The Psychology of Climate Change: Why We Do Nothing

Excerpt from full article @ The Ecologist, 12 August 2009

'...Anxiety and helplessness, argues a report published last week by the American Psychological Association, rather than ambivalence or apathy are the biggest barriers to individuals taking action...

...WWF has produced a number of reports over the past few years looking at psychological barriers to tackling climate change. Dr Crompton said there needed to be a shift away from short-term campaigning.

‘The environmental movement has for too long focused on the policy response, without considering the social and psychological barriers.

‘Policy is critical but if we are going to contemplate the scale of policy intervention needed we are going to have to address the way we work round with these barriers,’ he said...

Among the research currently been done, Renee Lertzman from the Cardiff School of Social Sciences, is looking at the unconscious motivations behind many people’s responses to climate change. 

She has argued previously in the Ecologist that people may simply be paralysed by the size of the problem.

The report identified some key barriers, including:

• Uncertainty – Research has shown that uncertainty over climate change reduces the frequency of “green” behaviour
  
• Mistrust – Evidence shows that most people don’t believe the risk messages of scientists or government officials
  
• Social comparison - People routinely compare their actions with those of others and derive subjective and descriptive norms from their observations about what is the “proper” course of action. i.e. Al Gore’s large residence has been used as a justification for inaction
  
• Undervaluing risks – A study of more than 3,000 people in 18 countries showed that many people believe environmental conditions will worsen in 25 years. While this may be true, this thinking could lead people to believe that changes can be made later
  
• Lack of control – People believe their actions would be too small to make a difference and choose to do nothing
  
• Perceived behavioural control - Because climate change is a global problem, many individuals understandably believe that they can do nothing about it. This is the well-known collective action problem
  
• Habit – Ingrained behaviours are extremely resistant to permanent change while others change slowly.'