Who’s Worried About What? Predicting Differential Concerns for Facets of Energy Justice

• In Event: Environmental Sociology Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 14: Energy, Communication, and Public Opinion

Abstract

Previous literature has suggested a three-factor model in which energy justice is conceptualized as encompassing distributional, procedural, and representational concerns, but little empirical work has examined how these facets are distinct in the minds of affected communities. Are procedural and recognitional justice perceived as fully distinct, or does the shared emphasis on whose voices are heard lead the line between the two to blur? Our structural equation model, derived from a nationally representative survey, provides support for a three-factor structure of energy justice concerns, in which procedural justice is distinct, but recognitional and distributional justice are more deeply intertwined. Patterns also emerge around race, ethnicity, and party affiliations that may indicate an increasingly complex relationship with energy justice that is not yet fully accounted for.

Authors

• Thomas Anthony Frost, New Mexico State University

• Daniel Auerbach, University of Wyoming

• Heather Harper, New Mexico State University

• Mackenzie Brooklyn Dybvik, New Mexico State University

• Arielle d'Arge, University of Wyoming

• Hayden Mackenzie, University of Wyoming