scholarly journals What Butterfly Effect? The Contextual Differences in Public Perceptions of the Health Risk Posed by Climate Change

Climate ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 668-688 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Stoutenborough ◽  
Kellee Kirkpatrick ◽  
M. Field ◽  
Arnold Vedlitz
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Butterfly Effect ◽  
Contextual Differences

scholarly journals Public Perceptions of Climate Change as a Human Health Risk: Surveys of the United States, Canada and Malta

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 2559-2606 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Akerlof ◽  
Roberto DeBono ◽  
Peter Berry ◽  
Anthony Leiserowitz ◽  
Connie Roser-Renouf ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Human Health Risk ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Perceptions

scholarly journals Public Perceptions of Climate Change in the Peruvian Andes

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 2677
Author(s):  
Adrian Brügger ◽  
Robert Tobias ◽  
Fredy S. Monge-Rodríguez
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Climate Impacts ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Peruvian Andes ◽  
Food Shortages ◽  
Education Levels

How people subjectively perceive climate change strongly influences how they respond to its challenges. To date, relatively little is known about such perceptions in the Global South. This research examines public perceptions of climate change in the Peruvian Andes, a semi-arid high-mountain region that is highly exposed and vulnerable to adverse effects of climate change. Based on questionnaire data collected through face-to-face interviews (N = 1316), we found that respondents identify various climate-related issues as the most important challenges for their country. Many of these issues are related to water. Respondents also noticed more subtle changes and expected them to continue (e.g., extreme temperatures, food shortages). Climate impacts were clearly seen as negative, which was also reflected in the presence of emotions. When compared to previous research, more respondents had personally experienced extreme weather events (80%) and they were more certain that the climate is already changing, is caused by human activity, and is affecting distant and close places similarly. A comparison of the perceptions along different socioeconomic characteristics suggests that more vulnerable groups (e.g., rural, low income and education levels) tended to perceive climate change as more consequential, closer, and as a more natural (vs. anthropogenic) phenomenon than those from less vulnerable groups. The salience of water-related problems and personal experiences of climate-related events, as well as differences between various subgroups, could be used to improve measures to adapt to the consequences of climate change by correcting misconceptions of the population and of decisionmakers.

Public perceptions of who counts as a scientist for controversial science

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (7) ◽  
pp. 797-811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brianne Suldovsky ◽  
Asheley Landrum ◽  
Natalie Jomini Stroud
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Genetically Modified Organisms ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Us ◽  
Science Media

In an era where expertise is increasingly critiqued, this study draws from the research on expertise and scientist stereotyping to explore who the public considers to be a scientist in the context of media coverage about climate change and genetically modified organisms. Using survey data from the United States, we find that political ideology and science knowledge affect who the US public believes is a scientist in these domains. Our results suggest important differences in the role of science media attention and science media selection in the publics “scientist” labeling. In addition, we replicate previous work and find that compared to other people who work in science, those with PhDs in Biology and Chemistry are most commonly seen as scientists.

scholarly journals A Review of Dengue’s Historical and Future Health Risk from a Changing Climate

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sutyajeet Soneja ◽  
Gina Tsarouchi ◽  
Darren Lumbroso ◽  
Dao Khanh Tung
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Dengue Infection ◽  
Future Health ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Lag Effects ◽  
Risk Estimates ◽  
The World ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Research And Policy

Abstract Purpose of review The purpose of this review is to summarize research articles that provide risk estimates for the historical and future impact that climate change has had upon dengue published from 2007 through 2019. Recent findings Findings from 30 studies on historical health estimates, with the majority of the studies conducted in Asia, emphasized the importance of temperature, precipitation, and relative humidity, as well as lag effects, when trying to understand how climate change can impact the risk of contracting dengue. Furthermore, 35 studies presented findings on future health risk based upon climate projection scenarios, with a third of them showcasing global level estimates and findings across the articles emphasizing the need to understand risk at a localized level as the impacts from climate change will be experienced inequitably across different geographies in the future. Summary Dengue is one of the most rapidly spreading viral diseases in the world, with ~390 million people infected worldwide annually. Several factors have contributed towards its proliferation, including climate change. Multiple studies have previously been conducted examining the relationship between dengue and climate change, both from a historical and a future risk perspective. We searched the U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health (NIEHS) Climate Change and Health Portal for literature (spanning January 2007 to September 2019) providing historical and future health risk estimates of contracting dengue infection in relation to climate variables worldwide. With an overview of the evidence of the historical and future health risk posed by dengue from climate change across different regions of the world, this review article enables the research and policy community to understand where the knowledge gaps are and what areas need to be addressed in order to implement localized adaptation measures to mitigate the health risks posed by future dengue infection.

Public Perceptions on Climate Change: A Sentiment Analysis Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 209-233
Author(s):  
Tasha Erina Taufek ◽  
Nor Fariza Mohd Nor ◽  
Azhar Jaludin ◽  
Sabrina Tiun ◽  
Lam Kuok Choy
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sentiment Analysis ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Analysis Approach

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.

scholarly journals Communicating Risk for a Climate-Sensitive Disease: A Case Study of Valley Fever in Central California

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (18) ◽  
pp. 3254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Matlock ◽  
Suellen Hopfer ◽  
Oladele A. Ogunseitan
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Climate Change ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Health Risk ◽  
Health Communication ◽  
Communication Strategy ◽  
Health Risk Factors ◽  
Valley Fever ◽  
Public Health Agencies ◽  
Health Agencies

Valley Fever, or Coccidioidomycosis, a fungal respiratory disease, is prevalent with increasing incidence in the Southwestern United States, especially in the central region of California. Public health agencies in the region do not have a consistent strategy for communication and health promotion targeting vulnerable communities about this climate-sensitive disease. We used the behavior adaptation communication model to design and conduct semi-structured interviews with representatives of public health agencies in five California counties: Fresno, Kern, Kings, San Luis Obispo, and Tulare County. While none of the agencies currently include climate change information into their Valley Fever risk messaging, the agencies discuss future communication methods similar to other health risk factors such as poor air quality days and influenza virus season. For political reasons, some public health agencies deliberately avoided the use of climate change language in communicating health risk factors to farmers who are particularly vulnerable to soil and dust-borne fungal spores. The effectiveness of health communication activities of the public health agencies has not been measured in reducing the prevalence of Valley Fever in impacted communities. Given the transboundary nature of climate influence on Valley Fever risk, a concerted and consistent health communication strategy is expected to be more effective than current practices.

scholarly journals A Preliminary Evaluation of the Public Risk Perception Related to the COVID-19 Health Emergency in Italy

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (9) ◽  
pp. 3024 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Motta Zanin ◽  
Eleonora Gentile ◽  
Alessandro Parisi ◽  
Danilo Spasiano
Keyword(s):  
Health Risk ◽  
Public Perception ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Preliminary Evaluation ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Risk ◽  
Level Of Knowledge ◽  
Perception Of Health

Governments faced with the spread of COVID-19 pandemic are adopting strict and severe mitigation measures to influence people’s behaviors. Public perception of health risk plays a key role in the adoption of these actions, in people’s feelings, and in their daily habits. To support decision makers from international to local levels to face with future sanitary emergencies, this study aims at investigating Italian public perceptions of health risk. To this purpose, a questionnaire was designed and administered within the period of Italian COVID-19 lockdown and quarantine to almost 9000 citizens in Italy and abroad. The obtained results highlight a significative influence that mass media play on both the level of knowledge and the feelings of the respondents. The findings also point out future variations of some perceived behaviors consequent to the COVID-19 outbreak.

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