Public reactions to locally unwanted land-uses: Mixed methods evidence from three petrochemicals plants in China

Abstract

Conflicts caused by Locally Unwanted Land Uses (LULUs) present new challenges for urban harmony. LULUs are land uses that impose externality costs on those living in close proximity and always trigger drastic social reactions. This is particularly evident in energy-related plants, which are usually hit by a series of protests against the project siting. However, there is a lack of research investigating the effectiveness of official response strategies in LULU conflicts. By using situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) which provides a theoretical framework to understand the impact of events on organizational response strategies, this study analyzes the temporal patterns of public reactions and the mechanism of official statements in LULU conflicts. As a mixed methods investigation, this research innovatively combines content analysis, curve fitting, and empirical testing approach to evaluate three controversial petrochemical plants with 175,869 valid messages. The results show that online LULU conflicts have multiple diffusion cycles. Citizens express diverse personal concerns in the early stage, and the negative externality of LULUs is the mainstream topic in the middle stage, while public attention shifts to the “how” question in the late stage, indicating that people are more focused on solutions and public participation. Furthermore, “silence is not golden” when it comes to LULU conflicts, implying that government announcements can alleviate negative emotions. Findings can provide implications for authorities to intervene in LULU conflicts and smoothly build energy-related projects.