A Review of Global Climate Change Views: Highlighting Undone Science in the Survey Research Data Landscape

• In Event: Environmental Sociology Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 3: Science, Knowledge, and Expertise

Abstract

Decades of scientific research identify climate change as one of the most consequential environmental challenges facing populations worldwide. Public opinion, however, does not consistently align with scientific assessments, and cross-national variation in climate change views remains insufficiently understood. This paper reviews the landscape of international comparative public opinion data on climate change, focusing on the scope, content, and comparability of existing survey research across countries and over time. Drawing on the concept of undone science, we examine major publicly available survey efforts, including the European Social Survey, the International Social Survey Programme, the World Values Survey and European Values Survey, and the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Our review assesses variation in question wording, geographic coverage, and temporal depth, and highlights trade-offs between breadth and analytical specificity across data sources. Illustrative comparisons demonstrate that climate change opinion measures do not map cleanly onto national-level indicators such as economic development or greenhouse gas emissions, complicating cross-national inference. We argue that this fragmented data landscape constrains sociological understanding of global climate change opinions. The paper concludes by identifying priorities for future research, including greater coordination of survey instruments, expanded geographic coverage, and improved alignment with policy-relevant measures.

Authors

• Sandra T. Marquart-Pyatt, Michigan State University

• Frederic Traylor, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

• Markus Hadler, University of Graz (Austria)

• Steven R. Brechin, Rutgers University-New Brunswick