The Great Climate Change Experiment: Changing Implicit Attitudes Through Creative Arts
Lead Research Organisation:
Edge Hill University
Department Name: Psychology
Abstract
The 'Great Climate Change Experiment' is an interdisciplinary venture using the creative arts (guided by the P.I. with a background in acting/drama), film (guided by McQuillan with an established reputation in film/media) and psychology (guided by Beattie with an international reputation in psychology) to change underlying implicit attitudes to carbon footprint, The applicants have an excellent track record of research in this area with publications in leading international journals, in both science (Nature Climate Change) and the arts and humanities (e.g. Semiotica). Beattie and McGuire's book 'The Psychology of Climate Change' (2018), which identifies cognitive and emotional barriers to climate change mitigation and what is missing in current climate change campaigns was selected by The Bookseller (in conjunction with UCL) as one of the ten 'essential environment reads' in their Academic Book week campaign in March 2020. Their research has consistently shown that implicit attitudes, measured using a computerised task assessing associative connections between high/low carbon footprint and evaluative concepts like 'good' and 'bad' are better predictors of visual attention to images of climate change, visual attention to carbon labels, and sustainable choices than self-reported attitudes. Implicit attitudes to carbon footprint need to change to make a real difference to climate change mitigation. McQuillan is an experienced, award-winning filmmaker and author of a monograph which explores in detail issues in practice-based research and filmmaking in a university context. We will work with 5 secondary schools in Kirkby, Liverpool, with children aged 14 - 18: All Saints Catholic High School, Halewood Academy, Kirkby High School, Saint Edmund Arrowsmith Catholic High School, Prescot School. This in an area of the North West of England marked by particularly high levels of social deprivation and research suggests less interest in climate change. The contact with the schools has already been established through EHU's Faculty of Education. All schools have agreed to take part. We will work with the young people to devise unique programs based on creative arts and popular content that will engage them more fully with key aspects of climate change. The approach utilises the pioneering work of Schultz on emotional connectedness to nature alongside the work on implicit attitudes to impact on emotional connection and commitment to change.
All young people will take a series of tests before they start on the programme (6th September), including measurement of implicit attitudes to carbon footprint (using our specially-designed Carbon Implicit Association Test), assessment of knowledge about sustainability, emotional feelings about climate change etc., We will then work with them on artistic collaborative workshops over 5 weeks; each workshop will be about different aspects of climate change using emotionally-involving creative arts - drama, art and creative writing. We will use 'photovoice' to capture how the young people feel when they explore issues related to climate change - the photos will later be used to interpret themes and narratives, forming a basis for discussion amongst the young people. We will use arts based evaluation including 'performative enquiry' to evaluate the drama based activities. They will produce all of the evaluative and reflexive material. This whole process will be documented in film using the methodologies of practice-based reflection to explore the resistances and contingencies within the path of attitudinal change as well as the contingencies and opportunities it presents to the practice-based researcher. The young people will then repeat the tests to measure change (11th Oct.). A report and the documentary film, will be completed by 8th November. The film will act as a model of what can be done, documenting this process of change. Initial public dissemination between 8th November and 31st December.
All young people will take a series of tests before they start on the programme (6th September), including measurement of implicit attitudes to carbon footprint (using our specially-designed Carbon Implicit Association Test), assessment of knowledge about sustainability, emotional feelings about climate change etc., We will then work with them on artistic collaborative workshops over 5 weeks; each workshop will be about different aspects of climate change using emotionally-involving creative arts - drama, art and creative writing. We will use 'photovoice' to capture how the young people feel when they explore issues related to climate change - the photos will later be used to interpret themes and narratives, forming a basis for discussion amongst the young people. We will use arts based evaluation including 'performative enquiry' to evaluate the drama based activities. They will produce all of the evaluative and reflexive material. This whole process will be documented in film using the methodologies of practice-based reflection to explore the resistances and contingencies within the path of attitudinal change as well as the contingencies and opportunities it presents to the practice-based researcher. The young people will then repeat the tests to measure change (11th Oct.). A report and the documentary film, will be completed by 8th November. The film will act as a model of what can be done, documenting this process of change. Initial public dissemination between 8th November and 31st December.
| Title | The Great Climate Change Experiment |
| Description | The 'Great Climate Change Experiment' documentary follows secondary school aged children as they embark upon a series of creative workshops designed to teach them about climate change. Within each workshop children learn about different aspects of climate change through art, drama, creative writing, song writing etc. We use cutting-edge interdisciplinary research (psychology/creative arts/media/film) to both measure and change underlying implicit attitudes to carbon footprint in teenagers to effect significant and lasting behavioural change. Implicit attitudes are held below the level of conscious awareness and are better predictors of everyday spontaneous behaviours than explicit (self-reported) attitudes. Implicit attitudes predict which products we choose when shopping, whether we leave lights on, whether we choose bottled or tap water etc. Implicit attitudes to carbon footprint are what needs to change to make a real difference to climate change, along with increased knowledge about what to do. And it has been demonstrated that it is possible to change implicit attitudes to carbon footprint using an experimental procedure with highly emotive film content. We have devised a series of creative arts workshops to both impart knowledge about sustainability, but also to emotionally engage the pupils which in turn impact upon these implicit attitudes. The workshops ran over a period of five-weeks in schools in Kirkby, Liverpool. Kirkby is an area of the North West of England marked by particularly high levels of social deprivation. The workshops, interviews with the young people, have been filmed and the footage is currently being made into a 30-minute documentary by an internationally recognised television director/producer. A shorter film was produced to show at some events, but a longer is in the final stages of completion and will be shown at a whole series of evens what we have scheduled in April and May. |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | We believe that the research and the film will have national and international appeal. The short version of the film has already been shown in various venues, and there are numerous screenings scheduled for April and May to experimentally test the effectiveness on a community-based audience with funding from the British Academy to systematically evaluate this. |
| Description | What were the most significant achievements from the award? This award has enabled us to create two documentary films - one short 10-minute film, and one 30-minute documentary film (which is currently being edited). The children are seen engaged on a creative-arts programme about climate change, and through time adapting their values and behaviour to address climate change directly. There are interviews with the children where they express their thoughts and feelings about climate change, as well as the changes they have personally made as a result of the climate change education programme. The children also discuss any observations or changes they have noticed at home amongst their parents and siblings. Once the documentary film is complete, the next stage of the work is to evaluate the effects of the film on community members from the local area. The children in the film will act as role models for the adults who are watching the film. We will measure the effects of this film on the audience members' feelings of self-efficacy and their implicit values about carbon. We have secured locations for the screenings to over 300 members of the local community which will take place in the next two months. Data analysis of the effects the education project had on children's attitudes (both implicit and explicit), their feelings about climate change, their commitment to climate relevant behaviours, and their actual behaviour is still ongoing. But once the analysis is complete, there will be three academic papers resulting from this research, as well as it forming part of a book. |
| Exploitation Route | This project will have major implications for how climate change is taught in schools, as well as how the effectiveness of such programmes are assessed. Much of the education about climate change in schools is only briefly touched upon in subjects such as geography, science, and social studies and the focus is on imparting knowledge through traditional teaching methods, where children learn about the science behind climate change. Yet, much of the psychological literature suggests that knowledge alone is not enough to change behaviour, and we need to change children's emotional connection to the environment in order to influence behaviour. Furthermore, there is a growing body of literature which suggests that creative forms of environmental education (using creative arts e.g. drama, art, creative writing, etc.) engage the emotions of children more effectively than more traditional approaches to learning, and is therefore a more effective method of encouraging pro-environmental behaviour. In addition to this, the effectiveness of such initiatives are assessed primarily through self-reported attitudes of children, self-reported behaviour, as well as assessment of knowledge. However, self-reported attitudes and behaviour do not necessarily correlate with actual behaviour in this area. Indeed, previous research conducted with adults has demonstrated that self-reported attitudes only correlate with self-reported behaviour and not actual behaviour. But there are other measures that seem to be better predictors of behaviour - namely implicit attitudes. Implicit attitudes are held below the level of conscious awareness and research suggests that implicit attitudes are better predictors of everyday habitual behaviours when it comes to sustainability and climate change e.g. consumer habits, transportation, and home energy use etc. Importantly, implicit attitudes seem to be harder to change than explicit attitudes, but in the area of sustainability, it has been recently shown that they can be changed with certain stimuli that are particularly high in emotional content. Therefore, it is implicit attitudes that we need to change when it comes to climate change education - by utilising the creative arts in our teaching approach, and it is implicit attitudes that we need to measure to test the effectiveness of such education programmes. |
| Sectors | Education |
| Description | Roundtable discussion organised by the British Academy |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Contribution to a national consultation/review |
| Description | Shared Understandings of a Sustainable Future |
| Amount | £20,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | SSF\210061 |
| Organisation | The British Academy |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2022 |
| End | 06/2022 |
| Description | SustainNET |
| Organisation | Edge Hill University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | SustainNET (based at Edge Hill University) have provided links to community groups in Liverpool and surrounding areas where we have scheduled viewings of the film. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Since creating the film, we have developed a closer research synergy with research members from a range of other departments that comprise SustainNET. SustainNET is a broad interdisciplinary research network based at Edge Hill University, involving academics from a wide range of disciplines, including social sciences, business, geography, biology, performing arts, psychology, education, sports science, computer science and medicine/health as well as around 40 sustainability focused organisations from multiple sectors from our region. SustainNET has played a major role in providing links with external organisations to host screenings of the 30-minute documentary. The next stage of the work is to evaluate the effects of the film on community members from the local area using a whole series of psychological measures. The aim is to overcome learned helplessness in the community and to promote self-efficacy by using this AHRC funded film about children from that community. It is hoped that the children will act as role models for the adults. The children are seen engaged on a creative-arts programme about climate change, and through time adapting their values and behaviour to address climate change directly. We will measure the effects of this film on the audience members' feelings of self-efficacy and their implicit values about carbon. Through this collaboration we have secured locations including New Church House, Ormskirk Parish Church, Knowsley Feel Good Festival, Southport Eco-Centre, Birchwood Centre, Skelmersdale, Liverpool World Centre/ Toxteth TV, Liverpool Tate, Metal (arts venue in Liverpool) to screen the film and we have already invited over 300 audience members at the various locations. We envisage this number to increase significantly over the coming weeks. These viewings have been scheduled for April and May. |
| Impact | Viewings of the film in the Liverpool community at the following venues: April 2022- New Church House Ormskirk Parish Church Edge Hill University All Saints School Kirkby FACT Arts Centre Liverpool May 2022 - Southport Eco-Centre Birchwood Centre, Skelmersdale Liverpool World Centre/ Toxteth TV Liverpool Tate Metal (arts venue in Liverpool). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Kirkby Art Gallery Launch - 'Children Tackling Climate Change' |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Kirkby Art Galley Launch event 'Children Tackling Climate Change' featured a range of visual and performance art pieces created by school children in Kirkby as part of the AHRC funded project. The artwork highlight the children's views of climate change and featured suggestions as to what parents and politicians need to change to fix the global crisis. The short version of the AHRC film was launched at the event and was played on a loop for visitors to watch over the course of two weeks (the duration that the event was hosted for). Laura McGuire and Geoff Beattie were interviewed at the event where they spoke about the importance of the AHRC funding and the impact that the final 30-minute documentary film will have on the Liverpool community and communities further afield. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | School visit (Liverpool) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Laura McGuire (PI) visited a junior school in Liverpool to deliver a 4-week climate change education workshop activity. Children learned about climate change through art, drama, poetry, song etc. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Talk and workshops with schools from Kirkby |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Schools |
| Results and Impact | Numerous schools attended an exhibition held at St Chad's Church in Kirkby which was held as part of the Knowsley Borough of Culture celebrations. The exhibition saw the launch of the 'Gaia' - a large scale replica of the earth by Luke Jerram and aims to demonstrate the fragility of the planet. But a major part of the event was a series of talks about carbon footprint and climate change and promotion of the AHRC funded film delivered by Laura McGuire. Laura McGuire delivered the talks throughout the day to an audience of school children, school teachers, and council leads from Knowsley. Laura McGuire also delivered workshops and climate change relevant activities with the school children. The AHRC film was discussed and promoted and the feedback was excellent. There were discussions about other viewings of the film to reach a wider audience. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Talk to The Sustainability Leads Eco Network |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This was a talk to Sustainability Leads Eco Network which is a network of primary and secondary school teachers who lead on sustainability in their place of work. Laura McGuire spoke about this research and advised on how to incorporate sustainability in the classroom in a fun and engaging way. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |