Does belief in climate change conspiracy theories predict everyday life pro-environmental behaviors? Testing the longitudinal relationship in China and the U.S.

Abstract

While the harmful effects of climate change have become more observable and tangible, there are still conspiracy theory narratives suggesting that climate change is a hoax and invented to mislead the public. Previous research has shown that belief in or exposure to such conspiracy narratives has negative downstream consequences for addressing climate change, including stronger climate skepticism, weaker climate policy support, and weaker pro-environmental behavioral intention. Yet, the literature is limited in terms of understanding the impact of belief in climate change conspiracy theories on everyday life pro-environmental behaviors longitudinally and outside the U.S. context. The present research thus advances the literature by examining the longitudinal relationship between belief in climate change conspiracy theories and everyday life (i.e., private-sphere) pro-environmental behaviors in mainland China (Study 1: N = 1200; two-waves) and the U.S. (Study 2: N = 1001; five-waves). In both studies, we found consistent evidence that belief in climate change conspiracy theories was related to less engagement in everyday life pro-environmental behaviors concurrently and longitudinally. Our findings suggest that belief in climate change conspiracy theories could have a negative consequence on daily pro-environmental behaviors and highlight the need to understand the impact of such belief beyond the U.S. context.