Children can foster climate change concern among their parents

Danielle F. Lawson (), Kathryn T. Stevenson, M. Nils Peterson, Sarah J. Carrier, Renee L. Strnad and Erin Seekamp
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Danielle F. Lawson: North Carolina State University
Kathryn T. Stevenson: North Carolina State University
M. Nils Peterson: North Carolina State University, Turner House
Sarah J. Carrier: North Carolina State University
Renee L. Strnad: North Carolina State University
Erin Seekamp: North Carolina State University

Nature Climate Change, 2019, vol. 9, issue 6, 458-462

Abstract: Abstract The collective action that is required to mitigate and adapt to climate change is extremely difficult to achieve, largely due to socio-ideological biases that perpetuate polarization over climate change1,2. Because climate change perceptions in children seem less susceptible to the influence of worldview or political context3, it may be possible for them to inspire adults towards higher levels of climate concern, and in turn, collective action4. Child-to-parent intergenerational learning—that is, the transfer of knowledge, attitudes or behaviours from children to parents5—may be a promising pathway to overcoming socio-ideological barriers to climate concern5. Here we present an experimental evaluation of an educational intervention designed to build climate change concern among parents indirectly through their middle school-aged children in North Carolina, USA. Parents of children in the treatment group expressed higher levels of climate change concern than parents in the control group. The effects were strongest among male parents and conservative parents, who, consistent with previous research1, displayed the lowest levels of climate concern before the intervention. Daughters appeared to be especially effective in influencing parents. Our results suggest that intergenerational learning may overcome barriers to building climate concern.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41558-019-0463-3

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