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Public perceptions of climate change: a case study with school teachers and undergraduate students in Brazil
Author(s) -
Fernandino Gerson,
Elliff Carla Isobel,
de Oliveira Sousa João Henrique,
Frutuoso Gabriela Amado,
Gama Guilherme Santiago,
Albuquerque Isabela Santos
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
weather
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.467
H-Index - 40
eISSN - 1477-8696
pISSN - 0043-1656
DOI - 10.1002/wea.3465
Subject(s) - climate change , denial , demographics , subject (documents) , perception , position (finance) , psychology , global warming , scientific consensus , political science , geography , sociology , demography , library science , computer science , neuroscience , ecology , finance , psychoanalysis , economics , biology
The scientific consensus on the subject of climate change has not eliminated the existence of climate change denial. In this study we investigate how two distinct demographics perceive climate change. Questionnaires were employed to assess whether, following lectures on the subject, participants maintained their original position or reconsidered their stance on climate change. Most participants’ beliefs were in accordance with scientific findings. No participant denied that global warming is a reality. After being presented with an up‐to‐date scientific overview of the subject, the majority of participants disagreed that mass media communications regarding climate change constituted a reliable source of information. The demographics evaluated in this study are potential opinion‐makers and it is therefore of paramount importance to evaluate their level of knowledge about such a serious and urgent issue.