Abstract

People who believe they have greater efficacy to address climate change are more likely to engage in pro-environmental behaviour. To confront the climate crisis, it will therefore be essential to understand the processes through which climate change efficacy is promoted. Some interventions in the literature assume that efficacy emerges from analytic reasoning processes: that it is deliberative, verbal, conscious, and influenced by information and education. In the current paper, we critique this notion. We review evidence showing that climate change efficacy perceptions are (a) associated with climate-related distress and threat, (b) prescribed by social norms, (c) associated with social desirability and identity-expressive concerns, (d) surprisingly difficult to change through explicit, verbal instruction, but (e) responsive to imagery. We conclude by examining applied implications of these five propositions and discuss why non-analytic processes might (ironically) be beneficial for sustaining green activism.

摘要

认为自己在应对气候变化方面更有效率的人更有可能从事环保行为。因此，为了应对气候危机，了解促进气候变化效力的过程至关重要。文献中的一些干预假设功效来自分析推理过程：它是深思熟虑的、口头的、有意识的，并受信息和教育的影响。在当前的论文中，我们批评了这个概念。我们审查的证据表明，气候变化效能感知 (a) 与气候相关的痛苦和威胁相关，(b) 由社会规范规定，(c) 与社会期望和身份表达问题相关，(d) 难以改变通过明确的口头指示，但 (e) 对意象作出反应。