Role of dispositions and exposure to information in the context of climate change

The general goal of the project is to examine the role of dispositions and individual characteristics (personality traits, cognitive styles, attitudes) and exposure to (mis)information on attitudes and behaviors relevant in the context of climate change (attitudes about the reality of human-caused climate change, the effects and consequences of climate change, pro-environmental behaviors). Although previous research shows that attitudes and behaviors related to climate change are related to different individual characteristics, there is a need for deeper research, especially through an experimental approach. Therefore, the focus of this project is to investigate how the combination of individual characteristics and exposure to (mis)information shape attitudes and behaviors in the context of climate change, applying an experimental design in two online surveys. With the first research (N1 ≈ 4000), we will examine the effect of exposure to different disinformation related to climate change, taking into account different profiles of participants, on attitudes and behaviors relevant in the context of climate change. In the second study (N2 ≈ 3250), participants will be exposed to different disinformation mitigation techniques to examine their effect, taking into account different participant profiles, on attitudes and behaviors related to climate change. Along with the scientific contribution to the understanding of the effects of misinformation and their mitigation techniques depending on different combinations of individual characteristics, the project will have practical implications for public policy makers in the context of the fight against misinformation. Members of Pilar`s project team: Renata Franc, Tomislav Pavlović, Marina Maglić, Igor Mikloušić, Marija Neralić and Jan-Willem van Prooijen (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam).