A within-country study of biased comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems
Author(s) / Creator(s)
Milfont, Taciano L.
Thomson, Robert
Abstract / Description
The spatial and temporal reach of contemporary environmental problems are unparalleled. Collective efforts to address global environmental problems are required but actions to tackle these problems demand initial recognition of their seriousness. Cross-cultural research has shown a reliable bias in comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems for geographically distant places, with environmental issues perceived to be more severe “there” than “here.” The robustness of this effect may have unwarranted consequences since perceiving environmental problems as being worse elsewhere might lead individuals to not take actions in their locality. We conducted a within-country study to test whether this spatial bias would emerge for samples from all Brazilian states (k = 27, N = 4,265; 85% female; Age M = 24; Age SD = 9.67). Providing further support for a biased comparative judgement, we observed that the severity of environmental problems was judged as worse at the country level than at the state level (mean spatial bias score among Brazilian states = 0.54). Only 2% of the variation in spatial bias was attributable to across-state differences. By replicating cross-cultural findings within a single nation, our findings provide further support for the prevalence and generalizability of biased comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems. We discuss critical future directions for spatial bias research.
Keyword(s)
environmental problems spatial bias within-country study Brazil better-here-than-there effect alignment methodPersistent Identifier
Date of first publication
2020-10-30
Journal title
Social Psychological Bulletin
Volume
15
Issue
3
Article number
Article e3019
Publisher
PsychOpen GOLD
Publication status
publishedVersion
Review status
peerReviewed
Is version of
Citation
Milfont, T. L., & Thomson, R. (2020). A within-country study of biased comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems. Social Psychological Bulletin, 15(3), Article e3019. https://doi.org/10.32872/spb.3019
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Author(s) / Creator(s)Milfont, Taciano L.
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Author(s) / Creator(s)Thomson, Robert
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PsychArchives acquisition timestamp2022-04-14T11:27:29Z
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Made available on2022-04-14T11:27:29Z
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Date of first publication2020-10-30
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Abstract / DescriptionThe spatial and temporal reach of contemporary environmental problems are unparalleled. Collective efforts to address global environmental problems are required but actions to tackle these problems demand initial recognition of their seriousness. Cross-cultural research has shown a reliable bias in comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems for geographically distant places, with environmental issues perceived to be more severe “there” than “here.” The robustness of this effect may have unwarranted consequences since perceiving environmental problems as being worse elsewhere might lead individuals to not take actions in their locality. We conducted a within-country study to test whether this spatial bias would emerge for samples from all Brazilian states (k = 27, N = 4,265; 85% female; Age M = 24; Age SD = 9.67). Providing further support for a biased comparative judgement, we observed that the severity of environmental problems was judged as worse at the country level than at the state level (mean spatial bias score among Brazilian states = 0.54). Only 2% of the variation in spatial bias was attributable to across-state differences. By replicating cross-cultural findings within a single nation, our findings provide further support for the prevalence and generalizability of biased comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems. We discuss critical future directions for spatial bias research.en_US
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Publication statuspublishedVersion
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Review statuspeerReviewed
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CitationMilfont, T. L., & Thomson, R. (2020). A within-country study of biased comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problems. Social Psychological Bulletin, 15(3), Article e3019. https://doi.org/10.32872/spb.3019en_US
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ISSN2569-653X
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Persistent Identifierhttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12034/5854
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Persistent Identifierhttps://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.6458
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Language of contenteng
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PublisherPsychOpen GOLD
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Is version ofhttps://doi.org/10.32872/spb.3019
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Is related tohttps://doi.org/10.23668/psycharchives.4232
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Keyword(s)environmental problemsen_US
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Keyword(s)spatial biasen_US
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Keyword(s)within-country studyen_US
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Keyword(s)Brazilen_US
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Keyword(s)better-here-than-there effecten_US
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Keyword(s)alignment methoden_US
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Dewey Decimal Classification number(s)150
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TitleA within-country study of biased comparative judgements about the severity of environmental problemsen_US
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DRO typearticle
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Article numberArticle e3019
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Issue3
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Journal titleSocial Psychological Bulletin
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Volume15
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Visible tag(s)Version of Recorden_US