The effect of framing and normative messages in building support for climate policies

PLoS One. 2014 Dec 15;9(12):e114335. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0114335. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions are required to mitigate climate change. However, there is low willingness amongst the public to prioritise climate policies for reducing emissions. Here we show that the extent to which Australians are prepared to reduce their country's CO2 emissions is greater when the costs to future national income are framed as a "foregone-gain"--incomes rise in the future but not by as much as in the absence of emission cuts--rather than as a "loss"--incomes decrease relative to the baseline expected future levels (Studies 1 & 2). The provision of a normative message identifying Australia as one of the world's largest CO2 emitters did not increase the amount by which individuals were prepared to reduce emissions (Study 1), whereas a normative message revealing the emission policy preferences of other Australians did (Study 2). The results suggest that framing the costs of reducing emissions as a smaller increase in future income and communicating normative information about others' emission policy preferences are effective methods for leveraging public support for emission cuts.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Australia
  • Carbon Footprint* / economics
  • Carbon Footprint* / legislation & jurisprudence
  • Climate Change / economics
  • Environmental Policy* / economics
  • Environmental Policy* / legislation & jurisprudence
  • Greenhouse Effect* / economics
  • Greenhouse Effect* / legislation & jurisprudence
  • Public Policy

Grants and funding

The research was supported by a grant from the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF) of Australia awarded to the second author and grants from the Australian Research Council (LP120100224, FT110100151) to the second and third authors. Preparation of this paper was supported by funding from the Climate Adaptation Flagship of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation awarded to the first author. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.