Fact or Fiction

Where we daily accept a myriad of natural world phenomena based on scientific principles we are unable to independently verify, our ability to accept climate change often remains subject to a raft of tendentious personal beliefs. We accept that there is a gravitational force because scientists tell us it so, although we cannot see or necessarily understand it. But on climate change, so deeply intertwined with implications for our economic futures, we often turn away from the science, drawing succour instead from conspiracy theories or dubious studies from the outer margins of the scientific community.

Professor Alan Tilbrook has called for an urgent change in terminology (personal communication, December 17, 2019): the term climate change may no longer accurately capture the current emergency that is unfolding, and talking in terms of mere change may well misrepresent the immediacy of the danger. The climate has indeed been changing since the planet first emerged; that part is not new and has provided a resource for climate change deniers to argue that there is nothing unusual going on at present. Terms like climate emergency or climate crisis signal the immediacy of the issue; however. what current terminology of climate change does not emphasise is that it is specifically human activity that is responsible for the current predicament. Anthropogenic climate change or human-induced climate change may thus be a more accurate way to better acknowledge the complex involvement of intrapersonal, interpersonal and contextual factors involved, including attitudes, emotions, cognitions and behaviours that are so imperative to contributing to changes towards proactive climate behaviours and solutions, but also inviting the work of psychologists into the space (Gifford, Kormos, & McIntyre, Reference Gifford, Kormos and McIntyre2011).

While there remains disagreement about the nature of climate change and how best to respond to it, there is virtually unanimous agreement on all the basic climate science facts. The first is that human activity has exacerbated climate change. The second is that the situation is precarious. The third is that humans have more influence on the climate now than at any other time in human history. And the fourth is that human intervention is the only solution to our climate-based problems (McMichael, Reference McMichael2013; McMichael & Lindgren, Reference McMichael and Lindgren2011).

The ways humans think and behave are fundamental to our work as psychologists. Not only do we have valuable tools for studying and supporting modes of thought and behaviour concerning the climate, but the behavioural dimensions virtually demand that we get involved. We have already taken some promising first steps.

The Australian Psychological Society and 43 other psychological associations worldwide have officially recognised the crisis through an international pledge to apply psychological science to combat global climate change and a suite of resources developed by Dr Susie Burke, Professor Ann Sanson, Emerita Professor Judith Van Hoorn, and others (see https://www.psychology.org.au/for-the-public/Psychology-topics/Climate-change-psychology). However, engagement at the institutional level is just the first step. The real work starts when individual psychologists make it a core focus of their work.

What do educational and developmental psychologists have to offer?

Disaster Management and Resiliency

A changing climate means a changing environment. Climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of natural disasters. It has also led to a call for psychologists to become involved in disaster response, planning and prevention (Almazan et al., Reference Almazan, Cruz, Alamri, Alotaibi, Albougami, Gravoso and Bishwajit2018). Coping behaviours and resilience are essential for managing the trauma caused by natural disasters. We are seeing changing weather patterns, more bushfires, longer droughts, land degradation, rising sea levels and changes in air quality (McMichael, Reference McMichael2013). As a result, resource shortages and geographical displacement are occurring — for the first time in our lifetime people are becoming climate refugees. Most people can learn resiliency and coping skills that may better equip them to manage their response to such disasters or to buffer the effects of a traumatic experience (Almazan et al., Reference Almazan, Albougami, Alamri, Colet, Adolfo, Allen and Boyle2019). Educational and developmental psychologists have a role to play in this process.

Coping with a Changing Climate

The difficulties in coping with the quotidian reality of a changing climate have recently come to the fore. One study found the vast majority of young Australians (96%) consider climate change to be a serious issue (Chiw & Ling, Reference Chiw and Ling2019). Young people must learn to cope with their issues, concerns and fears (Frydenberg, Deans, & O’Brien, Reference Frydenberg, Deans and O’Brien2012), many of which are focused on a changing climate. Well-founded concerns include frustration at the torpor of governmental responses, community negligence, differing world views, conflicting opinions, feelings of hopelessness and disempowerment, and fears for the future. In 1996, educational and developmental psychologists Associate Professor Erica Frydenberg and Professor Emeritus Ramon Lewis (Reference Frydenberg and Lewis1996) wrote about adolescent perceptions of global war and the nuclear threat, and the importance of developing coping skills in a world that felt like it might end at the push of a button. More recently, work by Maria Ojala (Reference Ojala2012) has demonstrated the importance of assisting children in developing meaning-focused rather than problem-focused coping strategies in the face of the climate crisis in order to preserve positivity and well-being, and initiate climate action. However, despite the 20-year gap, the concluding remarks of Fydenberg and Lewis (Reference Frydenberg and Lewis1996) still ring true: educators and educational psychologists have an important role to play in assisting young people to explore and develop different forms of constructive coping strategies.

Supporting Youth in the Major Changes Ahead

Educational and developmental psychologists have already played important roles in changing the teaching of climate change in schools. While many young people are aware of climate change, many also misunderstand its underlying mechanisms (Thacker & Sinatra, Reference Thacker and Sinatra2019). The complexities of human-induced climate change mean there is no simple catch-all solution for resolving this problem (Lombardi, Sinatra, & Nussbaum, Reference Lombardi, Sinatra and Nussbaum2013). However, educational psychologists have already contributed widely. These contributions include the development of mental models of climate change using online simulation (Thacker & Sinatra, Reference Thacker and Sinatra2019); examining the role of epistemic beliefs and emotions (Muis et al., Reference Muis, Pekrun, Sinatra, Azevedo, Trevors, Meier and Heddy2015); investigating the role of plausibility judgement in climate change beliefs (Lombardi & Sinatra, Reference Lombardi and Sinatra2012; Lombardi, Seyranian, & Sinatra, Reference Lombardi, Seyranian and Sinatra2014); considering students’ evaluations about climate change (Lombardi, Brandt, Bickel, & Burg, Reference Lombardi, Brandt, Bickel and Burg2016); understanding people’s willingness to take action (Sinatra, Kardash, Taasoobshirazi, & Lombardi, Reference Sinatra, Kardash, Taasoobshirazi and Lombardi2012); and emphasising the importance of professional development for those who work with students (Beck, Sinatra, & Lombardi, Reference Beck, Sinatra and Lombardi2013). Parents and teachers have a responsibility to not only create a dialogue with their children and students about climate change, but also provide space and opportunity to act (Sanson, Hoorne, & Burke, Reference Sanson, Van Hoorn and Burke2019). Studies such as those identified above can guide proactive, productive conversations on adaptive coping, pro-environmental behaviours, and tolerance towards others and their perspectives on climate change.

A Call to Action

Climate change literacy is necessary for developing science-informed social attitudes and behaviours that can respond to the challenges (Lombardi et al., Reference Lombardi, Sinatra and Nussbaum2013). Attitudes towards climate change, public opinion and social values are at the core of psychologists’ work in understanding human behaviour and our complex, unique interactions with the environment. However, climate change transcends all academic disciplines and is therefore fertile ground for psychologists to engage in collaborative and transdisciplinary work. The human-induced climate crisis calls for a human-induced response and psychologists are equipped to examine the social and psychological influences that contribute to climate impacts and to work towards designing appropriate responses (Gifford et al., Reference Gifford, Kormos and McIntyre2011; Swim et al., Reference Swim, Stern, Doherty, Clayton, Reser, Weber and Howard2011). Educational and developmental psychologists not only have a moral responsibility towards supporting youth in this critical time, but are also in important positions to drive change. The contributions that have already been made by educational and developmental psychology have been wide-ranging and important, but there is further work to be done for educational and developmental psychologists in this space. While there is currently incredible work being produced in the field of educational and developmental psychology, I invite future research to respond to the unprecedented challenges before us (Alloway & Carpenter, Reference Alloway and Carpenter2020; Furlonger et al., Reference Furlonger, Chung, Ostojic, Busacca, Moore, Anderson and D’Souza2020; Gindidis et al., 2020; Satici, Reference Satici2020; Slaten et al., Reference Slaten, Ferguson, Hughes and Scalise2020; Spadafora et al., Reference Spadafora, Frijters, Molnar and Volk2020; Zamora et al., Reference Zamora, Vernucci, Del Valle, Introzzi and Richard’s2020). While educational and developmental psychologists are uniquely positioned to help children and young people to cope with stressors and challenges, there is a role for educational and developmental psychologists as a profession to do much more. After all, if we are not passing on an inhabitable planet to our next generation, the good work we do in supporting the psychological and emotional needs is futile.