislike by professional scientists. I want to know why? Although I have a Bachelors Degree in General Biology, I enjoyed doing research and experimentation on some biological subjects.

Answer 1

as in all things, professionals think they are the best and dont like been shown up by amatuers doing better research.

Sad but true

Answer 2

This is a great question. Have you ever heard the saying "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing"? While amateur (BS level) scientists have A LOT more knowledge than the general public, they typically have a tiny amount of knowledge in comparison to professional (PhD) scientists. So PhD-holders don't really consider them to be scientists at all. It's not that they are disliked per se, it's simply that the scientific opinion of someone with a BS in Biology is about as relevant as the scientific opinion of an accountant. At least this is the perspective of many professional scientists. It may not be fair, but it is what it is.

Answer 3

Here is a good example. Look at the answers given in the biology section. Some are by professional scientists. Others are by amateur scientists. You should be able to instantly tell the difference, and there is a reason for this. One hint is people who know what they're talking about don't have to cut and paste 10 pages from wikipedia to answer a question :P

And it's like we dislike them as people so much as we dislike them as disseminators of wrong information.

Answer 4

I think that depends on who you're talking about. For example, there's a revival in amateur astronomy, because now that computer guided telescopes are readily available, the community of amateur astronomers can provide valuable "1st sightings" which are then forwarded to the professional astronomers for focus of attention. Likewise, computer analysis of protein folding are now being distributed among anybody with a computer who's willing to join the effort. With access to the internet, suddenly a lot of laymen can participate, as with the development and maintenance of Wikipedia. Going back to your question, probably what the article refers to is the penchant of "amateur scientists" for proclaiming their "findings" as "science" withtout proper review, and, worse, claiming that they deserve equal time with the scientists, because, "after all, it's their opinion against mine!". These people do not understand the scientific process, and what it truly takes for a 'scientific finding" to become established, which is through peer review and replication by others. It is not a political process, even though many cranks consistently believe that it's politics as to why they're not being heard. If you enjoy research and experimentation, by all means don't stop. You should do what you enjoy doing, and a great many scientists began as amateur scientists.

On the other hand, scientistis being human, it's true that some of them just don't like having amateurs being "on par" with them. But that can happen in any profession. Tough luck!

Answer 5

Just about anywhere you go to work at, the people with seniority and more experience are going to be hard on the amateur new people. I think it's just a competitive instinct in all of us, people don't want a younger, inexperienced person doing their jobs. Imagine spending 30 years researching something and one day some new kid pops up and solves the problem in 5 minutes. I think that would be why.

I'm 21, worked an internship for a year. I could do just about everything my job involved, but they just wouldn't let me do certain things because the old guys wanted to do them.

Answer 6

I think it's more of an arrogance issue than anything. They just think that they studied longer so their word carries more weight. It is true that some amateur scientists may jump to conclusions too quickly and spoil the reputation of others. But I have also seen some brilliant people with a B.S. or less and some with Ph.D.s who are absolutely useless.

Answer 7

The same reason seniors in film here at college think they're better than freshman. They just think they're hot stuff. Scientists are probably no different. Stereotype- "Amateur Scientists/Freshman film majors know nothing." Truth-"Step down!!"