Replication Data for: Global Climate Change Survey

The global climate, a shared resource, needs collaborative efforts worldwide. A behavioral science perspective can help to better understand the human factor, which is crucial in addressing climate change. To improve our knowledge about the global willingness to cooperate and act against climate change, a team of researchers comprising Armin Falk, Peter Andre, Teodora Boneva, and Felix Chopra designed and conducted a globally representative survey. The study aimed to assess the potential for successful global climate action by exploring individuals' willingness to contribute to the common good and their perceptions of others' willingness. Drawing from multidisciplinary literature on cooperation, the study focused on four critical behavioral facets: the willingness to incur personal costs, the emergence of social norms, the demand for political action, and the belief that others will act as well (conditional cooperation). Close to 130,000 individual interviews were conducted in 125 countries, with nationally representative samples collectively representing 92% of the global population, 96% of greenhouse gas emissions, and 96% of the world’s GDP. Main Findings The study reveals three main findings. Firstly, global support for climate action is widespread and substantial, with about two-thirds of the global population expressing willingness to contribute 1% of their income. Social norms favoring climate action were nearly universal (86%), and a majority (89%) called for increased political action. Secondly, individuals in more vulnerable countries demonstrated significantly higher willingness to contribute, while richer countries exhibited relatively lower willingness. Thirdly, a perception gap exists globally, with people underestimating the widespread support for climate action in their countries by an average of 26 percentage points. Conclusion The findings have implications for successful global climate action. While the world demonstrates readiness to combat climate change, a significant obstacle lies in the "pluralistic ignorance" that hampers accurate perception of others' attitudes. Effective communication is crucial to correct this perception gap and mobilize collective action, emphasizing that the majority supports climate action and expects governmental commitment.

全球气候，作为一种共有资源，亟需全球范围内的协同努力。从行为科学的角度出发，有助于更深入地理解人类因素，这对于应对气候变化至关重要。为了提升我们对全球范围内合作意愿和对抗气候变化的行动意愿的认知，由Armin Falk、Peter Andre、Teodora Boneva和Felix Chopra组成的研究团队设计并实施了一项具有全球代表性的调查。该研究旨在通过探究个体对公共利益的贡献意愿以及对他人在公共利益贡献意愿上的认知，来评估全球气候行动成功的潜力。该研究借鉴了关于合作的跨学科文献，聚焦于四个关键的行为维度：承担个人成本意愿、社会规范的形成、对政治行动的需求以及他人也将采取行动的信念（条件性合作）。在125个国家进行了近130,000次个体访谈，这些国家样本共同代表全球人口的92%、温室气体排放的96%以及世界GDP的96%。主要发现：该研究发现三个主要发现。首先，全球对气候行动的支持广泛且强烈，大约三分之二的全人类表达了愿意贡献其收入的1%的意愿。支持气候行动的社会规范几乎无处不在（86%），大多数（89%）的人呼吁增加政治行动。其次，在更脆弱的国家中，个体的贡献意愿显著更高，而富裕国家则表现出相对较低的贡献意愿。第三，全球存在认知差距，人们平均低估了自己国家支持气候行动的普遍性26个百分点。结论：这些发现对全球气候行动的成功具有重要意义。尽管世界表现出对抗气候变化的准备，但一个显著的障碍在于“多元无知”现象，它阻碍了对他人态度的准确认知。有效的沟通对于纠正这种认知差距和动员集体行动至关重要，强调大多数人都支持气候行动，并期待政府的承诺。