The Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change across Time and Countries, 1993-2020

A scientific consensus accepts that global warming is occurring and that human activity notably contributes to climate change. Increasingly, it is recognized that the social sciences need to become deeply engaged in understanding the human dimension of global environmental change and crafting responses to climate change . Moreover, given the global nature of climate change, cross-national data are essential for studying this phenomenon. There are considerable cross-national and inter-regional differences in attitudes towards environmental issues in general and climate change in particular. Also, trend data are vital since both environmental conditions and public assessments of climate change are not static, but dynamic.

This paper examines 1) cross-national differences in environmental concerns in general and climate change in particular and considers regional and structural factors shaping the cross-national variation, 2) changes over time in attitudes towards climate change, and 3) individual-level correlates of concern about climate change. Data from the 1993-2010 International Social Survey Program Environment Studies and plans for the 2020 ISSP are utilized.