Perceptions Of Climate Change Research Articles

The Role of Social Capital in Climate Change Adaptation: Small Farmers’ Perspective

Climate change represents a major challenge for businesses and society. Small farmers in emerging economies are most vulnerable to extreme weather events and must adapt their strategies and operations. Adaptive decision-making depends on the risk perception and the availability of resources, which can be a major limitation for the context of small farmers. Our study investigates how farmers perceive climate change risks and decide on climate adaptation. We explore the small farmers` vulnerability, risk perception, and decision-making process with in-depth interviews with small farmers in different network contexts. Our data reveal that small farmers, isolated in terms of communication and support regarding climate adaptation, used social exchanges to learn and adapt. However, as the social network was the primary source of information, knowledge, and experience sharing, the quality of network relationships made a difference. Thus, the importance of social capital to enable climate adaptation.

Epistemic language in news headlines shapes readers’ perceptions of objectivity

How we reason about objectivity-whether an assertion has a ground truth-has implications for belief formation on wide-ranging topics. For example, if someone perceives climate change to be a matter of subjective opinion similar to the best movie genre, they may consider empirical claims about climate change as mere opinion and irrelevant to their beliefs. Here, we investigate whether the language employed by journalists might influence the perceived objectivity of news claims. Specifically, we ask whether factive verb framing (e.g., "Scientists know climate change is happening") increases perceived objectivity compared to nonfactive framing (e.g., "Scientists believe [...]"). Across eight studies (N = 2,785), participants read news headlines about unique, noncontroversial topics (studies 1a-b, 2a-b) or a familiar, controversial topic (climate change; studies 3a-b, 4a-b) and rated the truth and objectivity of the headlines' claims. Across all eight studies, when claims were presented as beliefs (e.g., "Tortoise breeders believe tortoises are becoming more popular pets"), people consistently judged those claims as more subjective than claims presented as knowledge (e.g., "Tortoise breeders know…"), as well as claims presented as unattributed generics (e.g., "Tortoises are becoming more popular pets"). Surprisingly, verb framing had relatively little, inconsistent influence over participants' judgments of the truth of claims. These results demonstrate how, apart from shaping whether we believe a claim is true or false, epistemic language in media can influence whether we believe a claim has an objective answer at all.

CAN CLIMATE CHANGE AFFECT INCOME-GENERATING ACTIVITIES?: EVIDENCE FROM FARMERS IN ENUGU STATE NIGERIA

The need to analyze the changes that the effect of climate change brings on the income-generating activities of farmers in Enugu state necessitated this study. The study examined farmers' socio-economic characteristics, described the perceived climate change effects, analyzed changes in income-generating activities, and evaluated the link between socio-economic factors and income-generating activities. Primary data were collected from 120 respondents using well-structured questionnaires. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson product-moment correlation. The results showed that the majority (73.3%) of the respondents were male farmers. Results of the study also showed that reduction in productivity (89.2%), change in farming pattern (77.5%), and soil degradation (65.0%) were the most perceived effects of climatic change among the respondents. The result also revealed strong negative change in income-generating activities in the areas of goat/sheep rearing (-33.4), fishing (-32.5), rabbit rearing (-15.0), and basket weaving (15.0), while petty trading (+23.4), hair barbing (+18.3) and food vending (+15.8) had strong positive change in the study area. The study revealed that socio-economic characteristics such as marital status, household size, and years of farming experience are correlated with positive income-generating activities. The study recommends that farmers should prioritize positive income-generating activities that correlate with their socio-economic characteristics. The study also recommends the implementation of crop rotation and organic manure as one of the ecological practices for climate change mitigation.

Climate change adaptation strategies among smallholder farmers in Senegal’s semi-arid zone: role of socio-economic factors and institutional supports

In dryland agricultural systems, developing appropriate climate-smart technology (CST) options is important to adapt agriculture to climate change and transition toward sustainability, as well as increasing productivity and incomes. This study examines the impact of socio-economic and institutional support on community responses to climate change and the impact of changes in three selected regions of Senegal (Meouane, Thiel, and Daga Birame), which fall within different rainfall gradients. It captures community perceptions of climate change, compares them to long-term meteorological data, and identifies site-specific response strategies. Communities are randomly selected from a list of communities within the target sites. We used a two-stage stratified sampling method to select sample households. First, purposive sampling was conducted to select at least six (6) villages as a cluster within each rainfall gradient. Likewise, the selection of households in each cluster was based on the main value chains of crops grown in the study area, namely groundnut, millet, black pea, and livestock. A total of 145 households participated in this study. Data from surveys conducted during the 2022 post-harvest season were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logit models. The analysis found that smallholders have a comprehensive understanding of climate indicators, including annual rainfall, shortened crop seasons, and rising temperatures, compared to historical data trends. Additionally, the results highlight how farmers view the negative impacts of seasonal rainfall deficiencies (72%), delayed start of the growing season (88%), frequent dry spells (68%), and longer dry spells (76%), which ultimately lead to decreased grain and fodder yields. The logit model also highlights the importance of socio-economic and institutional factors such as access to credit, extension services, agricultural experience, frequency of interaction with extension workers, and access to government subsidies. These factors play a crucial role in farmers’ decision to adopt CST. Given the specificity of community contexts, these insights have important implications for guiding policymakers and making it easier to reduce climate risk among smallholder farmers.

Motivating factors of farmers’ adaptation behaviors to climate change in China: A meta-analysis

Adapting to climate change is critical to building sustainable and resilient agricultural systems. Understanding farmers' perceptions of climate change has become the key to the effective implementation of climate change adaptation policies. This research draws multidisciplinary attention to how farmers participate in decision-making on adaptation behaviors and provides useful insights for realizing synergies between environmental change and agricultural production. In this work, we conducted a meta-analysis of 63 quantitative studies on Chinese farmers' adaptation to climate change to assess the relationship between motivational factors and adaptation behavior. Our analysis highlights that farmers' perceptions of precipitation changes are often inaccurate; however, other psychological factors, such as perception, experience, and risk attitude, significantly positively impact their adaptation behavior. In addition, different climate regions are the main source of high heterogeneity in inter-study comparisons of climate change perception, and the effect of climate regions may therefore constitute a moderating factor that weakens the positive relationship between climate change perception and adaptive behavior. Furthermore, this study highlights the need to intervene at the household level to enhance farmers' adaptability to climate change, which includes providing support through income diversification, early warning information services, training, assistance, credit, subsidies, and other resources. In the future, research on how perception, experience, and risk interact to affect adaptive behavior should be strengthened.

Shrimp Farmer’s Perceptions and Adaptation Strategies to the Threat of Climate Change in Bangil District, East Java

As one of the main stakeholders in the fishing industry, shrimp farmers are directly affected by climate change that causes changes in seawater temperature, rainfall, and unpredictable weather patterns. Related to the issue, the threat to income may be felt by shrimp farmers. Therefore, in this study, we highlight two objectives as a basis for drawing up this article, namely (1) to understand shrimp farmers’ perceptions of climate change, and (2) to identify factors that influence farmers’ decisions in implementing adaptation strategies. There are two types of analysis that we use, namely descriptive analysis and logit regression analysis. Our findings show that the majority of shrimp farmers consider climate change manifested in the form of changes in rainfall patterns (96.21%), increases in pond water temperatures (98.71%), decreases in yield production (95.41%), and increases in shrimp pests and diseases (96.23%). The results of our logit regression analysis show that the decision-making factors of shrimp farmers are significantly influenced. These results indicate that the implementation of adaptation strategies in the fisheries sector can generate significant growth and reduce the risks posed by climate change. As a result, the government needs to encourage the development of more suitable climate change adaptation strategies for small-scale shrimp farmers in Indonesia.

Public perceptions of climate change during the COVID-19 crisis: Evidence from social media data in China

An emerging body of literature highlights the impact of crises and disasters in shaping climate change attitudes, yet the findings have been equivocal. The outbreak and spread of COVID-19 have posed great threats worldwide, but it also provides opportunities to explore the impact of crises in natural settings. Based on social media data in the early stage of the emergence of the pandemic in China, this study addresses the controversy and examines the extent to which the outburst of COVID-19 influences climate change attitudes. Frequency and popularity analyses of the posts suggest that public attention shifted toward the devastating impacts of the epidemic, whereas sentiment analyses indicate that the posts contain a more positive sentiment as people are more proactive in taking action to address climate change after the coronavirus outbreak. This study provides us with a more nuanced understanding of the underlying influencing factors of climate change attitudes and evaluates the implications of the pandemic and other uncertain events on environmental concerns.

Understanding Local Perceptions of Impacts of Climate Change Among Small-Scale Sama-Bajau Fishers and Their Patrons in Wakatobi National Park, Indonesia

Understanding similarities and differences in perceptions of climate change impacts aids in the development of co-adaptation strategies. While there has been extensive research on perceptions of climate change impacts among small-scale fishing communities, studies focusing on the perspectives of maritime tribes, fishers, and their respective patrons in small islands are notably scarce. The current study compares the perceptions of climate change impacts by Sama-Bajau fishers and their patrons in Wangi-Wangi Island of Wakatobi National Park. Data was collected through in-depth interviews, casual conversations, field observation, and secondary data analysis between August 2021 and February 2022. Findings revealed that although fishers and their patrons similarly perceived some impacts, they perceived others differently because of distinct sources of information and experience. Fishers, middlemen and employees of fishing companies perceived the impacts through personal observation and information from other fishers while government and non- governmental officers relied on scientific reports and personal experience in addition to the information given by the fishers. Future research should explore context-specific coping, adaptation and transformation measures based on local perceptions and diverse patron-client relationships to inform policy development.

Adapting to Climate Change in Vulnerable Areas: Farmers’ Perceptions in the Punjab, Pakistan

Climate variability and change pose a substantial threat to agricultural practices and livelihoods in the Punjab province of Pakistan, a region of agricultural significance in South Asia. In particular, farmers residing in vulnerable parts of Punjab will be affected by a combination of high exposure to the impacts of climate events, the innate sensitivity of agricultural systems, and constraints on farmers’ adaptive capacity. The situation requires closer engagement with vulnerable farming communities of Punjab to assess their vulnerability and build their capacity for adaptation actions. Through qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with farmers from four highly vulnerable districts of Punjab (Rajanpur, Muzaffargarh, Chakwal, Dera Ghazi Khan), we explored farmers’ perceptions of climate change, their adaptation strategies, and enablers and limitations on adaptation options imposed by the enabling environment. We found issues around water governance, knowledge exchange, and market arrangements for crops as key limitations to farmers’ local adaptation action in highly resource-constrained settings. Moreover, the results indicated the need to address equity issues for small-scale compared to large-scale farmers. Farmers valued their experience-based local knowledge and peer-to-peer sharing networks as pivotal resources in pursuit of their practice-based learning. The research findings highlighted the necessity of directed institutional assistance to empower adaptation by vulnerable small-scale farmers. This study emphasizes the critical significance of the enabling environment that facilitates vulnerable farmers to implement adaptation strategies, thereby promoting the adoption of Vulnerable-Smart Agriculture.

Exploring smallholder farmers’ perceptions of climate change and its adaptation options in the Dire Dawa administration zone, Eastern Ethiopia

Exploring smallholder farmers’ perceptions of climate change and its adaptation options in the Dire Dawa administration zone, Eastern Ethiopia

Climate change through the eyes of recreational hunters: impacts on wildlife and adaptive responses

ABSTRACT Climate change is increasingly recognized as a serious threat to wildlife globally. Environmentally unsustainable human activities do not only damage wildlife resources but also contribute to exacerbating the impacts of climate change. The objective of this research is to assess how local hunters in the Dana Biosphere Reserve perceive climate change and its impacts on wildlife resources, and to understand their adaptive responses to these impacts. Through semi-structured interviews with local hunters, it was revealed that the area faces multiple climate threats, including reduced rainfall, shifting rainy seasons, and more frequent and intense droughts. Climate change has resulted in several problems, including a decline in the rate of reproduction of many wild species, changes in geographical distribution, and substantial declines in wildlife abundance. Consequently, most hunters have changed their hunting practices, avoided overhunting, and engaged in alternative outdoor activities.

Linking perceptions of climate change impacts with adaptation: Insights from landowners in Southern Chile

Adaptation is recognized as the outcome of a complex mix of individual and institutional factors that shape how society responds to climate change. Adaptation results from a joint decision-making process, where actors simultaneously evaluate the risks associated with climate change into whether or not they should adapt. We develop a model of this joint decision-making process that incorporates risk tolerance to identify what factors influence landowners’ perception and adaptation to climate change in southern Chile. The results are based on 86 in-person interviews, involving the collection of socioeconomic data, risk aversion tests, and semi-structured interviews. We found that while most landowners perceived climate change impacts as a threat, only 60 % had taken any action. Two underlying factors applied to both perception and adaptation: risk tolerance and off-farm incomes. Higher risk tolerance and greater reliance on off-farm incomes reduced people's perception and adaptation to climate change. The presence of climate change-induced impacts positively influenced the implementation of adaptation, while schooling and gender were relevant only in shaping climate change perceptions. Following these results, we suggest developing programs to communicate the real magnitude of climate risks so that landowners better understand the opportunity costs of climate change adaptation, and in that way, avoid/anticipate the need to see impacts on the land in order to act. Along these lines, further investigation of the role off-farm incomes play in adaptation is warranted, where it is simultaneously both a factor in the adaptation process but can also be an adaptation action as well.

Stated purchase of bio-based products: Personal and regional factors in Germany

A successful transformation to an economy less dependent on fossil resources requires consumers’ willingness to buy bio-based products. Therefore, it is essential to understand which factors determine their preferences. Using a large-scale online survey representative of the German population at the sub-national level, this study investigates to what extent personal and regional macro-economic factors are associated with consumers’ mean stated purchase for various bio-based products. Results of the regression analysis reveal that personal factors, such as economic preferences, universal moral values, and individual factors related to climate change perception, climate policy support, and civic engagement to fight climate change, are statistically significantly associated with consumers’ stated bio-based purchases. The influence of regional characteristics (e.g., GDP, employment sectors, and climate change) is weaker and less consistent. The study draws a holistic picture of the factors that determine consumers’ preferences regarding the purchase of bio-based products. Additionally, the study contributes to theory, as it is the first one applying comprehensive measured economic preferences and moral foundations in the context of bio-based purchases. The findings imply the need for target-specific approaches to also reach those less engaged and unlikely to be convinced by general communication measures.

Climate Change Curricula in Family Medicine Residency Programs: Program Directors' Perspectives From a CERA Survey.

Climate change is a major threat to the health of people worldwide. The health care system deals with the immediate health-related effects of climate change and, at the same time, is a major emitter of greenhouse gas. This study aimed to investigate (a) the awareness and perception of climate change among family medicine residency program directors, and (b) the state of climate change education in family medicine residency programs. The Council of Academic Family Medicine Educational Research Alliance (CERA) conducted a cross-sectional survey of family medicine program directors in the United States in April 2023. We analyzed anonymous data using descriptive and bivariate statistics. We analyzed responses from 284 family medicine residency program directors (response rate 41.1%). Of these, 56.8% indicated not having any lectures/seminars dedicated to climate change and no plans to introduce such curricula, with considerably higher rates in East South Central United States (92.8%). A majority considered principles of climate change, carbon emissions emitted by the health care system, and discussion of climate change with patients of lesser importance for residency program education. While climate change is an emerging topic affecting health and the provision of health care worldwide, our study suggests that many family medicine residency programs do not teach about it. Family medicine trainees may not always receive sufficient education about the risks posed to their patients by climate change, which could lead to them having limited knowledge and skills when discussing this topic with their patients in the future.

Trait emotional intelligence and ecological outcomes: the role of connectedness to nature

BackgroundGlobal climate change is recognized as a major and irreversible challenge for humanity, requiring people’s responsible and sustainable behaviors toward the environment. So far, the literature has widely investigated the role of cognitive determinants of ecological outcomes (e.g., pro-environmental behaviors and climate change perception), while less attention has been devoted to emotional processes, such as trait emotional intelligence (TEI). The current double study investigates whether TEI is directly and indirectly associated with climate change perception (CCP, Study 1) and pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs, Study 2) among young adults. Furthermore, the mediating role of connectedness to nature (CN), both as cognitive and emotional factors, was also analyzed. We hypothesized that CN (i.e., cognitive mediator) would positively mediate the relationship between TEI and CCP (H1), and Love and Care for Nature (LCN, i.e., emotional mediator) would positively mediate the relationship between TEI and PEBs (H2).MethodsThe study involved 342 young adults (F = 60.7%; age 19–40; Mage=22.99; SD = 2.66) in Study 1 and 365 young adults (F = 71.2%; age 17–35; Mage=22.2; SD = 3.98) in Study 2. Data were collected through an online tool shared by the snowball method. We administered the following self-reports: Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire- Short Form (TEIQue- SF), Global Climate Change (GCC), and Connectedness to Nature Scale (CNS) (Study 1); Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire- Short Form (TEIQue-SF), General Environmental Behaviors Scale (GEB), and Love and Care for Nature (LCN) (Study 2).ResultsFindings from Study 1 showed that higher TEI levels enhance CN (i.e., cognitive mediator), positively influencing CCP (estimate = 0.14; 95% CI = 0.07 to 0.23). Findings from Study 2 showed that higher TEI levels are associated with higher LCN levels (i.e., emotional mediator), influencing people’s engagement in PEBs (estimate = 0.7; 95% CI = 0.03 to 0.11).ConclusionIt is crucial to design environmental education programs that promote greater emotional intelligence ability and encourage individuals’ involvement in ecological outcomes.

Eco-Anxiety and Trust in Science in Spain: Two Paths to Connect Climate Change Perceptions and General Willingness for Environmental Behavior

This article aims to better understand the mechanisms that connect climate change perceptions and general willingness to engage in pro-environmental behavior using Spanish cross-sectional data (N = 403) that included 102 members of environmental organizations. To do this, we first developed and validated the General Willingness for Environmental Behavior Scale (GWEBS), which includes the classical approach of voluntarily doing new actions but also actions implying not doing things (degrowth) and actions forced by social constraints. The exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis showed a good fit for the one-factor structure, which had adequate validity based on their relationship with other variables. Additionally, the GWEBS distinguished between women and men, left- and right-oriented people, and people who belonged to pro-environmental groups and people who did not. In the second place, we tested the parallel mediator role of eco-anxiety and trust in science in the relationship between climate change perceptions and the GWEBS. The results showed that eco-anxiety fully mediated and trust in science partially mediated such a relationship, making them crucial in terms of mobilizing the intention to act according to perceptions. This study contributes to understanding the psychological mechanisms that eventually drive pro-environmental behaviors and provides a clear direction for future research.

Horticultural Farmer's Perceptions and Adaptations to Climate Change in East Java, Indonesia

The agricultural sector highly vulnerable to the risks and impacts of global climate change. Horticultural farmers in East Java have experienced climate change, which is marked by a decrease in the level of productivity produced in recent years. This study aims to determine how farmers' perceptions of climate change and adaptation strategies are carried out. Data were collected through direct survey to horticultural farmers in Malang and Kediri Regencies, East Java. Data analysis was carried out descriptively, by describing the data that had been collected regarding the perception and adaptation of farmers. The results of the study shows that farmers have a high perception of climate change. Farmers' strategies in dealing with climate change include the adaptation by changing cropping patterns, changing plant varieties, changing plant types, changing fertilizer inputs, doing irrigation, and increasing knowledge and skills about agriculture.

Sorghum farmers’ perceptions of climate change, its effects, temperature and precipitation trends, and determinants of adaptation strategies in the central plateau zone of Rwanda

Sorghum farmers’ perceptions of climate change, its effects, temperature and precipitation trends, and determinants of adaptation strategies in the central plateau zone of Rwanda

Socioeconomic Impacts of Climate Mitigation Actions in Greece: Quantitative Assessment and Public Perception

Appropriately designed and implemented climate mitigation actions have multiple co-benefits (yet some trade-offs cannot be excluded) that result in substantial social and economic value beyond their direct impact on reducing energy consumption and GHG emissions. Despite their wider acknowledgement by the research community, decision makers and the public have incomplete information on these multiple effects. This paper has a twofold objective: First, through analytical bottom-up approaches, it assesses, in quantitative terms, the macroeconomic effects and the public health benefits attributed to a variety of mitigation actions under consideration in the context of the Greek Energy and Climate Plan. Second, it investigates, through a social survey, how citizens perceive climate change and value these multiple impacts of mitigation actions, and to what extent they are willing to pay for them and support the adoption of policy measures aiming at the green transition of the Greek economy. We show that mitigation actions bring about significant health benefits, particularly in cities, and generate significant positive macroeconomic effects, particularly if mitigation actions focus on the decarbonization of the building sector and on the exploitation of local renewable sources. We also argue that most people do not realize that climate mitigation actions can have wider benefits for society, such as tackling energy poverty, improving public health, and creating new jobs. Unwillingness to pay tends to be the prominent attitude. People who are more reluctant to cover a part of the cost of environmental protection are less likely to perceive that climate change is one of the main challenges at global and national level and support the adoption of climate mitigation policies. In this context, the national strategy for climate change should focus on effectively informing and engaging the public in climate mitigation strategies, strengthening the public trust in government institutions, promoting mutually acceptable solutions with the local communities, and providing incentives for changing citizens’ behavior towards climate-related actions.

Discrepancies in academic perceptions of climate change and implications for climate change education

Climate change is arguably the most severe threat faced by humanity today. In an attempt to understand how humanity can manage this phenomenon for planetary health, it is fundamental to have an understanding of what it is. This aligns with a critical gap in the extant literature, that is, how different perceptions of climate change among facilitators of learning (in this case, academics) can enable the establishment of a framework of critical consciousness that could boost climate change education and contribute to climate change management. To this end, the study that underpins this paper set out to capture the perceptions of climate change among a selection of academics at a local university in Cameroon. Following a comprehensive analysis of the data, different views on the subject emerged, aligning with scientific, observational, and cultural definitions. Drawing on theoretical insights into critical consciousness, the findings of this study have wider implications for climate change education at universities. A framework is suggested to support educators as they foster critical thinking among learners, as this can facilitate their ability and the wider community to make informed decisions on mitigation and adaptation strategies in light of climate change and the threats it carries.