Report · Jul 16, 2024
Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs & Attitudes, Spring 2024
By Anthony Leiserowitz, Edward Maibach, Seth Rosenthal, John Kotcher, Emily Goddard, Jennifer Carman, Matthew Ballew, Marija Verner, Teresa Myers, Jennifer Marlon, Sanguk Lee, Matthew Goldberg, Nicholas Badullovich and Kathryn Thier
Filed under: Beliefs & Attitudes, Climate Impacts and Behaviors & Actions
7. How Americans Conceptualize Global Warming
7.1. Americans are most likely to think of global warming as an environmental or scientific issue.
Global warming is a complex challenge with many dimensions. Understanding how people conceptualize the issue is critical to formulating effective communication strategies.
A large majority of Americans think global warming is an environmental issue (77%). More than half think global warming is a scientific (68%), severe weather (65%), agricultural (65%), economic (60%), health (59%), political (58%), and/or humanitarian (55%) issue.
Fewer think global warming is a moral (44%), poverty (33%), social justice (29%), national security (29%), and/or religious (9%) issue.
