INVESTIGATION OF TURKIYE S PERSPECTIVE ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY BY COUNTRY WITH MULTIVARIABLE STATISTICAL TECHNIQUES

Abstract

Purpose- Understanding the perspective of developing Turkey towards science and technology, as well as its position compared to other countries, is of great importance for its potential positive changes in this field in the coming years. The aim is to examine Turkey's outlook on science and technology and its position among 57 countries, based on six variables: living standards, future generations, faith, impact on understanding, daily life, and global influence, which are associated with the perspective on science and technology using data from the World Values Survey (WVS). Methodology- This study aimed to determine Turkey's position among 57 countries based on six variables associated with the perspective on science and technology, as indicated in the World Values Survey (WVS) data from 2017-2022. The study data were obtained through survey methods, and the relevant data for analysis were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 20 software. Cluster analysis, a multivariate analysis method, was employed to test the research model constructed based on the literature. Findings- According to the results of the study, Turkey is positioned as a rapidly developing or emerging country among the world nations. Based on the cluster analysis of the survey responses conducted by WVS between 2017 and 2022, the cluster structure in which Turkey is included was examined, leading to the conclusion that the support provided by the economy in order for Turkey to make progress in science and technology is not sufficient. This observation is evident from Turkey being grouped together with other developing countries. Conclusion- Based on the analysis results, it has been observed that Turkey is grouped together with developing countries. It has been concluded that the support provided by the economy for Turkey to make progress in science and technology is not sufficient. Despite Turkey's economic strength, being a developing country requires allocating a significant amount of resources for development. Especially since the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the COVID-19 pandemic on March 11, 2020, countries have focused on improving and supporting healthcare policies to control the outbreak. It is possible that this situation has not significantly altered Turkey's perspective on science and technology compared to previous periods, as indicated by previous research findings. Therefore, Turkey's advancements and efforts in the field of economy alone will not be sufficient for the development of science and technology. In this era of rapid technological advancements, where everything is changing, it is important to enhance scientific publications, individual awareness, and accessibility to scientific data in order to accelerate development. This can contribute to advancing Turkey's perspective on science and technology. Keywords: Science, technology, perspective, multivariate statistics, cluster analysis JEL Codes: C38, C30, Q55