Methods for Assessing Online Climate Change Communication, Social Media Discussion, and Behavior

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leona Yi-Fan Su ◽  
Heather Akin ◽  
Dominique Brossard
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Survey Methods ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Online Surveys ◽  
Climate Change Research ◽  
Research Fields

In recent years, increased Internet access and new communication technologies have led to the development of online methods for gathering public opinion and behavioral data related to controversial issues like climate change. To help climate-change researchers better adapt to the new era of online-based research, a review of, and methodological applications for, prevailing Internet-based research methods are provided here. Online surveys have become more common in the last decade for several reasons, including their relatively low administration cost, the pervasiveness of Internet communication, and declining response rates associated with traditional survey methods. Experiments embedded within online surveys have also become a useful tool for examining the extent to which online communications influence publics’ attitudes and behaviors. Other research methods that have gained growing attention from scholars are content analyses of online communication using big data approaches. By mining the seemingly infinite amount of user-generated content extracted from different social media sites, researchers are able to analyze issue awareness, responses to instant news, and emerging sentiments. This article provides a detailed overview of these Internet-based research methods, including their potential advantages and pitfalls, their applications in the science-communication and climate-change research fields, as well as suggestions for future research.

Twitter Users’ Displays of Affect in the Global Warming Debate

2021 ◽  
pp. 004728162110078
Author(s):  
Shanna Cameron ◽  
Alexandra Russell ◽  
Luke Brake ◽  
Katherine Fredlund ◽  
Angela Morris
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Technical Communication ◽  
Research Team ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Climate Change Research ◽  
Quantitative Content ◽  
Twitter Users

This article engages with recent discussions in the field of technical communication that call for climate change research that moves beyond the believer/denier dichotomy. For this study, our research team coded 900 tweets about climate change and global warming for different emotions in order to understand how Twitter users rely on affect rhetorically. Our findings use quantitative content analysis to challenge current assumptions about writing and affect on social media, and our results indicate a number of arenas for future research on affect, global warming, and rhetoric.

Exploring climate finance for tourism adaptation development: an overview

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 593-605 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniele Vieira do Nascimento
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
English Language ◽  
Small Island ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Climate Finance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Research Fields ◽  
New Research

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the links between climate finance and tourism adaptation development. Besides increasing adaptation and mitigation efforts to limit greenhouse gas emissions, climate change remains a major challenge in the twenty-first century and beyond especially for tourism which is highly climate sensitive. Hence, it is necessary for tourism to adapt to survive. The aim of the study is to provide a systematic overview of the topic to offer a foundation for better understanding different ways of integrating climate finance initiatives with tourism. Design/methodology/approach The research focused on the top-ranked, peer reviewed journals of each of the two selected research fields. To address this topic, an in-depth systematic literature review in the fields of climate change finance and tourism adaptation development was conducted. Furthermore, because it is a relatively new research topic, conference proceedings were also explored. To guarantee wide coverage of the literature, a query of the following scholarly databases was considered: Elsevier, ScienceDirect and Web of Science. Findings Based on the analyses of the literature available on the topic, the paper highlights the main research trends and conclusions. It is argued that there is imbalance of knowledge on climate change finance as it relates to tourism. To date, there have been relatively few published articles on this topic in the context of tourism. Based on the findings, promising areas for future research were identified, and in particular for small island communities and recommendations for future research are outlined. Research limitations/implications The paper is limited by the scope of the literature review accessed by the researcher. The results of this review may vary according to the databases used. Originality/value Currently, there is no extensive review of articles on climate finance and tourism adaptation. This paper aims at reviewing climate finance studies published in English language to explore knowledge gaps in tourism adaptation. Sets of themes being advanced are also highlighted. Recommendations for future research are provided.

scholarly journals How Do Young Adults Engage With Science and Research on Social Media? Some Preliminary Findings and an Agenda for Future Research

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 205630511879772 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eszter Hargittai ◽  
Tobias Füchslin ◽  
Mike S. Schäfer
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Public Engagement ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Material ◽  
Considerable Research ◽  
Public Engagement With Science ◽  
Celebrity News ◽  
Science And Research

While considerable research has looked at how people use the Internet for sharing and engaging with various types of content from celebrity news to politics, very little of this work has considered how non-specialists interact with science and research material on social media. This article reviews literature on public engagement with science to note that this area is ripe for research on social-media-based engagement in particular. Drawing on a survey of American young adults’ online experiences, we show that using social media for science and research is at least as likely if not more so as engagement with other topics from similarly serious to lighter domains. We also find that platform matters with young adults much more likely to engage with such content on Facebook rather than on Twitter. We end by proposing more focus on this domain in the area of science communication and work on social media.

scholarly journals Separating the Impacts of Climate Change and Human Activities on Runoff: A Review of Method and Application

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 2201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Zeng ◽  
Ming-Guo Ma ◽  
Dong-Rui Di ◽  
Wei-Yu Shi
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Needs ◽  
Relevant Research ◽  
Impact Of Climate Change ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

Separating the impact of climate change and human activities on runoff is an important topic in hydrology, and a large number of methods and theories have been widely used. In this paper, we review the current papers on separating the impacts of climate and human activities on runoff, summarize the progress of relevant research methods and applications in recent years, and discuss future research needs and directions.

scholarly journals Do Corporate Carbon Policies Enhance Legitimacy? A Social Media Perspective

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Galán-Valdivieso ◽  
Laura Saraite-Sariene ◽  
Juana Alonso-Cañadas ◽  
María Caba-Pérez
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Media ◽  
North America ◽  
Stakeholder Engagement ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Carbon Mitigation ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Carbon Policy ◽  
Carbon Performance ◽  
Practical Implications

Stakeholders are increasingly concerned about climate change and companies’ commitment to anticipate future carbon-related risks, and grant or withdraw support depending on their perceptions of firms’ carbon performance. The aim of this research is to analyse which carbon-related factors influence stakeholders with regards to the legitimacy-granting process. The sample in this study includes 146 firms from North America and Europe committed to carbon mitigation, whose legitimacy is measured via social media interactions. Findings show that setting a corporate carbon policy and disclosing an internal price of carbon are positively linked to legitimacy, while other factors are negatively or not related to legitimacy. This study makes theoretical contributions, proposing a metric based on social media stakeholder engagement to measure corporate legitimacy, as well as practical implications, revealing which carbon information shapes stakeholders’ perception of firms’ climate performance, and opening new possibilities for future research.

Carbon response to changing winter conditions in northern regions: current understanding and emerging research needs

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 545-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
John L. Campbell ◽  
Hjalmar Laudon
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Influential Factors ◽  
Research Network ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Winter Climate ◽  
Climate Change Research ◽  
Northern Regions ◽  
Soil Temperatures ◽  
Carry Over

Winter is an important period for ecological processes in northern regions; however, compared to other seasons, the impacts of winter climate on ecosystems are poorly understood. In this review we evaluate the influence of winter climate on carbon dynamics based on the current state of knowledge and highlight emerging topics and future research challenges. Studies that have addressed this topic include plot-scale snow cover manipulation experiments that alter soil temperatures, empirical investigations along natural climatic gradients, laboratory temperature incubation experiments aimed at isolating influential factors in controlled environments, and time series of climate and carbon data that evaluate long-term natural variation and trends. Combined, these studies have demonstrated how winter climate can influence carbon in complex ways that in some cases are consistent across studies and in other cases are difficult to predict. Despite advances in our understanding, there is a great need for studies that further explore: (i) carry-over effects from one season to another, (ii) ecosystem processes in the fall–winter and winter–spring shoulder seasons, (iii) the impacts of extreme events, (iv) novel experimental approaches, and (v) improvements to models to include ecological effects of winter climate. We also call for the establishment of an international winter climate change research network that enhances collaboration and coordination among studies, which could provide a more thorough understanding of how the snow-covered period influences carbon cycling, thereby improving our ability to predict future responses to climate change.

scholarly journals Communicating climate change in a “post-factual” society: lessons learned from the Pole to Paris campaign

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-93
Author(s):  
Erlend M. Knudsen ◽  
Oria J. de Bolsée
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Awareness Campaign ◽  
Climate Change Science ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. The politicization of and societal debate on climate change science have increased over the last decades. Here, the authors argue that the role of climate scientists in our society needs to adapt in accordance with this development. We share our experiences from the awareness campaign Pole to Paris, which engaged non-academic audiences on climate change issues on the roads from the polar regions to Paris and through conventional and social media. By running and cycling across a third of the globe, the scientists behind the initiative established connections on the audiences' terms. Propitiously for other outreach efforts, the exertions were not in themselves the most attractive; among our social media followers, the messages of climate change science and action were more favourable, as measured by video statistics and a follower survey. Communicating climate action in itself challenges our positions as scientists, and here we discuss the impact such messages have on our credibility as researchers. Based on these reflections, as well as those from other science communication initiatives, we suggest a way forward for climate scientists in the post-factual society, who should be better trained in interaction with non-academic audiences and pseudoscepticism.

scholarly journals Geobibliography and Bibliometric Networks of Polar Tourism and Climate Change Research

Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 498 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Demiroglu ◽  
C. Hall
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Future Research ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Intergovernmental Panel ◽  
Mountain Areas ◽  
Climate Change Research ◽  
Climate Resilience ◽  
Tourism Sector ◽  
Systematic Identification

In late 2019, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released their much-awaited Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC). High mountain areas, polar regions, low-lying islands and coastal areas, and ocean and marine ecosystems, were separately dealt by experts to reveal the impacts of climate change on these regions, as well as the responses of the natural and human systems inhabiting or related to these regions. The tourism sector was found, among the main systems, influenced by climate change in the oceanic and cryospheric environments. In this study, we deepen the understanding of tourism and climate interrelationships in the polar regions. In doing so, we step outside the climate resilience of polar tourism paradigm and systematically assess the literature in terms of its gaps relating to an extended framework where the impacts of tourism on climate through a combined and rebound effects lens are in question as well. Following a systematic identification and screening on two major bibliometric databases, a final selection of 93 studies, spanning the 2004–2019 period, are visualized in terms of their thematic and co-authorship networks and a study area based geobibliography, coupled with an emerging hot spots analysis, to help identify gaps for future research.

Transforming celebrities through social media: the role of authenticity and emotional attachment

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 345-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine M. Kowalczyk ◽  
Kathrynn R. Pounders
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Personal Information ◽  
Survey Methods ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Emotional Attachment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Media Site ◽  
Purchase Likelihood

Purpose Social media platforms are changing the way consumers and celebrities engage. This research aims to better understand how and why consumers use social media to engage with celebrities, and identify the potential antecedents and outcomes, which may result from these online connections. Design/methodology/approach Both qualitative (two focus groups) and quantitative (survey) methods were used to explore consumer engagement with celebrities on social media. A structural model from the survey data was developed and analyzed. Findings Textual analysis of the focus groups revealed that consumers follow celebrities on social media to obtain career and personal information about the celebrity. Further, authenticity and emotional attachment were identified as favorable aspects of following celebrities on social media. An empirical study confirmed that the constructs of authenticity and emotional attachment positively influence the outcomes of word-of-mouth and purchase likelihood. Research limitations/implications The study was limited by the self-identification of a favorite celebrity and social media site. Future research should include empirical testing of specific celebrities featured on a specific social media site and the development of the constructs identified in the focus groups. Practical implications This research sheds light on the antecedents and outcomes associated with consumer–celebrity engagement on social media. The implications for marketers and advertisers include a better understanding of how celebrities transform themselves and engage with consumers on social media. Originality/value This paper fulfills an identified need to study authenticity and emotional attachment as they relate to celebrities and consumers’ engagements on social media.

scholarly journals The role of climate scientists in the post-factual society

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erlend M. Knudsen ◽  
Oria J. de Bolsée
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Media ◽  
General Public ◽  
Science Communication ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Awareness Campaign ◽  
Climate Change Science

Abstract. The politicization of and societal debate on climate change science has increased over the last decades. Here, the authors argue that the role of climate scientists in our societies needs to adapt in accordance with this development. We share our experiences from the awareness campaign Pole to Paris, which engaged the general public on climate change issues on the roads from the polar regions to Paris and through conventional and social media. Based on these experiences, as well as those from other science communication initiatives, we suggest a way forward for climate scientists in the post-factual society.

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