The proportion of people who feel informed has fallen by eight percentage points since 2004 and now stands at 31 per cent.
The research, published on 4 September, finds that people with a university degree make up about half of those who feel informed about science, as did people who read broadsheet newspapers.
About a third of those who feel informed are white and male. A quarter of those who feel “not at all” informed are aged over 65, according to the report entitled Attitudes to Animal Research: A Long-term Survey of Public Views 1999-2014.
The poll of 1,000 adults, on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, mainly focused on animal research, but included more general questions on the perception of science.