Effective climate policy requires trust in scientific findings. How people perceive climate change influences whether they support political decisions, especially if they are far-reaching. An international study has investigated how political attitudes are related to trust in climate scientists. The researchers analysed data from 10,641 participants from 26 countries in Europe, North America, Central and South America, North Africa, Australia and East and Southeast Asia. Researchers from Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin (HU), Kristianstad University (Sweden), Columbia University (USA) and other universities were among those involved. The transnational survey took place in July and August 2023 as part of the Junior Researcher Programme and was published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology.
The results show that On average, people who categorise themselves politically on the right have less trust in climate scientists than those who categorise themselves on the left.
Trust in climate scientists makes climate policy
"These results provide concrete starting points for optimising communication strategies for specific target groups and overcoming social differences," says Justus Schmidt, one of the first authors of the study and a Master of Psychology student at Humboldt-Universit?t. "In order to regain the trust of the population and effectively implement sustainable solutions, we need to detach climate science from political interests. If societal tensions are not actively addressed, evidence-based strategies will continue to come to nothing." Climate communication strategies could, for example, target groups that are politically more to the right. In this way, public trust in climate scientists could be strengthened overall.
About the researchers involved
The first authorship is shared by Justus Schmidt and Amanda Rems?. Other co-authors are Sandra J. Geiger, Bojana Ve?kalov, ?iva Krajnch, Isobel Laughton, Mariam Shavgulidze, Emma A. Renstr?m and Kai Ruggeri.
Further information
To the website of the Junior Researcher Programme
Please contact
Justus Schmidt
Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin