Attachment is an ethological approach to the development of durable affective ties betweenhumans. We propose that secure attachment is crucial to understand climate change mitigationbecause the latter is inherently a communal phenomenon resulting from joint action, and requiring collective behavioral change. Here we show that secure (vs. insecure) attachment is associated with a higher willingness to pay taxes and prices to mitigate climate change (Study 1 N=1006 U.S. nationally representative sample). We also establish that priming attachment security increases acceptance (Study 2 N=173) and perceived responsibility about anthropogenic climate change (Study 3 N=209). Next, we show that priming attachment security, compared to a standard National Geographic video about climate change, increases monetary donations to a proenvironmental group in politically moderate and conservative individuals (Study 4 N=196). Lastly, in a preregistered field study conducted in the United Arab Emirates involving 130 nationalities (Study 5 N=143,558 food transactions), we show that an attachment-based message reduces food waste compared to a message related to carbon emissions. Our work suggests that a new avenue to promote climate change mitigation could be grounded in core ethological mechanisms associated with secure attachment.
BUILDING AND EXPLORING NETWORK DATA MODEL FOR A SEASON LEVEL CLIMATE CHANGE STUDY FOR FIVE LARGE CITIES IN HUNGARY
