Given the Pope’s stature as a global religious leader, and the large number of Catholic Americans, we decided to assess whether the Pope’s teachings have had an influence on Americans’, particularly Catholics’, understanding, opinions, and dialogue about climate change. This report examines a large, representative cohort of American adults who were first surveyed in spring of 2015, and then again in early October – a within-subject study of changes in public responses. In the two surveys, we assessed the same respondents’ global warming beliefs, attitudes, risk perceptions, behaviors and policy preferences, and their views of Pope Francis – so that we could determine who, if anyone, had changed their opinions, and if so, in what ways. In this report we conclude that, over the past six months, Americans – especially Catholic Americans – became more engaged in and concerned about global warming. Furthermore, our findings suggest that the Pope’s teachings about global warming contributed to an increase in public engagement on the issue, and influenced the conversation about global warming in America; we refer to this as The Francis Effect. Download the Report Here.
The Francis Effect: How Pope Francis Changed the Conversation about Global Warming
