Recently a study reported that half of young children in the UK are anxious about the effects of global warming, and often lose sleep because of their concern, according to a survey of 1,150 children between the ages of seven and eleven. The consequences they were most afraid of were poor health, the possible submergence of entire countries and the welfare of animals.
The spokesman for Somerfield, the supermarket that sponsored the survey, spun it this way:
“While many adults may look the other way, this study should show that global warming is not only hurting the children of the future, it’s affecting the welfare of kids now.“By raising awareness amongst today’s young, hopefully we are improving our chances of reaching a solution.”
I’m afraid that I reach an opposite conclusion. By freaking out today’s young about the global cataclysm that may or may not occur, we are making it less, rather than more, likely that they will feel like this is a problem they can help to solve. How can you not feel paralyzed at the idea that the world as you know it will come to an end unless your parents and all the other parents across the world make major changes? A quarter of those surveyed blamed politicians for the problems of global warming — taking the ability to do something about it even further from the kids’ realm of possibility. I remember how it felt as a teen in the 80s, watching movies like The Day After and worrying about what I would do if I ever saw that bright flash of light that presaged a nuclear strike.
As I’ve said before, whether you think global warming is manmade or not, scaring the public will backfire — especially when it’s children, who either have the difficult choice of confronting their parents about their behaviors or feeling powerless. Warnings of disastrous consequences, without a clear, doable solution, are paralyzing. Better to show the small, concrete steps individuals can take to conserve energy and minimize pollutants for more immediate reasons than the specter of an environmental holocaust.
On a smaller scale, Chip and Dan Heath (authors of Made to Stick) wrote on their temporary PowellsBooks.Blog about a campaign by the Greater Buffalo Chapter of the American Red Cross that uses fear tactics to urge people to prepare for potential disasters. Billboards with simulated newspaper headlines like “November 9, 2009 – Terrorist Strike Leaves City in Chaos!” and “October 14, 2008 – Warnings Ignored: Bird flu outbreak hits WNY” provide the link preparewny.org at the bottom.
It’s not until you note the URL and later visit the website (if you ever do) that you see what is actually the key — and I think quite effective — idea behind the campaign: “If you knew for certain that a disaster was going to happen on a given day, you’d do everything possible to prepare for it.” From there you can go on to find out “What can I do?” with specific suggestions for making a plan, building a kit and getting trained. The question is whether the audience will move past the feelings of fear that are raised by the billboard messages and feel empowered enough to find out what to do about it.
This is quite a common approach in social marketing campaigns, showing the dire consequences that will happen if you don’t take action. I’ve written before about how you can use a fear-based approach effectively (and what happens when it’s not done well).
The fear is not just a psychological response, but a physiological one as well. A study of brain scans done while people were watching Superbowl ads showed that when ads evoked a strong response in the amygdala — the area of the brain responsible for processing threat and anxiety — the ads were memorable but had a strong negative emotion associated with them. People are much more likely to take action when positive outcomes are stressed rather than negative ones (see Chapter 5 summary, toward bottom, for more on this).
Fear can definitely be a big motivator, but when it makes more people want to take flight than fight, the “solution” can become the problem itself.
Photo Credit: sshimmel
Technorati Tags: fear, global warming, disaster, social marketing
Nedra helps nonprofits and public agencies create positive change on health and social issues through social marketing and transmedia storytelling strategies at Weinreich Communications since founding the company in 1995. She helps organizations make a difference for the populations they serve by strategically designing programs that draw on state-of-the-art behavior change techniques, digital media approaches and the power of stories. 
“I remember how it felt as a teen in the 80s, watching movies like The Day After and worrying . . .”
Or how I felt as a 10 year old in the late 1950s when there was nuclear atmospheric testing by the US and the Soviets, and LIFE magazine had a cover story on the amount of poisonous strontium-90 radiation in a glass of milk. That was chilling!
The human race has muddled through in the past, and will do so again in the future. I think we’re in the “religious phase” of the GW movement. To get converts, sometimes it pays to appeal to fear — kind of like the stories of hellfire and damnation zealots use.