University of Geneva study finds emotions drive climate action

A large-scale meta-analysis conducted by researchers at the University of Geneva suggests that emotional appeals are more effective than scientific facts in encouraging climate action. The study, published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology, analyzed 71 previous studies involving approximately 216,000 participants to evaluate 15 different communication strategies.

The findings indicate that messages evoking emotions—particularly those highlighting the beauty of nature and the human connection to the environment—are the most successful at increasing readiness for action, behavioral changes, and support for climate policy. Moral, ethical, and religious arguments also proved more effective than purely data-driven approaches.

Conversely, messages focusing on individual or collective responsibility, such as emphasizing that success depends on the recipient, were found to be the least effective and may even trigger resistance. Additionally, the researchers noted that visual materials tend to be more impactful than text-only communications.