Changing human behaviour to avert the climate crisis

Dr. Jiaying Zhao (she/her/hers) is an associate professor in the UBC Department of Psychology and the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, and holds the Canada Research Chair in Behavioural Sustainability. In a recent innovation.ca article, she talks about her research, and how she makes use of psychological principles to explain why, despite evidence, "some people continue to refute the existence of climate change and the need to act on it ... and how we can respond."

Article highights include how:

Beliefs can be polarizing: With equipment that includes eye-trackers and virtual reality headsets, she explores participants’ reactions when shown evidence of climate change. 

Taking action leads to happiness: With social psychologist Elizabeth Dunn (a UBC happiness researcher) she developed a workshop aimed at shifting personal behaviours as a means to inspire broader societal change.

There are six types of people: Organizing individuals into groups — from change makers to those who question the reality of climate change itself — highlights the importance of understanding these groups and tailoring interventions to their priorities and understanding.

 

Read the full article

First Nations land acknowledegement

We acknowledge that UBC’s two main campuses are situated within the ancestral and unceded territory of the Musqueam people, and in the traditional, ancestral, unceded territory of the Syilx Okanagan Nation and their peoples.



UBC Crest The official logo of the University of British Columbia. Urgent Message An exclamation mark in a speech bubble. Caret An arrowhead indicating direction. Arrow An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Arrow in Circle An arrow indicating direction. Chats Two speech clouds. Facebook The logo for the Facebook social media service. Information The letter 'i' in a circle. Instagram The logo for the Instagram social media service. External Link An arrow entering a square. Linkedin The logo for the LinkedIn social media service. Location Pin A map location pin. Mail An envelope. Menu Three horizontal lines indicating a menu. Minus A minus sign. Telephone An antique telephone. Plus A plus symbol indicating more or the ability to add. Search A magnifying glass. Twitter The logo for the Twitter social media service. Youtube The logo for the YouTube video sharing service.