Social responses to climate change: Political cultures and social plasticity
Working Group III of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change cautiously observes that {open_quotes}The value of better information about climate change processes and impacts and society`s responses to them is likely to be great.{close_quotes} Global-scale problems involve an infinite number of social complexities, so a fundamental analytic need is a metric to facilitate cross-cultural comparison of sets of attitudes or worldviews relevant to coping with climate change. Enhanced climate change is a salient example of the synergistic character of anthropogenic and natural processes, but the very fact that not everyone sees {open_quotes}anthropogenic{close_quotes} and {open_quotes}natural{close_quotes} as dichotomous, or agrees on the implications of either alternative, indicates the presence of competing worldviews. There is a consensus that a high level of environmental quality is a collective good, so a general failure to provide it needs explaining. Is the problem inherent to collective action or is it a function of the global politico-economic system? The premises of some worldviews lead to doubt that collective action problems can be resolved in a system dominated by sovereign states, and insist that nothing short of radical systemic revision is required. Other premises produce fear of concentrations of power in supranational or international organizations. What elements predispose people and groups to accept or reject one or the other of these views? This research uses cultural theory to explore socioeconomic and political implications of diverse worldviews. Responses of a sample of over 500 people to politically and environmentally relevant statements are classified, scaled and clustered. Implications for social adaptability, or plasticity, are suggested.
- OSTI ID:
- 577310
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-970522-; TRN: 98:000898-0077
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 8. global warming international conference and expo, New York, NY (United States), 25-28 May 1997; Other Information: PBD: 1997; Related Information: Is Part Of 8th Global warming international conference and exposition; PB: 156 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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