Using Psychology To Help Solve Climate Change

The majority of people understand that climate change is a threat and believe that we should be doing more to protect the earth. In fact, nearly 70 percent of Americans, including a majority of Republicans, want the United States to take “aggressive” action to combat climate change. And yet, the United States continues to be known as the most significant contributor to historical emissions of global warming pollution. 

So, if Americans understand that climate change is an existential threat, why aren’t we doing more to make changes? The answer may be found in psychology.

Psychologists have identified a number of factors that can help explain why people are reluctant to both take personal responsibility for the environment and to support climate change policies. Understanding these psychological approaches to climate change can help adjust our mindsets to make better choices both on an individual and systemic level. 

Combat Denial

While most people do believe that climate change is real, many are still unconvinced about the enormous role that human activity plays in it.  Part of the reason is that corporations, especially the fossil fuel industry, have spent a lot of money to encourage us to ignore climate change.

The other reason that climate change denial is so prevalent is that it can feel like a problem that is too daunting to tackle. We aren’t being told that our money or quality of life will be decreased if we don’t take action… we’re told that our very lives and the future of the entire planet is at stake.

When faced with such an overwhelming problem, our brain can go into a state of denial…. Which is  the refusal to accept facts in order to protect us from uncomfortable truths. This primitive defense mechanism is a common response to problems that seem unsolvable.

One way to combat denial is to break down the larger problem into smaller, more achievable goals like using less plastic or switching to LCD lightbulbs. Even though these changes alone are not sufficient, they can help get people out of denial and into action… leading to larger scale changes.

Appeal to a sense of morality

Appealing to people’s moral obligations to the planet can be a useful motivation, especially if there is some personal benefit at stake. Research shows people behave less selfishly when we emphasize what they will gain rather than lose by reducing their use of fossil fuels. 

Helping people to envision a future fueled by renewable energy, with clean air and water, thriving ecosystems, and strong community involvement can help spark their motivation to make more moral choices for the planet.

Reinforce social norms

Humans are much more likely to be part of something if they believe that most other people are also doing it.  That’s why advertising campaigns that make environmentalism the accepted norm tend to be more successful.  

Using phrases such as “most people recycle” or “the whole world understands the importance of cutting back on fossil fuels” can appeal to people’s desire to be part of a community and make them more likely to participate.

Research also shows the importance of a shared identity, meaning we want to be a part of a community that shares our values. This shared identity builds a sense of trust that others are sharing the resources fairly, which is necessary to promote individual fairness. 

Group identity can be built through messages from local and national government and an increase in community environmental initiatives. 

Trustworthy feedback

Communicating with fellow users of a shared resource fuels further trust and cooperation. This means that transparency from local, state, and federal governments is key to encouraging environmental action.

On an individual level, using devices that give us a reliable measurement of how much of a resource we’ve used like smart home apps or carbon footprint calculators can also help encourage people to use less. 

Incentives

Offering rewards and sanctions according to how our behavior affects the environment can have a strong impact on further action. Things like lowering taxes for buying an environmentally friendly car or charging a carbon tax for businesses can lead to immediate positive outcomes. 

In order to prevent a sense of resentment, it is best to allow the public to decide on the incentives and appoint their own leaders to monitor them.

These are just a few of the ways that psychology and environmental science can intersect in a positive way. Understanding the psychology behind why people aren’t working harder to solve climate change is key to finding innovate new tactics to help motivate and inspire individuals and governments to make real, lasting change