Managerial perceptions and responses to climate change in Missouri state parks and historic sites

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Ojetunde Ayodeji Ojewola
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Outdoor Recreation ◽  
Political Orientation ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Ecosystem Structure ◽  
State Parks ◽  
Historic Sites ◽  
Audience Segmentation ◽  
Change Perceptions

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Climate change has been described as one of the greatest, long-term challenges facing modern society. Its impacts range from alteration of ecosystem structure and function to human health and welfare. Few studies have focused on the social aspects of climate change, and none on parks and protected areas, in the Midwest. The perceptions of park managers are an important, but overlooked dimension of climate change and outdoor recreation policy. This dissertation used a multi-method approach to examine, explore and explain the climate change perceptions of those employed at Missouri state parks and historic sites in year 2016. A total of 495 surveys were administered to MSP employees using online and mail methods, and 405 responded, yielding 82% response rate. A qualitative analysis was conducted with district park managers to gain a deeper understanding of system-wide responses to climate change. Spatial analysis was used to map the distribution of extreme weather events across Missouri in relation to vulnerability and resilience. This approach allowed for triangulation, thus increasing credibility. Findings from this study supported the hypothesized socio-demographic differences among climate change perceptions of park employees. Political orientation, gender, education and job title were significant with belief in climate change, concern about climate-related impacts, support for pro-environmental behavior and adaptation and trust in source of climate change information. Findings also revealed the influence of cognition, affect, concern, and other socio-cultural factors on climate change risk perceptions using hierarchical multiple regression analysis, accounting for 73% of the variance. This study identified and explained several important indicators for shaping personal, societal and place-based risk perceptions. Linear discriminant analysis was used for audience segmentation. This procedure resulted in six different groups (Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, and Dismissive) characterized by their belief, behavior, policy preference, and issue engagement. Findings showed differences among park employees and highlighted the importance of audience segmentation for messaging climate change communication. Perceived vulnerability and resilience were collapsed into a 2X2 typology, and used to construct a 3-point continuum (1=high vulnerability / low resilience to 3=low vulnerability / high resilience). State park employees thought the system was more resilient and less vulnerable to climate change than what other indicators showed. A deductive qualitative approach was used to confirm and develop a conceptual climate change resilience model, linking theory with practice. The newly developed model described the process of recovery from climate-related impact within the state park system using resilience theory. Results of this study may be useful for environmental decision-making behavior, policy formation and adaptation strategy development within the park system, in addition to some important theoretical contributions.

Geographies of Climate Change Belief

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debbie Hopkins ◽  
Ezra M. Markowitz
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
National Scale ◽  
Large Variability ◽  
Change Perceptions ◽  
Nationally Representative

Despite scientific consensus on the anthropogenic causation of climate change, and ever-growing knowledge on the biophysical impacts of climate change, there is large variability in public perceptions of and belief in climate change. Public support for national and international climate policy has a strong positive association with certainty that climate change is occurring, human caused, serious, and solvable. Thus to achieve greater acceptance of national climate policy and international agreements, it is important to raise public belief in climate change and understandings of personal climate risk. Public understandings of climate change and associated risk perceptions have received significant academic attention. This research has been conducted across a range of spatial scales, with particular attention on large-scale, nationally representative surveys to gain insights into country-scale perceptions of climate change. Generalizability of nationally representative surveys allows some degree of national comparison; however, the ability to conduct such comparisons has been limited by the availability of comparative data sets. Consequently, empirical insights have been geographically biased toward Europe and North America, with less understanding of public perceptions of climate change in other geographical settings including the Global South. Moreover, a focus on quantitative surveying techniques can overlook the more nuanced, culturally determined factors that contribute to the construction of climate change perceptions. The physical and human geographies of climate change are diverse. This is due to the complex spatial dimensions of climate change and includes both the observed and anticipated geographical differentiation in risks, impacts, and vulnerabilities. While country location and national climate can impact upon how climate change is understood, so too will sociocultural factors such as national identity and culture(s). Studies have reported high variability in climate change perceptions, the result of a complex interplay between personal experiences of climate, social norms, and worldviews. Exploring the development of national-scale analyses and their findings over time, and the comparability of national data sets, may provide some insights into the factors that influence public perceptions of climate change and identify national-scale interventions and communications to raise risk perception and understanding of climate change.

Looking broadly and deeply into perspectives of local climate change impacts among visitors to Missouri state parks

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Lisa Groshong
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Place Attachment ◽  
Outdoor Recreation ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
State Parks ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
Climate Resilience ◽  
Local Climate Change ◽  
Change Mitigation

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Missouri's outdoor recreation resources provide numerous mental, physical, and social values to millions of people each year and serve as a major contributor to the statewide economy. However, climate change threatens these benefits. This project sought to explore climate change perceptions and place attachment of outdoor enthusiasts in Missouri as a step toward managing natural and cultural resources for ongoing climate resilience. This study used interviews and a statewide visitor survey to measure climate change impacts on visitors to Missouri's state parks and historic sites. The dissertation is formatted in three manuscripts. The first manuscript assessed how engaged state park users perceive climate change impacts and what they view as the agency role in climate change mitigation, education, and communication. The second manuscript identified health concerns related to climate change and examined how these concerns affect park use. The final manuscript examined the role of place attachment in determining visitors' willingness to engage in climate friendly behavior and support for management action to minimize climate-change impacts. Overall findings suggested climate-change related management challenges and provided evidence for visitor support for education and action. Opportunities were identified for state park managers to take action toward locally-oriented climate change mitigation, education and communication. Place attachment dimensions were affirmed as tools for engaging visitors in climate-related actions, both in and beyond park settings.

scholarly journals The Influence of Political Ideology and Socioeconomic Vulnerability on Perceived Health Risks of Heat Waves in the Context of Climate Change

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 731-746 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Cutler ◽  
Jennifer R. Marlon ◽  
Peter D. Howe ◽  
Anthony Leiserowitz
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Heat Wave ◽  
Census Tract ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Political Orientation ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Socioeconomic Vulnerability ◽  
Census Tract Level

Abstract Vulnerability and resilience to extreme weather hazards are a function of diverse physical, social, and psychological factors. Previous research has focused on individual factors that influence public perceptions of hazards, such as politics, ideology, and cultural worldviews, as well as on socioeconomic and demographic factors that affect geographically based vulnerability, environmental justice, and community resilience. Few studies have investigated individual socioeconomic and racial/ethnic differences in public risk perceptions of the health hazards associated with extreme heat events, which are now increasing due to climate change. This study uses multilevel statistical modeling to investigate individual- and geographic-level (e.g., census tract level and regional) social, economic, and biophysical influences on public perceptions of the adverse health impacts associated with heat waves. Political orientation and climate change beliefs are the strongest predictors of heat wave health risk perceptions; household income also has a relatively strong and consistent effect. Contextual socioeconomic vulnerability, measured with a social vulnerability index at the census tract level, also significantly affects heat wave risk perceptions. The strong influence of political orientation and climate beliefs on perceptions of adverse health impacts from heat waves suggests that ideological predispositions can increase vulnerability to climate change.

Weather, Values, Capacity and Concern: Toward a Social-Cognitive Model of Specialty Crop Farmers’ Perceptions of Climate Change Risk

2021 ◽  
pp. 001391652110266
Author(s):  
Guang Han ◽  
Ethan D. Schoolman ◽  
J. Gordon Arbuckle ◽  
Lois Wright Morton
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Cognitive Model ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Climate Change Risk ◽  
Specialty Crop

As specialty crop production has become increasingly important to U.S. agriculture, public and private stakeholders have called for research and outreach efforts centered on risks posed by climate change. Drawing on a survey of specialty crop farmers, this study explores farmers’ perceptions of climate change risks. Underlying cognitive, experiential, and socio-cultural factors hypothesized to influence farmers’ climate change risk perceptions are tested using structural equation modeling techniques. Results show that specialty crop farmers exhibit an overall moderate concern about climatic risks. The more capable and prepared farmers feel themselves to be, the less concerned they are about climate change. Farmers who have recently experienced more extreme weather events perceive climate change to present greater risks. In addition, farmers’ risk perceptions are also shaped by attitudes toward human exemptionalism and productivism values. Based on these findings, we provide recommendations for outreach and future research.

scholarly journals Influence of Psychological Factors on Climate Change Perceptions Held by Local Farmers in the Northeast of Thailand

2015 ◽  
pp. 69-78
Author(s):  
Suthirat Kittipongvises ◽  
Takashi Mino
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Climatic Variability ◽  
Lifestyle Changes ◽  
Perceived Barriers ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Psychological Variables ◽  
Change Perceptions ◽  
R 592

Global climate change is considered one of the most critical socio-ecological challenges of the 21st century. In recent years extreme weather events have increased significantly in Thailand asin other parts of the world. In most cases, climatic variability has always been associated with its implications for agriculture. To date, however, there has been inconclusive understanding of farmers’ capacity to detect climate change and its potential impact. This study therefore explores how Thai farmers perceive global climate change and, further, to examine the influence of psy-chological factors on these perceptions. The study used mixed research methods, with both quali-tative and quantitative approaches. Questionnaires were distributed to 70 randomly-selected agri-cultural households in Village 4 of the Nongbuasala sub-district, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. The survey results indicated that the majority of respondents view climate change in terms of extreme high temperatures and flooding. Regression analysis also revealed positive correlations between perceptions of climate change and six psychological variables of awareness in general andmitigation, belief in the reality of climate change and human causes, feelings of worry, and self-efficacy (0.201 ≤ r≤ .592; p ≤ 0.05). Conversely, in terms of perceived barriers, three compo-nents of cognitive dissonance (r= -0.831), belief in limitation of lifestyle changes (r= -0.305) and fear (r= -0.283) were found to be negatively correlated with climate change perceptions by Thai farmers. Recommendations to deal with those perceived barriers are also discussed.

Race, Class, Gender and Climate Change Communication

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam R. Pearson ◽  
Matthew T. Ballew ◽  
Sarah Naiman ◽  
Jonathon P. Schuldt
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Environmental Communication ◽  
Political Orientation ◽  
Party Affiliation ◽  
Political Values ◽  
Disadvantaged Groups ◽  
Race Ethnicity ◽  
And Gender

Interest in the audience factors that shape the processing of climate change messaging has risen over the past decade, as evidenced by dozens of studies demonstrating message effects that are contingent on audiences’ political values, ideological worldviews, and cultural mindsets. Complementing these efforts is a growing interest in understanding the role of nonpartisan social factors—including racial and ethnic identities, social class, and gender—that have received comparably less attention but are critical for understanding how the challenges posed by climate change can be effectively communicated in pluralistic societies. Research and theory on the effects of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status (education and income), and gender on climate change perceptions suggest that each of these factors can independently and systematically shape people’s attitudes and beliefs about climate change, as well as both individual and collective motivations to address it. Moreover, the literature suggests that these factors often interact with political orientation (ideology and party affiliation) such that climate change beliefs and risk perceptions are typically more polarized for members of advantaged groups than disadvantaged groups. Notably, differential polarization in the perceived dangers posed by climate change has increased in some group dimensions (e.g., race and income) from 2000 to 2010. Groups for whom the issue of climate change may be less politically charged, such as racial and ethnic minorities and members of socioeconomically disadvantaged groups, thus represent critical audiences for bridging growing partisan divides and building policy consensus. Nevertheless, critical knowledge gaps remain. In particular, few studies have examined effects of race or ethnicity beyond the U.S. context or explored ways in which race, ethnicity, class, and gender may interact to influence climate change engagement. Increasing attention to these factors, as well as the role of diversity more generally in environmental communication, can enhance understanding of key barriers to broadening public participation in climate discourse and decision-making.

Climate Change Perceptions of NY State Farmers: The Role of Risk Perceptions and Adaptive Capacity

2016 ◽  
Vol 58 (6) ◽  
pp. 946-957 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno Takahashi ◽  
Morey Burnham ◽  
Carol Terracina-Hartman ◽  
Amanda R Sopchak ◽  
Theresa Selfa
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Adaptive Capacity ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Change Perceptions

Political Preferences, Personality Traits, and Environmentalism

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alistair Soutter ◽  
René Mõttus
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Personality Traits ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Environmental Attitudes ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Political Orientation ◽  
Anthropogenic Climate Change ◽  
Political Preferences ◽  
Party Voting

Although the scientific evidence of anthropogenic climate change continues to grow, public discourse still reflects a high level of scepticism and political polarisation towards anthropogenic climate change. In this study (N = 499) we attempted to replicate and expand upon an earlier finding that environmental terminology (“climate change” versus “global warming”) could partly explain political polarisation in environmental scepticism (Schuldt, Konrath, & Schwarz, 2011). Participants completed a series of online questionnaires assessing personality traits, political preferences, belief in environmental phenomenon, and various pro-environmental attitudes and behaviours. Those with a Conservative political orientation and/or party voting believed less in both climate change and global warming compared to those with a Liberal orientation and/or party voting. Furthermore, there was an interaction between continuously measured political orientation, but not party voting, and question wording on beliefs in environmental phenomena. Personality traits did not confound these effects. Furthermore, continuously measured political orientation was associated with pro-environmental attitudes, after controlling for personality traits, age, gender, area lived in, income, and education. The personality domains of Openness, and Conscientiousness, were consistently associated with pro-environmental attitudes and behaviours, whereas Agreeableness was associated with pro-environmental attitudes but not with behaviours. This study highlights the importance of examining personality traits and political preferences together and suggests ways in which policy interventions can best be optimised to account for these individual differences.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document