Compensatory Control Theory and Public Opinion on Nuclear Policy: Developing an Experimental Measure in an Applied Environmental Context

Chris Anderson,Justin Reedy

doi:10.3389/fcomm.2019.00027

Abstract

In this study, we develop a novel measure of compensatory control to better understand how Compensatory Control Theory (CCT) impacts perceptions of government involvement in an environmental issue: the storage of spent nuclear fuel. Using a national survey, this study examines public opinion on nuclear waste storage, its risks, and potential forms of oversight, by creating four proxy measures of compensatory control. Those measures are used in a regression analysis to understand levels of participation and intervention in the siting of nuclear waste storage facilities. Results indicate mixed support for the measures and a clear connection to policy choices.

Highlights

Public policy decisions in highly technical and esoteric domains, such as energy policy, offer a challenge from a public opinion perspective
We set out to learn how perceptions of individual control apply in the public policy context of nuclear power and waste storage using a national survey on energy and environmental issues in the US
Our research suggests that Compensatory Control Theory (CCT), a theory from social psychology focused on individual need for control over external events (Kay et al, 2009), can help us better understand the basis for attitudes on control for environmental policy options and support for different processes of citizen-centered decision making on those policy choices

Summary

Introduction

Public policy decisions in highly technical and esoteric domains, such as energy policy, offer a challenge from a public opinion perspective. A notable exception to this participation problem is with some environmental issues, which can help mobilize large groups of citizens within the public sphere and may galvanize support or opposition to policy choices over time (Fiorino, 1990; Nisbet and Myers, 2007; Jenkins-Smith et al, 2011). Environmental issues sometimes involve highly technical and esoteric subjects that are politically divisive but challenging for citizens to understand. Our research suggests that Compensatory Control Theory (CCT), a theory from social psychology focused on individual need for control over external events (Kay et al, 2009), can help us better understand the basis for attitudes on control for environmental policy options and support for different processes of citizen-centered decision making on those policy choices

Methods

Results

Conclusion