From Persuasion Theory to Climate Action: Insights and Future Directions for Increasing Climate-Friendly Behavior
Lindsay B. Miller
Abstract
Combatting climate change requires motivating individuals to adopt climate-friendly behaviors, whether to make individual lifestyle changes, vote for environmental policy, or accept technological innovations. Efforts to promote such behaviors can be more effective when informed by theoretically and empirically driven insights into human behavior change—an endeavor led by persuasion research. This review explores the intersection of persuasion research and climate-friendly behavior, demonstrating how persuasion theory can be applied to encourage climate action. Key theoretical approaches are examined, including the theory of planned behavior, social norms, narrative-based persuasion, framing, and emotional appeals, along with considerations for their practical applications. Additionally, promising future directions for integrating persuasion research into climate change interventions are highlighted; these include tailoring messages based on moral foundations theory and the transtheoretical model, as well as leveraging artificial intelligence to personalize climate-friendly recommendations. By synthesizing insights across persuasion and environmental research, this review provides valuable guidance for environmental researchers, policymakers, intervention designers, communication strategists, and environmental activists in developing robust and effective strategies to increase climate action at a time when accelerating these behaviors is more urgent than ever.