Matthew H Goldberg
Biographic Data
| ID | 4257973 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Matthew H Goldberg |
| GIVEN NAMES | Matthew H |
| FAMILY NAME | Goldberg |
| SIGNATURE | GOLDBERG M H |
| AFFILIATIONS | Yale University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1267-7839 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 34 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 67 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 34 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2007 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
The Role of Emotion in Climate Change Communication
Extreme weather events are becoming increasingly frequent and severe worldwide. Emotional messages might be persuasive in communicating this information, but it remains unclear whether message efficacy depends more on emotional content or delivery. In a pre-registered experiment (N = 3,463), participants were randomly assigned to listen to one of seven audio messages: a control message or one of six messages on climate change’s impact on extreme …
Positive Images of Heat Waves Reduce the Effects of Messages About Extreme Heat among U.S. Adults
As climate change intensifies, extreme heat events are becoming more frequent and severe, posing growing risks to human health, ecosystems, and infrastructure. In a large-scale survey experiment (N = 3,960 U.S. adults) we examine how the emotional valence of imagery – negative, neutral, or positive – in social media-based news about heat waves influences worry about heat waves, beliefs about climate change’s role in extreme heat, and willingness …
A megastudy of behavioral interventions to catalyze public, political, and financial climate advocacy
Addressing climate change depends on large-scale system changes, which require public advocacy. Here, we identified and tested 17 expert-crowdsourced theory-informed behavioral interventions designed to promote public, political, and financial advocacy in a large quota-matched sample of US residents (n = 31,324). The most consistently effective intervention emphasized both the collective efficacy and emotional benefits of climate action, increasi…
Predicting the Performance of Facebook Advertisements About Climate Change Using Self-report Data
Social media has become an important medium for climate change communication, where sponsored content can be delivered to specific audiences. However, studying message effects on social media platforms has limitations and therefore scholars often rely on surveys and controlled experiments, which can lack external validity. Here, we use survey methods to predict the real-world performance of advertisements on Facebook. We found that a 10 percentag…
Testing the Durability of Persuasion From Moral Appeals About Renewable Energy
Research shows that opinions rooted in moral justifications may be more stable over time. This suggests that communicators could create more durable persuasion by adding explicit moral claims (i.e., stating that the issue is a matter of right vs. wrong) to persuasive messages. Here, using animated videos about the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy, we conducted a three-stage longitudinal experiment ( N = 4,488) to test whether mess…
Communicating the Links between Climate Change and Heat Waves with the Climate Shift Index
Extreme weather, including heat waves, poses a significant threat to ecosystems and human health. As global temperatures continue to rise, the frequency and severity of heat waves will increase. Because of this, communicating heat-related risks to the public is increasingly important. One commonly used communication tool is the Climate Shift Index (CSI), which establishes how much more likely an extreme weather event, such as a heat wave, has bee…
Climate change messages can promote support for climate action globally
Field interventions for climate change mitigation behaviors
Behavioral change is essential to mitigate climate change. To advance current knowledge, we synthesize research on interventions aiming to promote climate change mitigation behaviors in field settings. In a preregistered second-order meta-analysis, we assess the overall effect of 10 meta-analyses, incorporating a total of 430 primary studies. In addition, we assess subgroup analyses for six types of interventions, five behaviors, and three public…
Emotion in Strategic Environmental Communication Research
Emotion and affect play a central role in persuasion, decision-making, and human behavior. Because of ongoing environmental crises, there is a strong need to better understand how emotions shape selection, attention, processing, and effects of environmental communication. Here, I highlight three main areas that contain challenges and opportunities for building a synergistic relationship between the affective sciences and research on strategic env…
Environmental Literature as Persuasion
Literary works of fiction about climate change are becoming more common and more popular among critics and readers. While much research has indicated the persuasive effectiveness of narrative storytelling in general, empirical research has not yet tested the effects of reading climate fiction. This paper reports results from the first experimental study to test the immediate and delayed impacts of climate fiction on readers’ beliefs and attitudes…
Evaluating the Terms Americans Use to Refer to “Carbon Emissions”
The effectiveness of climate change communication depends in part on how people perceive common terms used to describe key climate concepts. In a mixed methods study (N = 2859), we examined affect, top-of-mind associations, beliefs, policy support, and behavioral intentions elicited by terms communicators colloquially use to refer to the gases responsible for climate change: greenhouse gas emissions, carbon emissions, and carbon pollution. Open-e…
Information about the human causes of global warming influences causal attribution, concern, and policy support related to global warming
Scientists know that human activities, primarily fossil fuel combustion, are causing Earth’s temperature to increase. Yet in 2021, only 60% of the US population understood that human activities are the primary cause of global warming. We experimentally test whether information about the human causes of global warming influences Americans’ beliefs and concerns about global warming and support for climate policies. We find that communicating inform…
Communicating the Scientific Consensus on Climate Change
Prior research has demonstrated that communicating the scientific consensus that human-caused climate change is happening is an effective way to increase public understanding and engagement with the issue. However, less is known about (1) how persuasive this message is to oppositional audiences, (2) how long message effects last over time, and (3) what factors predict whether such effects last. We address these questions in a two-wave longitudina…
Relationships Among Environmental Attitudes, Environmental Efficacy, and Pro-Environmental Behaviors Across and Within 11 Countries
Pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) are crucial to reducing environmental degradations, and much research has focused on two key psychological antecedents: pro-environmental attitudes and efficacy beliefs. Yet, the evidence of their direct and interactive relationships are mixed. Further, few studies investigate how these key relationships vary across different countries and contexts. Using data from a large international survey ( N = 11,000) in 1…
Measuring Americans’ Support for Adapting to ‘Climate Change’ or ‘Extreme Weather’
Climate communicators can use the terms ‘climate change’ or ‘extreme weather’ to describe climate change adaptation strategies. However, the terms might differentially affect individuals’ support for those strategies. We examined Americans’ (N = 1,558) endorsement of climate change adaptation behaviors and policies based on whether they were described using ‘climate change’ or ‘extreme weather.’ Republicans’ endorsement of some adaptation behavio…
Does personal climate change mitigation behavior influence collective behavior? Experimental evidence of no spillover in the United States
A Framework for Understanding the Effects of Strategic Communication Campaigns
Decades of research on strategic communication campaigns has generated myriad insights. However, this valuable knowledge is often fragmented across many fields and topic areas, making it difficult for researchers and practitioners to distill this knowledge and map the key strategic considerations. In this article, we present an overarching framework for understanding the effects of strategic communication campaigns. We define the driving force as…
The Greta Thunberg Effect
Despite Greta Thunberg's popularity, research has yet to investigate her impact on the public's willingness to take collective action on climate change. Using cross‐sectional data from a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults ( N = 1,303), we investigate the “Greta Thunberg Effect, ” or whether exposure to Greta Thunberg predicts collective efficacy and intentions to engage in collective action. We find that those who are more familiar w…
Shifting Republican views on climate change through targeted advertising
Security-Based Differences in Touch Behavior and Its Relational Benefits
Affectionate touch is crucial to the development of attachment security in infancy, yet little is known about how attachment and touch are related in adulthood. For adults high in anxiety, touch provision can maintain proximity, and received touch can signal reassurance of a partner’s affections that relatively anxious people desperately desire. Adults high in avoidance likely view touch as a threat to independence, should be less inclined to pro…
Mask-Wearing Increased After a Government Recommendation
On April 3 2020, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that all Americans wear face masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The announcement came during the fielding of a large, nationally-representative survey (N = 3,933) of Americans’ COVID-19-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors, providing an opportunity to measure the impact of the CDC’s recommendation on public reported mask wearing and buying behavior…
A Meta-Cognitive Approach to Predicting Hurricane Evacuation Behavior
As hurricanes intensify and more people are at risk, there is a clear need to understand the evacuation behavior of coastal residents. Of particular relevance is the role of past experience in evacuation decisions, about which evidence is mixed. In the current study, we use the Meta-Cognitive Model (MCM) to show that expectations of future hurricane evacuation are strongly predicted by the combination of past behavior and confidence in that past …
Validity of energy social research during and after Covid-19
Leveraging Social Science to Generate Lasting Engagement with Climate Change Solutions
Identifying the most important predictors of support for climate policy in the United States
Reducing global warming will require enacting strong climate policies, which is unlikely to happen without public support. While prior research has identified varied predictors of climate change policy support, it is unclear which predictors are strongest for the American electorate as a whole, and which predictors are strongest for Democrats and Republicans. In a nationally representative sample of registered voters ( n = 2063), we use relative …
Does socioeconomic status moderate the political divide on climate change? The roles of education, income, and individualism
Identifying the most important predictors of support for climate policy in the United States
Reducing global warming will require enacting strong climate policies, which is unlikely to happen without public support. While prior research has identified varied predictors of climate change policy support, it is unclear which predictors are strongest for the American electorate as a whole, and which predictors are strongest for Democrats and Republicans. In a nationally representative sample of registered voters ( n = 2063), we use relative …
A Social Identity Approach to Engaging Christians in the Issue of Climate Change
Using two nationally representative surveys (total N = 2,544) and two experiments (total N = 1,620), we investigate a social identity approach to engaging Christians in the issue of climate change. Results show Christian Americans say “protecting God’s creation” is a top reason for wanting to reduce global warming. An exploratory experiment and a preregistered replication tested a “stewardship frame” message with Christian Americans and found sig…
The Experience of Consensus
Research on the gateway belief model indicates that communicating the scientific consensus on global warming acts as a “gateway” to other beliefs and support for action. We test whether a video conveying the scientific consensus on global warming is more effective than a text transcript with the same information. Results show that the video was significantly more effective than the transcript in increasing people’s perception of scientific agreem…
Does personal climate change mitigation behavior influence collective behavior? Experimental evidence of no spillover in the United States
A Framework for Understanding the Effects of Strategic Communication Campaigns
Decades of research on strategic communication campaigns has generated myriad insights. However, this valuable knowledge is often fragmented across many fields and topic areas, making it difficult for researchers and practitioners to distill this knowledge and map the key strategic considerations. In this article, we present an overarching framework for understanding the effects of strategic communication campaigns. We define the driving force as…
The importance of heterogeneity in large-scale replications
In a large-scale replication effort, Klein et al. (2018, https://doi.org/10.1177/2515245918810225 ) investigate the variation in replicability and effect size across many different samples and settings. The authors concluded that, for any given effect being studied, heterogeneity across samples and settings does not explain failures to replicate. In the current commentary, we argue that the heterogeneity observed indeed has implications for repli…
Climate change messages can promote support for climate action globally
Chapter 9 Identification of Hidden Groups in Communications
Discussing global warming leads to greater acceptance of climate science
Climate change is an urgent global issue, with demands for personal, collective, and governmental action. Although a large body of research has investigated the influence of communication on public engagement with climate change, few studies have investigated the role of interpersonal discussion. Here we use panel data with 2 time points to investigate the role of climate conversations in shaping beliefs and feelings about global warming. We find…
Climate Change in the American Mind
iStock/yangphotoClimate change is a major threat to ecosystems and people around the world.1 Risk analysts, including the U.S. Department of Defense, rank climate change as one of the most serious ...
Predictors of PrEP Uptake Among Patients with Equivalent Access
Does socioeconomic status moderate the political divide on climate change? The roles of education, income, and individualism
A Social Identity Approach to Engaging Christians in the Issue of Climate Change
Using two nationally representative surveys (total N = 2,544) and two experiments (total N = 1,620), we investigate a social identity approach to engaging Christians in the issue of climate change. Results show Christian Americans say “protecting God’s creation” is a top reason for wanting to reduce global warming. An exploratory experiment and a preregistered replication tested a “stewardship frame” message with Christian Americans and found sig…
The Experience of Consensus
Research on the gateway belief model indicates that communicating the scientific consensus on global warming acts as a “gateway” to other beliefs and support for action. We test whether a video conveying the scientific consensus on global warming is more effective than a text transcript with the same information. Results show that the video was significantly more effective than the transcript in increasing people’s perception of scientific agreem…
Mask-Wearing Increased After a Government Recommendation
On April 3 2020, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that all Americans wear face masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The announcement came during the fielding of a large, nationally-representative survey (N = 3,933) of Americans’ COVID-19-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors, providing an opportunity to measure the impact of the CDC’s recommendation on public reported mask wearing and buying behavior…
A Meta-Cognitive Approach to Predicting Hurricane Evacuation Behavior
As hurricanes intensify and more people are at risk, there is a clear need to understand the evacuation behavior of coastal residents. Of particular relevance is the role of past experience in evacuation decisions, about which evidence is mixed. In the current study, we use the Meta-Cognitive Model (MCM) to show that expectations of future hurricane evacuation are strongly predicted by the combination of past behavior and confidence in that past …
Validity of energy social research during and after Covid-19
Leveraging Social Science to Generate Lasting Engagement with Climate Change Solutions
Identifying the most important predictors of support for climate policy in the United States
Reducing global warming will require enacting strong climate policies, which is unlikely to happen without public support. While prior research has identified varied predictors of climate change policy support, it is unclear which predictors are strongest for the American electorate as a whole, and which predictors are strongest for Democrats and Republicans. In a nationally representative sample of registered voters ( n = 2063), we use relative …
The importance of heterogeneity in large-scale replications
In a large-scale replication effort, Klein et al. (2018, https://doi.org/10.1177/2515245918810225 ) investigate the variation in replicability and effect size across many different samples and settings. The authors concluded that, for any given effect being studied, heterogeneity across samples and settings does not explain failures to replicate. In the current commentary, we argue that the heterogeneity observed indeed has implications for repli…
Counter‐argument self‐efficacy predicts choice of belief‐defense strategies
Research has identified many strategies people use to defend against belief‐inconsistent information. However, little research has identified factors that predict which defense strategy people will use when more than one is available. Two experiments tested whether people choose to counter‐argue belief‐inconsistent information because they believe arguing will be successful, but resort to weaker defense strategies because they believe arguing wil…
The Greta Thunberg Effect
Despite Greta Thunberg's popularity, research has yet to investigate her impact on the public's willingness to take collective action on climate change. Using cross‐sectional data from a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults ( N = 1,303), we investigate the “Greta Thunberg Effect, ” or whether exposure to Greta Thunberg predicts collective efficacy and intentions to engage in collective action. We find that those who are more familiar w…
Shifting Republican views on climate change through targeted advertising
Security-Based Differences in Touch Behavior and Its Relational Benefits
Affectionate touch is crucial to the development of attachment security in infancy, yet little is known about how attachment and touch are related in adulthood. For adults high in anxiety, touch provision can maintain proximity, and received touch can signal reassurance of a partner’s affections that relatively anxious people desperately desire. Adults high in avoidance likely view touch as a threat to independence, should be less inclined to pro…
Information about the human causes of global warming influences causal attribution, concern, and policy support related to global warming
Scientists know that human activities, primarily fossil fuel combustion, are causing Earth’s temperature to increase. Yet in 2021, only 60% of the US population understood that human activities are the primary cause of global warming. We experimentally test whether information about the human causes of global warming influences Americans’ beliefs and concerns about global warming and support for climate policies. We find that communicating inform…
Communicating the Scientific Consensus on Climate Change
Prior research has demonstrated that communicating the scientific consensus that human-caused climate change is happening is an effective way to increase public understanding and engagement with the issue. However, less is known about (1) how persuasive this message is to oppositional audiences, (2) how long message effects last over time, and (3) what factors predict whether such effects last. We address these questions in a two-wave longitudina…
Relationships Among Environmental Attitudes, Environmental Efficacy, and Pro-Environmental Behaviors Across and Within 11 Countries
Pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) are crucial to reducing environmental degradations, and much research has focused on two key psychological antecedents: pro-environmental attitudes and efficacy beliefs. Yet, the evidence of their direct and interactive relationships are mixed. Further, few studies investigate how these key relationships vary across different countries and contexts. Using data from a large international survey ( N = 11,000) in 1…
Measuring Americans’ Support for Adapting to ‘Climate Change’ or ‘Extreme Weather’
Climate communicators can use the terms ‘climate change’ or ‘extreme weather’ to describe climate change adaptation strategies. However, the terms might differentially affect individuals’ support for those strategies. We examined Americans’ (N = 1,558) endorsement of climate change adaptation behaviors and policies based on whether they were described using ‘climate change’ or ‘extreme weather.’ Republicans’ endorsement of some adaptation behavio…
Does personal climate change mitigation behavior influence collective behavior? Experimental evidence of no spillover in the United States
A Framework for Understanding the Effects of Strategic Communication Campaigns
Decades of research on strategic communication campaigns has generated myriad insights. However, this valuable knowledge is often fragmented across many fields and topic areas, making it difficult for researchers and practitioners to distill this knowledge and map the key strategic considerations. In this article, we present an overarching framework for understanding the effects of strategic communication campaigns. We define the driving force as…
Field interventions for climate change mitigation behaviors
Behavioral change is essential to mitigate climate change. To advance current knowledge, we synthesize research on interventions aiming to promote climate change mitigation behaviors in field settings. In a preregistered second-order meta-analysis, we assess the overall effect of 10 meta-analyses, incorporating a total of 430 primary studies. In addition, we assess subgroup analyses for six types of interventions, five behaviors, and three public…
Emotion in Strategic Environmental Communication Research
Emotion and affect play a central role in persuasion, decision-making, and human behavior. Because of ongoing environmental crises, there is a strong need to better understand how emotions shape selection, attention, processing, and effects of environmental communication. Here, I highlight three main areas that contain challenges and opportunities for building a synergistic relationship between the affective sciences and research on strategic env…
Psychology (25 works) · Climate Change Communication and Perception (23 works) · Environmental Education and Sustainability (20 works) · Climate change (19 works) · Political science (17 works) · Social Psychology (17 works) · Computer Science (9 works) · Economics (9 works) · Ecology (8 works) · Perception (8 works)