Over the next several weeks, we will be releasing four reports from our latest national survey on Americans' climate change and energy beliefs, attitudes, policy support, and behavior.
The first report shows that despite the ongoing political polarization in Washington D.C., public support for a variety of climate change and energy policies remains high, across party lines. The report can be downloaded here: Americans’ Public Support for Climate & Energy Policies in November 2011.
The second report shows that a majority of Americans now do not agree that the state of the economy means the US cannot afford to reduce global warming. For the first time, the report also includes data on Americans' beliefs and attitudes about potential resource shortages. The report can be downloaded here: Americans' Global Warming Beliefs and Attitudes in November 2011.
The third report shows that since May 2011, there has been a significant raise in the proportion of Americans using efficient lightbulbs, and a significant drop in the proportion who set their thermostat at a low temperature during winter. The report can be downloaded here: Americans' Actions to Conserve Energy, Reduce Waste and Limit Global Warming in November 2011.
The Climate Change in the American Mind Series, May 2011
Over the course of June, we released four reports from our latest national survey on Americans' climate change and energy beliefs, attitudes, policy support, and behavior. The first report can be downloaded here: Americans' Global Warming Beliefs and Attitudes in May 2011.
The second report shows that despite political polarization in Washington D.C., public support for a variety of climate change and energy policies remains high, across party lines. Click here to download the Public Support for Climate & Energy Policies in May 2011.
Our third report shows that since June 2010, there has been a drop in a few energy conservation behaviors, but an increase in some consumer activism. This report can be downloaded here: the Americans’ Actions to Conserve Energy, Reduce Waste, and Limit Global Warming in May 2011.
Our fourth report – Global Warming’s Six Americas in May 2011 – shows that the proportion of the population in each of the Six Americas has remained relatively stable over the past year. Nearly 40 percent of American adults are in the two groups most concerned about climate change – the Alarmed and the Concerned – while 25 percent of Americans are in the two groups least concerned about the issue – the Dismissive and Doubtful.
In September we released a special report from this survey. Politics & Global Warming: Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and the Tea Party reports how the members of each political party respond to the issue of global warming. The Tea Party has become an important new player in American politics, so this report for the first time separates their views on global warming from the traditional political categories of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents.
For an outline of the basic purpose and content of the Six Americas studies, please read this summary.
A National Survey of Television Meteorologists
About Climate Change Education, June 2011
With funding from the National Science Foundation, we assessed TV weathercasters' views about their potential role as climate educators, and the resources that would be of most use to them in playing this role. You can download the report here.
New Climate Change Communication Primer for Public Health Professionals
In a survey we conducted with local public health officials in 2008, over half of the nation’s public health departments reported they were already experiencing health effects from climate change, yet fewer than 10% wre taking steps to educate members of their community about the risks. Over the past two years – with financial support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation – we conducted research on how to effectively communicate the public health implications of climate change. The product of that research – a communication primer designed to help public health professionals communicate effectively about climate change – is now available here at no cost. We encourage you to download and share it with public health officials in your community.
Global Warming's Six Americas Screening Tools: The Manual
This manual was developed to assist those interested in incorporating the Global Warming's Six Americas instrument into their own surveys, and performing the audience segmentation on their own data. The manual includes the short and long-form questionnaire items, and scripts needed to run the segmentation in SAS, SPSS and Excel. The manual and related tools are located here.
Climate Change in the American Mind Series, June 2010
Over the course of June, we released four reports based on nationally representative survey of 1,024 American adults conducted between May 14th and June 1st, 2010. This updates the reports we released in January. Overall, we find little change in Americans' climate and energy behaviors. We continue to find a substantial attitude-behavior gap for many behaviors, suggesting that there is a lot of untapped potential for behavior change programs.
Our first report shows that public concern about global warming is once again on the rise. Click here to download the Climate Change in the American Mind: the Americans’ Global Warming Beliefs and Attitudes in June 2010.
Our second report indicates that more than seven out of 10 Americans want the United States should take action to power the nation with clean energy. Click here to download the Climate Change in the American Mind: Public Support for Climate & Energy Policies in June 2010.
The third report points to a rise in support for funding more research into renewable energy sources. Click here to download the report Americans' Actions to Conserve Energy, Reduce Waste, and Limit Global Warming: June 2010.
Our fourth report – the Global Warming's Six Americas, June 2010 – shows that the proportion of Americans most concerned about climate change – Alarmed Americans – rebounded slightly, while the proportion of Americans least concerned about climate change – Dismissive Americans – decreased slightly.
Supplemental figures illustrating policy support among the Six Americas can be downloaded here .
Read the press release for the reports here.
Climategate, Public Opinion, and the Loss of Trust
This working paper examines the impact of Climategate on public perceptions of climate change and climate scientists, drawing on our national survey conducted in December, 2009 and January, 2010. In brief, we found that Climategate had a significant negative effect on public beliefs in global warming and trust in scientists. The loss of trust in scientists, however, appears to have been primarily among individuals with a strongly individualistic worldview or politically conservative ideology. Nonetheless, we found that Americans overall continued to trust scientists more than any other source of information about global warming. You can download the working paper here .
Climate Change Survey of TV News Directors
Television news directors are a critically important "gatekeeper" of climate change information in that more Americans get their news from TV - especially local TV news - than from any other news source, and news directors make the decision as to which stories will run, and how the issue will be covered. Our most recent report -- based on a national survey of TV news directors -- presents the first-ever findings about how these important news gatekeepers think about the issue of climate change. You may download the report by clicking here.
America’s TV Weathercasters as Informal Climate Change Educators
Our surveys of the public have shown that many Americans are looking to their local TV weathercasters for information about global warming. With funding from the National Science Foundation, we have been conducting research with America’s TV weathercasters to assess the extent to which they provide their viewers with information about climate change. Today, we are releasing preliminary findings from the largest and most representative survey of TV weathercasters conducted to date. Our findings confirm that TV weathercasters play – or can play – an important role as informal climate change educators. If you are interested in learning more about these findings, you can download the report here . Download the press release here.
The Climate Change Generation? Survey Analysis of the Perceptions and Beliefs of Young Americans
This report reveals that Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 are, for the most part, split on the issue of global warming and, on some indicators, relatively disengaged when compared to older generations. We invite you to dowload and read the full report.
The Climate Change in the American Mind Series, January 2010
In January 2010, we released the following set of reports based on a nationally representative survey of 1,001 American adults conducted in late December and early January 2010.
Our first report indicates that public concern about global warming, and public trust in a range of information sources, has dropped sharply over the past year. Click here to download the Climate Change in the American Mind: Americans' Global Warming Beliefs and Attitudes in January 2010. Click here to download the press release.
The second report shows that public support for a variety of climate and energy policies remains strong, despite reduced public concern about global warming. Click here to download the Public Support for Climate and Energy Policies in January 2010. Click here to download the press release.
The third report indicates that most Americans like the idea of conservation, but few practice. Click here to download Americans' Action to Conserve Energy, Reduce Waste, and Limit Global Warming, January 2010 . Click here to download the press release.
Our fourth report shows that “Dismissive” Americans – people who believe global warming is not happening and probably a hoax – have more than doubled in size since 2008 to 16 percent of the American public, while the percentage of the “Alarmed” Americans – people who are the most convinced that global warming is happening, caused by humans, and a serious and urgent threat – has dropped to 10 percent, from 18 percent in 2008. Click here to download Global Warming's Six Americas, January 2010 . Read the press release here.
Climate Change in the American Mind, 2009
Released in March 2009, Climate Change in the American Mind: Americans' Climate Change Beliefs, Attitudes, Policy Preferences, and Actions is based on a nationally representative survey of 2,164 American adults conducted in October 2008. This broad and a deep examination of how Americans are dealing with the issue of global warming yielded an important new perspective. On the whole, the American mind appears to be open to embracing a concerted national effort to address climate change.
In our report Global Warming's Six Americas, 2009, we identify and profile six distinct groups of Americans based on their Climate Change beliefs, attitudes, risk perceptions, policy preferences, behaviors, barriers to action, motivations, and values. We invite you to download and read the full report and the Yale/Mason Six Americas 2009 Questionnaire .
Saving Energy at Home and On the Road: A survey of Americans' energy saving behaviors, intentions, motivations, and barriers is based on a nationally representative survey of over 2,000 Americans. Reducing energy use – including helping American families become more energy-efficient in their homes and travels – is currently near the top of the agenda at every level of government. This report provides an audience-centric perspective on those issues.
Meeting Report: Assessing Public Attitudes about Climate Change - April 2008.
4C and the National Ocean & Atmospheric Administration co-sponsored a dialogue among public opinion researchers and climate change communicators to informally assess the state of current knowledge about public and policymaker beliefs and attitudes about climate change, and recommendations for future research.
Are we ready?: Preparing for the public health challenges of climate change. (March 2008) National Association of City and County Health Officials, Environmental Defense Fund & George Mason University.
4C, the National Association of City and County Health Officials, and Environmental Defense Fund jointly conducted a national survey of local public health department directors to assess their perspectives about climate change. While almost 80% of public health department leaders believe that climate change will impact the health of people in their jurisdictions over the next few decades, few have yet been able to make it a priority. Click here for the report.
What are Americans thinking and doing about global warming? The results of a national household survey - Jan. 2008.
4C and public relations agency Porter-Novelli conducted a large nationally representative survey of adults and teens to assess their perspectives about, and actions to reduce global warming. An important find was that while Republicans and Democrats may be far apart on the politics of climate change, but when it comes to employing behaviors that actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they aren't so far apart. Click here for the report.
Leiserowitz, A., Maibach, E., Roser-Renouf. C., Smith, N., & Dawson, E. (in press) Climategate, public opinion, and the loss of trust. American Behavioral Scientist. Retrieve the article here .
Nisbet, M., Maibach, E., & Leiserowitz , A.. (in press) Framing peak etroleum as a public health problem: Audience research and participatory engagement. American Journal of Public Health.
Akerlof, K., & Maibach, E., (2011). A Rose by Any Other Name..? What Members of the General Public Prefer to Call “Climate Change.” Climatic Change Letters. Retrieve the article here.
Maibach, E., Leiserowitz, A., Roser-Renouf, C., Akerlof, K., & Nisbet, M. (2010). Saving energy is a value shared by all Americans: Results of a global warming audience segmentation analysis. In K. Ehrhardt-Martinez & J.A. Laitner (eds). People-centered initiatives for increasing energy savings. Pgs. 8-1 to 14. Washington, DC: American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. Retrieve here.
Zhao, X., Leiserowitz, A., Maibach, E., Roser-Renouf, C. (in press) Attention to Science/Environment News Positively Predicts and Attention to Political News Negatively Predicts Global Warming Risk Perceptions and Policy Support.Journal of Communication.
Maibach, E., Leiserowitz, A., Roser-Renouf, C., Mertz, C. (2011) Identifying Like-Minded Audiences for Global Warming Public Engagement Campaigns: An Audience Segmentation Analysis and Tool Development. PLoS ONE, 6: e17571.
Maibach, E., Witte, J., & Wilson, K. (2011). Climategate” undermined belief in global warming among many TV meteorologists. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Association. 92: 31-37.
Akerlof, K., DeBono, R., Berry, P., Leiserowitz, A., Roser-Renouf, C., Clarke, K., Rogaeva, A., Nisbet, M., Weathers, M., Maibach, E. (2010). Public Perceptions of Climate Change as a Human Health Risk: Surveys of the United States, Canada and Malta.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 7(6):2559-2606. Retrieve here.
Feldman, L., Leiserowitz, A., & Maibach, E. (2011). The science of satire: The Daily Show and The Colbert Report as sources of public attention to science and the environment. In Amarasingam (Ed.) Perspectives on fake news: The social significance of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Pgs. 25-46. Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Company.
Maibach, E., Nisbet, C., Baldwin, P., Akerlof, K., & Diao, G.(2010).Reframing climate change as a public health issue: An exploratory study of public r
