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Date of Award
2020
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Psychology; College of Arts & Sciences
First Advisor
Dr. Christina Brown
Second Advisor
Dr. Katherine Moore
Abstract
The climate crisis has became an unavoidable threat to safety and stability of the World. In order to combat climate change, it is essential to unite the masses and work collectively towards the common end goal. Meeting this common goal, however, is interfered by several factors, specifically communication. Effectively communicating the importance of climate change is essential prior to taking action. The current study investigates the influence of framing climate change communication and how it effects support and perceived effectiveness for environmental policy. The study randomly assigned 90 participants to three conditions: the anthropocentric frame, biospheric frame, or control. Participants in the manipulated conditions read two framed environmental messages specific to the environmental concern frame. Participants proceeded to respond to a series of ten environmental polices. Participants rated how much they support the policy and how effective the policy would be if implemented. The results will be compared using a One-Way ANOVA across the three conditions. I expect the biocentric frame to cause higher policy ratings for support and perceived effectiveness when compared to the control. Secondly, I expect the anthropocentric frame to cause higher ratings of policy support than the control, but lower ratings of perceived effectiveness than the biospheric condition and control. The causal relationship between the biospheric frame and increased policy support and perceived effectiveness suggests that a biospheric approach can influence high support for climate policy.
Recommended Citation
Flukey, Patricia, "Communicating Change: the Power of a Biospheric Frame on Environmental Policy" (2020). Capstone Showcase. 43.
https://scholarworks.arcadia.edu/showcase/2020/psychology/43
Communicating Change: the Power of a Biospheric Frame on Environmental Policy
The climate crisis has became an unavoidable threat to safety and stability of the World. In order to combat climate change, it is essential to unite the masses and work collectively towards the common end goal. Meeting this common goal, however, is interfered by several factors, specifically communication. Effectively communicating the importance of climate change is essential prior to taking action. The current study investigates the influence of framing climate change communication and how it effects support and perceived effectiveness for environmental policy. The study randomly assigned 90 participants to three conditions: the anthropocentric frame, biospheric frame, or control. Participants in the manipulated conditions read two framed environmental messages specific to the environmental concern frame. Participants proceeded to respond to a series of ten environmental polices. Participants rated how much they support the policy and how effective the policy would be if implemented. The results will be compared using a One-Way ANOVA across the three conditions. I expect the biocentric frame to cause higher policy ratings for support and perceived effectiveness when compared to the control. Secondly, I expect the anthropocentric frame to cause higher ratings of policy support than the control, but lower ratings of perceived effectiveness than the biospheric condition and control. The causal relationship between the biospheric frame and increased policy support and perceived effectiveness suggests that a biospheric approach can influence high support for climate policy.