Poster #64 - Seeing Is Believing...in Biodiversity: Using Images to Approach a Bipartisan Consensus on Environmental Education

• In Event: 21.063 - MTCC Poster Session Three
  In Poster Session: 21.063-5 - Interdisciplinary Environmental Thought in Action: Schooling and Education

Abstract

The debate over environmental education in grades K-12 continues today due to an increasing partisan divide over the threat of climate change. The present study investigates the effect of climate-relevant images on three self-report measures, including valuing of environmental education, as well as one behavioral measure. Results demonstrated that viewing images caused participants to value biodiversity more and donate more often to an environmental non-profit than their counterparts who did not see images. Further, directional evidence suggested that seeing images might cause conservatives to increase valuing of environmental education. These results provide initial support for the use of climate-relevant images to close the partisan gap when it comes to values and actions that support environmental education.

Authors

• Jonathan Cloughesy, University of California - Santa Barbara

• Carly Dolan Robinson, Harvard University

• Christine Calderon Vriesema, University of California - Santa Barbara

• Hunter Gehlbach, University of California - Santa Barbara