Study Shows Conservatives and Liberals Align on Climate Change Action
The division between liberals and conservatives on climate change beliefs and related policy support has long been a topic of debate. However, a recent global experiment led by researchers at New York University has shed light on a surprising finding: despite their differences, liberals and conservatives actually align when it comes to taking action to combat climate change.
The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, found that when given the opportunity, both liberals and conservatives take action to address climate change at similar levels. This is due to conservatives choosing to take action despite their climate-change beliefs, rather than liberals failing to act on theirs.
“Our work shows a disconnect between beliefs and behaviors among conservatives when it comes to environmental matters, while also revealing common ground with liberals when it comes to taking action,” explains Madalina Vlasceanu, an assistant professor at NYU who led the study.
The researchers also identified which messages or interventions can be effective in boosting beliefs in climate change and policy support among both conservatives and liberals. Several interventions were found to be effective in altering beliefs and policy support across the ideological divide.
However, the study’s authors caution that the impact of interventions was not uniform. For example, framing certain actions as a climate change solution can backfire and decrease conservatives’ engagement. Instead, framing climate-change actions as beneficial for ideologically consistent reasons might be more effective in spurring action.
The findings of the study are based on an experiment involving 50,000 participants across 60 countries. Participants were asked a series of questions about their beliefs in climate change and support for related policies, as well as their engagement with actions aimed at addressing climate change.
The researchers found that conservatives take action to address climate change at similar levels to liberals, with conservatives choosing to take action despite their beliefs, rather than liberals failing to act. Effective interventions included emphasizing effective collective actions, writing a letter to a future generation member, and writing a letter from the future self. These interventions boosted climate beliefs and policy support for both groups.
However, the impact of interventions was not uniform, as framing certain actions as climate change solutions could backfire and decrease conservatives’ engagement. For example, informing conservatives that a majority of Americans are concerned about the climate crisis led to them planting fewer trees. The researchers suggest that interventions aimed at increasing conservatives’ pro-environmental behaviors should not involve their climate change beliefs, but instead frame climate change actions as beneficial for ideologically consistent reasons.