Online Engagement with Memes and Comments about Climate Change

Aleksandra Kovacheva, Hillary J. D. Wiener, Ioannis Kareklas and Darrel Muehling
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Aleksandra Kovacheva: Department of Marketing, School of Business, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY), Albany, NY 12222, USA
Hillary J. D. Wiener: Department of Marketing, School of Business, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY), Albany, NY 12222, USA
Ioannis Kareklas: Department of Marketing, School of Business, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY), Albany, NY 12222, USA
Darrel Muehling: Department of Marketing and International Business, Carson College of Business, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164, USA

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 14, 1-19

Abstract: Social media posts, and memes in particular, offer important opportunities for social media users and organizations to disseminate information about climate change. However, as this topic remains controversial, memes often elicit comments that may oppose (rather than support) the existence of climate change. In three studies, we find that the position of the comments influences users’ engagement with the main post: when the user’s and the meme’s positions on climate change align, comments opposing the claim of the meme decrease users’ readiness to “like” the meme. We also examine social media users’ attitudes toward different comment moderating options, including disabling, deleting, hiding, or responding to comments.

Keywords: memes; social media; climate change; online influence; electronic word of mouth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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