TY - JOUR
T1 - Polarization within consensus? An audience segmentation model of politically dependent climate attitudes in Denmark
AU - Lind, Andrea Veggerby
AU - Hallsson, Bjørn Gunnar
AU - Morton, Thomas A.
PY - 2023/8
Y1 - 2023/8
N2 - Effectively communicating climate science requires context-dependent understanding of the target audience and the underlying drivers of their attitudes. The current study explored the landscape of public opinions on climate change in Denmark using segmentation analysis, and investigated its political orientation predictors. Using latent class analysis, we identified the AAACID model; 6 distinct groups that represent the salient differences in Danish climate attitudes, namely the Alarmed, Alert, Ambivalent, Cautious, Indifferent and Doubtful. Climate concern and prioritizing climate mitigation agendas when voting were both negatively associated with Right-orientation, hierarchy, and individualism. A cross-cultural comparison, using the Global Warming's Six Americas framework, further revealed substantial differences between Danish and American public attitudes on climate change. We suggest communication strategies suitable for each segment, and conclude that despite the consensus culture and general acceptance of climate science, political orientation still plays an important role in the remaining disagreement on climate issues in Denmark.
AB - Effectively communicating climate science requires context-dependent understanding of the target audience and the underlying drivers of their attitudes. The current study explored the landscape of public opinions on climate change in Denmark using segmentation analysis, and investigated its political orientation predictors. Using latent class analysis, we identified the AAACID model; 6 distinct groups that represent the salient differences in Danish climate attitudes, namely the Alarmed, Alert, Ambivalent, Cautious, Indifferent and Doubtful. Climate concern and prioritizing climate mitigation agendas when voting were both negatively associated with Right-orientation, hierarchy, and individualism. A cross-cultural comparison, using the Global Warming's Six Americas framework, further revealed substantial differences between Danish and American public attitudes on climate change. We suggest communication strategies suitable for each segment, and conclude that despite the consensus culture and general acceptance of climate science, political orientation still plays an important role in the remaining disagreement on climate issues in Denmark.
KW - Audience segmentation
KW - Climate change
KW - Cultural worldviews
KW - Denmark
KW - Political orientation
KW - Public opinion
KW - Science communication
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85163205399&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jenvp.2023.102054
DO - 10.1016/j.jenvp.2023.102054
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85163205399
SN - 0272-4944
VL - 89
JO - Journal of Environmental Psychology
JF - Journal of Environmental Psychology
M1 - 102054
ER -