Exploring how climate change subjective attribution, personal experience with extremes, concern, and subjective knowledge relate to pro-environmental attitudes and behavioral intentions in the United States

Abstract

Opportunity for direct experience with a range of climate change-related extremes is growing worldwide – from wildfires to transmissible disease. This experience may be associated with attributions to climate change, as well as with pro-environmental attitudes and behavioral intentions. Given the United States' (US) recent devastating wildfires and widespread coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), we conducted two national surveys (study 1: n = 502, study 2: n = 1,493) of US adults examining how subjective attribution is associated with personal experience with extremes, as well as with concern and subjective knowledge about climate change. We also examine the extent to which these factors are associated with pro-environmental attitudes and behavioral intentions, and whether these relationships are amplified or attenuated by subjective attribution. We find that personal experience, concern, and subjective knowledge are associated with the belief that wildfires and COVID-19 are attributable to climate change. These in turn are all associated with pro-environmental attitudes (carbon tax policy support) and behavioral intentions (electric vehicle purchase). Subjective attribution of COVID-19 amplifies the positive relationship between personal experience with COVID-19 and electric vehicle purchase intentions (study 1 and 2), and subjective attribution of wildfire or COVID-19 amplifies the positive relationship between subjective knowledge and carbon tax policy support (study 2). These findings highlight the importance of personal experience and subjective attributions as they relate to individuals’ intentions to perform pro-environmental actions and support policy.