Dynamics of Communicating Climate
Change Information
Hebba Haddad
Centre for Sport, Leisure and Tourism, Capacity Building Centre Showcase event
8th June 2011
Dynamics of Communicating Climate Change
Information
• Started October 2009
• SLT CBC Cluster themes
– Travel, transport and sustainability
– Environment and Landscape
• Supervision team University of Exeter, School of Psychology
– Dr Anna Rabinovich and Dr Thomas Morton
• Met Office contact points
– Sarah Tempest, Andy Yeatman (Met Office, Communications)
– Dr Debbie Hemming (Met Office Hadley Centre)
PhD Aims
• Managing uncertainty is the critical challenge to climate change
communication:
– Aim to critically examine the role of the informer, information and informed in
the communication of climate change information
• Investigate how scientists and science communicators approach
uncertainty and the process of communication itself
• Investigate how audiences respond to climate change
communications as a function of message content and their own
motivations
• Examine this in the context of sustainable behaviour
Mixed-Methodology
PHASE ONE
Qualitative Interviews
Aim: To get a better
understanding of the role of
scientists and climate science
communicators in process of
(public) communication of
climate science
PHASE TWO
Quantitative surveys
Aim: Pilot and test themes
from Phase One
Two studies amongst publics
Interviews with climate
scientists and climate science
communicators
PHASE THREE
Qualitative? Quantitative?
Aim: Build on previous two
Phases
Questionnaires? Interviews?
Focus groups? Experimental
work?
Indicative findings
Qualitative interviews
• Semi-structured interviews with 14 participants (9 scientists, 5
Communicators)
• Agreement that key role is to inform rather than influence behaviour
change
• Climate scientists and climate science communicators work on
different communication models
– Scientists focus on an ‘informational’ (deficit) model
– Communicators focus on a more ‘relational’ model
• Perceived barriers to communication with publics
– Scientists need to communicate uncertainties and jargon (Comms)
– Audience’s lack of understanding of science (Scientists)
Indicative findings
Experimental study
• 152 Exeter students were presented with a website for scientific
organisation. Varied:
– Uncertainty in climate change predictions (lower versus higher)
– Presentational style (open versus corporate)
• Measured perceptions of the organisation (e.g., trustworthiness);
willingness to engage with the message; behavioural intentions
Indicative findings
Experimental study
• Presentational style influenced perceived trustworthiness
– Open style conveyed higher trust/ honesty/ morality
• Presentational style modified the effects of uncertainty on engagement and
behaviour:
When uncertainty is
high, an open
communication style
facilitates action (and
engagement)
(Preliminary) Implications
• Scientists and communicators approach communication differently:
– Scientists focus on informational aspects
– Communicators focus on relational aspect
• Relational processes shape how audiences respond to informational
content of climate change messages
– i.e. the two interact
• Addressing the barrier of uncertainty may not always involve resolving
uncertainty itself:
– Understanding communication processes and how these shape audience
motivations is key
Thank you for listening
• Research presented here was conducted during an ESRC Studentship
under its Capacity Building Clusters Award (RES-187-24-0002) in
partnership with the Met Office
• For more information about this project and the work of the Centre for
Sport, Leisure and Tourism research, see
www.exeter.ac.uk/slt/ourresearch/communicatingclimatechange
• Hebba Haddad, H.Haddad@exeter.ac.uk