Public perception of solar radiation management: the impact of information and evoked affect

Abstract

Different geoengineering strategies have been proposed to fight climate change, and they are increasingly attracting the interest of scholars and policy-makers. However, public perception and acceptance will be crucial for the implementation of these technological approaches, such as solar radiation management (SRM). In the present study, we used an experimental approach to examine factors influencing laypeople’s perception of SRM and how information about SRM shapes people’s evaluation of geoengineering technologies. Participants (N = 250) were randomly assigned to one of three information conditions. The control group did not receive any specific information about SRM but was only informed that technologies existed for fighting climate change. The participants in the experimental groups received a short explanation of SRM, either with or without mentioning possible risks associated with this technological approach. Results indicate that a mere description of the technology already reduces support for technological solutions to fight climate change. This finding poses a serious challenge to researchers interested in convincing the public to accept experiments related to SRM. Analyses of the factors influencing perception and evaluation of geoengineering technologies revealed that, in the control group, the affect associated with climate change exerted a significant impact on the affective–cognitive evaluation of geoengineering technologies. However, this was not the case in the experimental groups. This means, the participants who received information about SRM did not rely on affective responses regarding climate change. Finally, results of mediation analyses showed that providing information resulted in a different affective–cognitive evaluation of geoengineering technologies that, subsequently, influenced people’s assessment of the benefits and risks associated with geoengineering technologies.

Keywords:

• geoengineering
• solar radiation management
• risk perception
• affect heuristic

Notes

1. In the control group, there was a significant negative correlation between affect evoked by climate change and the general affective–cognitive evaluation of geoengineering technologies (r = −.35, p = .001). However, there was no such relationship in the SRM (r = .03, p = .789) and the SRM Risk group (r = .18, p = .110). Tests of statistical difference of the correlation coefficients revealed that the correlation between the affect evoked by climate change and the affective–cognitive evaluation of geoengineering was significantly stronger (i.e. the correlation coefficient was significantly higher) in the control group compared to the SRM group, z = 2.51, p < .05, and the SRM Risk group, z = 3.46, p < .001. No significant difference emerged between the correlation coefficients of the SRM and the SRM Risk group (z = 0.96).