Visualizing Climate Change: The Interplay of Construal Level, Threat Perception, and Coping Efficacy

This study uses climate change visuals to test to what extent individuals’ threat and efficacy perceptions of climate change interact with their abstract and concrete mind styles to influence their responses to the issue. Findings from online experiments reveal that abstract images intensified the negative effect of threat perceptions on psychological distance as well as the positive effect of vulnerability perception on behavioral intention. Pairing abstract images with emphasis on behaviors’ desirability also promoted intention to act. When viewing abstract images, higher levels of response efficacy raised behavioral intention among people who valued behaviors’ desirability (vs. feasibility).