We began by searching titles, abstract, and keywords for community, policy, behavior, households, or organizations.  Relevant articles were filtered for terms related to climate change (e.g., CO2, greenhouse gas, global warming). Relevant articles were further filtered for terms related to experimental research designs. Relevant articles were further filtered for terms related to energy generation, food production or consumption, refrigeration, air conditioning, or heat reduction. Finally, we excluded papers that focused on the physical science basis of climate change. Lab-based studies found in this sector commonly utilize a different unit of analysis to determine cause and effect relations. We excluded papers from subject areas that included some derivation of chemical, physical, material, biochemical, medical, and veterinary science, as well as immunology, pharmacy, nursing, or other forms of healing.

The policies and practices of business, government, and nonprofit organizations have a huge impact on emissions.    Developing increasingly effective methods of influencing organizations to adopt policies and practices that reduce emissions should be a high priority. Our search targeted experimental evaluations that have aimed to change the practices of organizations in the name of GHG reductions. Our search returned just 300 articles and we are in the process of coding these articles. We’ll update this post with our findings as the data come in.

We believe there is an extensive literature on a wide variety of possible policies that may effectively regulate and reduce the production of emissions. Many studies analyze the likely or, in far fewer cases, the actual impact of the policy on GHG emissions. However, there seems to be a dearth of studies testing strategies for getting these policies effectively implemented. For this reason, we decided to systematically search the literature on climate change to see whether our initial impression was accurate. Our initial search returned 1,734 articles and we are in the process of coding these articles. We’ll update this post as the data come in.

Emissions any place on the planet affect the rate of global climate change, thus, it is imperative that every community—worldwide—achieve major reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. To that end, it is vitally important to understand how this can be done, and to put in place policy mechanisms that can promote this goal. In this review, we summarized the extant literature on community-based interventions that target issues related to climate change. Our goal was to identify the most promising strategies so that further research can build on existing evidence by: (1) strengthening the effectiveness of promising strategies; and, (2) scaling up the best strategies so that they are employed more widely. Our search returned 1,429 potential articles. However, just 1% of this pool contained an experimental evaluation of a community intervention. Further, this research was conducted with varying degrees of success and quality. Results are currently be prepared for publication. We’ll link the published manuscript here when it becomes available.

Despite overwhelming evidence of the catastrophic consequences of accelerating climate change, very little effective research is being done on how to bring about widespread changes in people’s behavior to curb greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2019) suggests that, “…If we reduce GHG emissions sharply, consequences for people and their livelihoods will still be challenging, but potentially more manageable…” (p.1).  An exhaustive review of the published literature has shown that only a small portion of the research topically related to climate change included an experimental evaluation of strategies to reduce GHG.These findings call for effective, scalable strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior.We will share the efforts of this Climate Change Task Force for a coalition of behavior science organizations in reviewing the research and identifying resources for further research, funding, and known community interventions, and further present a strategic plan for greatly increasing funding for large-interdisciplinary programs of experimental analysis of strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior.

Based on our sweeping reviews of the published record, we are developing a framework for systematically evaluating methods for producing widespread behavior change. These recommendations for best practice in climate change research are meant to guide researchers in their pursuit of behavioral technology that reduces GHG emissions. A formal strategic plan for experimental evaluations of interventions to reduce GHG emission is being drafted and will be linked here when it becomes available. We are also in the process of cataloging all organizations that conduct and /or fund climate change research in an effort to increase the allocation of funds being distributed to researchers conducting high quality research. If you know of any organizations that conduct or fund research and want to contribute, check out our crowdsourcing page.  This catalogue will be linked here when it becomes available.

This paper provides a review of research on community efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We conducted a systematic search and coding of relevant literature and supplemented our analysis with an analysis of review papers that have been published on the topic. Our investigation has led us to conclude that progress in helping communities to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions would be greatly accelerated if greater use were made of experimental evaluations of emission reduction strategies.

Despite overwhelming evidence of the catastrophic consequences of accelerating climate change (IPCC, 2018), very little effective research is being done on how to bring about widespread changes in people’s behavior. This panel discussion will present a thorough and integrated analysis of existing behavioral science research on climate change. It will begin by contrasting the amount of money being invested in physical science research relevant to climate change with the much smaller amount being invested in behavioral science research, despite the fact that addressing the problem is almost entirely a matter of changing human behavior. A panelist will then review the extent to which research is identifying effective and scalable strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior. We will then describe the kind of experimental research that is most likely to result in scalable change. Finally, we will present a strategic plan for greatly increasing funding for large-interdisciplinary programs of experimental analysis of strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior. It is hoped that this panel discussion will be a first step in the implementation of such a strategic plan.

 The overwhelming evidence of the catastrophic consequences of accelerating climate change (IPCC, 2018) calls for effective research focused on how to bring about widespread changes in people’s behavior. Despite the fact, that addressing the problem of carbon emissions is almost entirely a matter of changing human behavior, the amount of money being invested in physical science research relevant to climate change is in stark contrast to a much smaller amount of money being invested in behavioral science research. This workshop will provide a thorough and integrated analysis of existing behavioral science research on climate change and teach a functional approach to analysis of human behavior and behavior change. Additionally, we will review the extent to which research is identifying effective and scalable strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior. We will then describe the kind of experimental research that is most likely to result in scalable change. Finally, we will share the efforts of a Climate Change Task Force for a coalition of behavior science organizations and present a strategic plan for greatly increasing funding for large-interdisciplinary programs of experimental analysis of strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior. Participants will be invited to join these efforts. 

The third presentation will describe the strategic plan we are following to increase experimental evaluations of strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Our goals include the following:

• Facilitating behavioral science organizations such as ACBS in increasing the scope and influence of behavioral science research on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
• Facilitating an increase in the number of behavioral scientists who are experimentally evaluating strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
• Increasing federal and foundation funding for experimental research on GHG emission reductions.
• The Creation of interdisciplinary research programs in major universities focused on experimentally evaluating strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to influence policy adoption, household and organizational emissions, comprehensive community interventions, in addition to use of social media to influence emission-relevant behavior.

This final presentation will elaborate on our progress towards these goals.

This presentation will summarize what the task force has learned about the state of climate change research by searching the research literature on greenhouse gas emissions. It will describe the searches we did of this literature, looking for studies that experimentally evaluated strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in areas that have the potential for highest impact on emissions. Our reviews document the surprising lack of experimental evaluations of strategies for reducing emissions.  In one analysis, we reviewed 1429 papers whose abstracts suggested that they focused on community interventions.  We found only 15 papers that reported an experimental evaluation of a strategy for affecting emissions in communities. Additionally, our review of experimental evaluations of literature for getting effective policies adopted also indicates that very little experimental research is taking place. We will also provide a brief overview of organizations and communities that have successfully changed their practices to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

A primary aim of behavior scientists and practitioners is to impact socially significant behavior and increase well-being. Reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and impacting human-caused climate change is the single-most important outcome we can strive for.  This presentation will describe the rationale and goals for the creation of the coalition of behavioral science organizations. It will then describe the work of the Climate Change Task Force. The mission of the task force is to accelerate behavioral science research on the reduction of behaviours which result in GHG emissions. Our first goal was to analyze the nature and extent of existing literature in this area. Our second goal has been to publish the results of our analyses. The third and most challenging goal is to increase the amount of behavioral science research that experimentally evaluates interventions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The role of human behavior in climate change is well established -as is the core mission of behavior analysis – to impact behavior of social significance. Despite overwhelming evidence, an exhaustive review of the literature has shown that only a small portion of the published research topically related to climate change included an experimental evaluation of strategies to reduce emissions-producing behavior. Even if, “we reduce GHG emissions…consequences for people and their livelihoods will still be challenging but potentially more manageable…” (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2019 p.1). These findings call for effective, scalable strategies for impacting climate-relevant policy and behavior at all levels of community and organization. The promise of behavior analysis can be realized through unified mobilization of our efforts. This talk will provide overview of a strategic plan for greatly increasing collaborative efforts within and across behavioral science organizations. Actions that ABAI members can take as researchers, practitioners, and citizens will be pinpointed and listeners can identify how they might contribute to these efforts in collaboration with the task force. A subsequent symposium and panels will give additional insight into the efforts of the Climate Change Task Force for a coalition of behavior science organizations.

An extension of the panel on “Coordinating Interdisciplinary Sustainability Research”, this panel is composed of experts in behavior analysis who will share perspectives on coordination and outreach, research institutions and foundations, and collaboration with others to design community-level interventions to curb the effects of greenhouse gases. This panel aims to foster an open dialogue on how the behavioral community can move this work forward through addressing complex questions, sharing new ideas, and collaborative problem-solving. Audience members will have the opportunity to ask questions of the panelists and offer ideas for collaboration and expansion of the work of the task force. We invite participants to lean in to the complex nature of behavioral science work on climate change and explore new relationships and collaborations that build a community of researchers, practitioners, and activists that are committed to the health and long-term survival of our planet and the important role that behavior science plays in making that happen.

This panel will serve as a follow-up to the previous events on “A Strategic Plan for Expanding Behavioral Science Research on Climate Change”. It is the first of a two panel discussion on coordinating efforts of the behavior science community to increase research and community intervention to reduce carbon emissions. This panel includes experts from the fields of prevention science, clinical psychology, environmental education, and behavior analysis.  The panelists will discuss coordinating efforts of individuals with diverse expertise in the development, execution, and data analysis of interdisciplinary sustainability research and make suggestions for immediate and pragmatic actions at the individual, community and societal levels. Audience members will have the opportunity to participate in real-time work to expand and scale up research and application needed in this area. We invite participants to dialogue and identify the opportunities and barriers to doing this work and commit to taking actions to increase the contributions of the behavior analysis community toward mitigating the effects of climate change.

Since 2018, the Coalition of Behavioral Science Organizations Climate Change Task Force (BSC-CCTF) has been reviewing the behavioral research on climate change, as described in the previous paper. In addition to reviewing the literature the task force is working to create resources that will aid in pushing the needle forward on behavior science research related to greenhouse gas emissions and policy change. Through a network of volunteers, the task force’s committees have assembled an evolving collection of research institutions, funding sources, and examples of community interventions addressing the development of policies and strategies to reduce carbon emissions.  The goal of these collections is to establish a database that will help propel the work of the task force forward by identifying potential funding sources, collaborators, and community intervention models that could benefit from experimental evaluation.  This paper will provide audience members with a roadmap of the work thus far and an overview of the research programs, foundations/institutions providing funding, and the community level interventions that have been compiled in this process.

One of the greatest challenges in moving forward the work on behavioral science research on climate change and related community interventions and policy involves coordinating efforts in an efficient and systematic way without losing momentum.  This presentation will provide an overview of the resources and effort required to accomplish the goals of the task force by sharing the model that has been developed and implemented.  This includes recruitment of volunteers to support research endeavors, as well as, committee work related to the development of searchable databases for research institutions, funding agencies, and community interventions that aim to address issues related to greenhouse gas emissions. The BSC-CCTF has made significant progress in the last two years that would not be possible without the collective effort of many. We will share the process for recruiting, training, and retaining volunteers. Finally, next steps for expanding and scaling up this work will be explored.

This paper will present a thorough and integrated analysis of existing behavioral science research on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions. It will begin by contrasting the amount of money being invested in physical science research relevant to climate change with the much smaller amount being invested in behavioral science research, despite the fact that addressing the problem is almost entirely a matter of changing human behavior. This discrepancy in funding that supports behavioral science research translates to a gap in policy solutions based in behavioral science. Additionally, we will provide a review of the extent to which research is identifying effective and scalable strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior. We will then describe the kind of experimental research that is most likely to result in scalable change. Finally, we will present a strategic plan for greatly increasing funding for large-interdisciplinary programs of experimental analysis of strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior.

Since 2018, the Coalition of Behavioral Science Organizations Climate Change Task Force has been reviewing the behavioral research on climate change, as described in the previous paper. Through a network of volunteers, the task force’s committees have assembled an evolving collection of research institutions, funding sources, and examples of community interventions addressing the development of policies and strategies to reduce carbon emissions.  This paper will provide audience members with a roadmap of the work thus far and and an overview of the research programs, foundations/institutions providing funding, and the community level interventions that have been compiled in this process. Lastly, the audience will have the opportunity to identify how they might contribute to these efforts in their own communities, organizations, and in collaboration with the task force.

This paper will present a thorough and integrated analysis of existing behavioral science research on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions. It will begin by contrasting the amount of money being invested in physical science research relevant to climate change with the much smaller amount being invested in behavioral science research, despite the fact that addressing the problem is almost entirely a matter of changing human behavior. Additionally, we will provide a review of the extent to which research is identifying effective and scalable strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior. We will then describe the kind of experimental research that is most likely to result in scalable change. Finally, we will present a strategic plan for greatly increasing funding for large-interdisciplinary programs of experimental analysis of strategies for affecting climate-relevant policy and behavior.

Our preliminary knowledge of the literature in this area indicates that there are many studies showing how individuals and households emissions behavior can be influenced. However, there seems to be very little work on how to scale up what we know to affect entire populations. Our review systematically examines that question. Our search returned 1,891 articles and we are in the process of coding them. We’ll update this post with our findings as the data come in.

Despite hundreds of community efforts to affect greenhouse gas emissions worldwide, accumulation of knowledge about the most effective ways to reduce community emissions is lacking. We searched the world literature on community interventions to affect emissions and found a surprisingly small number that employed experimental evaluations of strategies for affecting emissions. Moreover the results in several cases showed marginal or no impact on the targeted outcomes. We therefore propose to develop and experimentally evaluate a comprehensive community intervention to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a series of three communities.  The intervention will employ well-established principles of community organizing and social influence. The efficacy of individual components of the intervention will be shaped by continuous feedback using interrupted time-series experimental designs.  And the impact of the overall intervention will be evaluated in a multiple baseline design across communities. If you have something to offer, please reach out through out contact page.

We’re in the process of developing data collection forms. Coming Soon.