The Exogeneity of Ideology in the Fracking Policy Controversy

• In Event: 331 - Section on Environment and Technology Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 08. Politics, Policy, and Environmental Governance (Group A)

Abstract

The U.S. is currently experiencing an unprecedented boom in oil and gas production due in large part to hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) and horizontal drilling yet relatively little is known about public preferences for fracking regulatory policies. In other energy and environmental policy arenas political ideology has been identified as a key predictor of public support. Here I clarify the role of political ideology in fracking policy by arguing that has a direct impact on policy support and an indirect impact via risk/ benefit perceptions and trust in the oil and gas industry. Using a combination of entropy balancing and the KHB mediation technique I show that about half of the impact of political ideology is filtered through these variables. This analysis is one of the first social scientific examinations of public preferences for fracking policy.

Author

• Adam Mayer, Colorado State University