WHAT DO PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT GLOBAL CLIMATE-CHANGE .1. MENTAL MODELS

A set of exploratory studies and mental model interviews was conducted in order to characterize public understanding of climate change. In g eneral, respondents regarded global warming as both bad and highly lik ely. Many believed that warming has already occurred. They tended to c onfuse stratospheric ozone depletion with the greenhouse effect and we ather with climate. Automobile use, heat and emissions from industrial processes, aerosol spray cans, and pollution in general were frequent ly perceived as primary causes of global warming. Additionally, the '' greenhouse effect'' was often interpreted literally as the cause of a hot and steamy climate. The effects attributed to climate change often included increased skin cancer and changed agricultural yields. The m itigation and control strategies proposed by interviewees typically fo cused on general pollution control, with few specific links to carbon dioxide and energy use. Respondents appeared to be relatively unfamili ar with such regulatory developments as the ban on CFCs for nonessenti al uses. These beliefs must be considered by those designing risk comm unications or presenting climate-related policies to the public.