Young & Diversified: A Segmented Analysis of Young People’s Profiles related to Climate Change Action
(2023) Living with Climate Change — Location: Bergen, University of Bergen, Norway (8.May.2023)
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- Young people form a heterogeneous group among which the drivers of commitment are very diverse (necessity of an “oriented” cause [1], influence of the family… [2]). Disincentives specific to this age also vary: worry, indignation, pessimism, defeatism, helplessness… [3]. There is a need today to identify the range of drivers and disincentives and how they fluctuate between young profiles. The Young & Diversified project has been conducted since January 2022 among 1000 young Belgian people (15-24 y). The aim of the project was to investigate how they plan their future (job, money, studies…) in the framework of climate change. Some of the research questions were: How do young people from all origins perceive climate change? How do they imagine their future in the context of climate change? When and why do they feel excluded from the climate transition? What guarantees are needed so that young people from different social groups can engage? Finally, how can these ideas be translated into communication towards young people? The relationship between young people’s motivations and values has been investigated through a mixed approach, combining a Likert-based form, open-ended questions and focus groups. Results from our segmented analysis of young enabled to draw up a typology of 7 “personae”, i.e. holistic and ideological social types, which includes: the Neets, the Super Committed, the Sweet Sixteen (15-16 years old), the Anxious, the Optimistic, the Opted-Out and the Aware, without conviction. We will first present our methodology made of several communication strategies (press releases, social media campaigns, incentives, subcontractors…). A combination of a statistical analysis and a young people’s discourse analysis will enable us to answer the research questions. Lastly, we will propose recommendations made by the multidisciplinary panel of experts in order to communicate to, empower and commit to action the 7 personae. [1] Corner, A., Roberts, O., Chiari, S., Völler, S., Mayrhuber, E.S., Mandl, S. & Monson, K. (2015). How Do Young People Engage with Climate Change? The Role of Knowledge, Values, Message Framing, and Trusted Communicators, WIREs Climate Change 6(5) : 523-34. doi: 10.1002/wcc.353 [2] Ojala, M. (2013). Coping with Climate Change among Adolescents : Implications for Subjective Well-Being and Environmental Engagement, Sustainability, 5(5), 2191‑2209. https://doi.org/10.3390/su5052191 [3] Kenis, A. & Mathijs, E. (2012). Beyond individual behaviour change: the role of power, knowledge and strategy in tackling climate change, Environmental Education Research, 18(1) : 45-65. doi: 10.1080/13504622.2011.576315 Keywords: young people, climate change, call to action, commitment, disincentives
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Ducol, L., Cougnon, L.-A., Anciaux, A., & Catellani, A. (2023). Young & Diversified: A Segmented Analysis of Young People’s Profiles related to Climate Change Action. Living with Climate Change, Bergen, University of Bergen, Norway. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/235845