Framing climate change and health: New Zealand's online news media

Differential effects of digital media platforms on climate change risk information-sharing intention: A moderated mediation model

This study analyzes the mechanisms through which risk messages about climate change lead to people's risk information-sharing intention, and how digital media platform type serves as a context that moderates those mechanisms. Our analysis is informed by the influence of presumed influence (IPI) model, and we adapt and expand that model in three ways. First, we apply the concept of perceived media reach to the context of digital media platforms, specifically news aggregators and social networking sites. Second, we integrate the two mediators of risk perception and presumed influence. Third, we examine potential moderating roles of digital media platforms in the IPI model. An online survey was conducted among 1000 South Korean adults, and a moderated mediation model (PROCESS Macro Model 59) generated the following results. (1) Perceived media reach was positively related to both mediators-risk perception and presumed influence. (2) By way of those two mediators, perceived reach significantly led to information-sharing intention. (3) Presumed influence, but not risk perception, was significantly related to information-sharing intention. (4) Digital media platforms moderated the relation between perceived reach and risk perception: the role of content-related risk perception was more pronounced in news aggregators, while the role of context-related presumed influence was greater in social networking sites. Theoretical and practical implications for risk communication are discussed.

Some Slice of Climate Anxiety … Is Good: A Cross-Sectional Survey Exploring the Relationship Between College Students Media Exposure and Perceptions About Climate Change

Climate change anxiety among young people of college age has become a prevalent topic, with debate on whether climate change anxiety is maladaptive or can motivate climate change action. Using a cross-sectional survey of 440 college students, the study investigated the relationships between college students' climate anxiety, climate change media exposure, efficacy beliefs, and pro-environmental intentions. The findings revealed among other things, that climate anxiety had a significant curvilinear relationship with pro-environmental intentions with moderate anxiety predicting positive intentions and higher levels of anxiety were associated with negative intentions. Media exposure also positively predicted increased climate anxiety. Implications for climate change mitigation are discussed.

A critical review of the reporting of reflexive thematic analysis in Health Promotion International

Using the concept of methodological congruence-where the different elements of a study 'fit' together-we explore both problematic and good practice in (reflexive) thematic analysis (TA) as reported in Health Promotion International (HPI). Aligning with the importance we place on 'owning your perspectives' we situate this exploration in relation to our understanding of the variation in approaches to TA and qualitative research more broadly. This contextualization is necessary for highlighting why we judge practices to be in/congruent, and to facilitate more knowing congruence in future research. We critically reviewed a 'sample' of 31 papers published in HPI between 2010 and 2023 citing Braun and Clarke as reference for TA. We overview a range of problematic and good features of the use of TA in HPI, before focusing on two domains that seemed to present key challenges: theory and themes. Methodological incongruence can occur when postpositivist values and practices unwittingly creep into ostensibly non-positivist TA; we encourage thoughtfully and what we term 'knowing' consideration of theory, and quality practices and criteria. Methodological incongruence can also occur through mismatched conceptualizations of themes-notably, the use of 'topic summaries' as themes for reflexive TA (and fragmented thematic structures with 'thin' themes). We provide examples from the reviewed papers to demonstrate good practice in researcher reflexivity, articulation of theoretical and methodological frameworks and congruent themes. However, mindful of power dynamics, we only discuss problematic practice in general terms, to protect author anonymity. To facilitate thoughtful, quality TA-of all kinds-we provide eight pointers for researchers (and reviewers) to guide quality practice, and facilitate the use of concepts, procedures and criteria that promote knowing methodological congruence.

Australian young people's perceptions of the commercial determinants of the climate crisis

There is increasing public health focus on how corporate practices impact population health and well-being. While the commercial determinants of the climate crisis pose serious threats to human and planetary health, governments largely seek to balance climate action with economic imperatives. Global stakeholders recognize that young people have important voices in influencing climate responses. However, few studies have investigated young people's perceptions of the commercial determinants of the climate crisis. A qualitatively led online survey of n = 500 young Australians (15-24 years) investigated their understanding of corporate responses to the climate crisis, factors that influenced these responses and strategies to respond. A reflexive approach to thematic analysis was used. Three themes were constructed from the data. First, young people perceived that corporate responses to the climate crisis focussed on soft options and lacked meaningful action. Second, they stated that these responses were largely influenced by economic imperatives rather than planetary health, with policy levers needed to implement environmentally responsible corporate practices. Third, young people perceived that systems needed change to create demand for a cleaner environment, leading to improved practices. Young people have a clear understanding of the commercial determinants of the climate crisis and associated threats to population health. They recognize that corporate practices (and consumer demand) will not change without significant policy and structural change. Public health and health promotion stakeholders should work alongside young people to influence decision-makers to address harmful corporate behaviours.

Communicating Scientific Uncertainty in an Age of COVID-19: An Investigation into the Use of Preprints by Digital Media Outlets

In this article, we investigate the surge in use of COVID-19-related preprints by media outlets. Journalists are a main source of reliable public health information during crises and, until recently, journalists have been reluctant to cover preprints because of the associated scientific uncertainty. Yet, uploads of COVID-19 preprints and their uptake by online media have outstripped that of preprints about any other topic. Using an innovative approach combining altmetrics methods with content analysis, we identified a diversity of outlets covering COVID-19-related preprints during the early months of the pandemic, including specialist medical news outlets, traditional news media outlets, and aggregators. We found a ubiquity of hyperlinks as citations and a multiplicity of framing devices for highlighting the scientific uncertainty associated with COVID-19 preprints. These devices were rarely used consistently (e.g., mentioning that the study was a preprint, unreviewed, preliminary, and/or in need of verification). About half of the stories we analyzed contained framing devices emphasizing uncertainty. Outlets in our sample were much less likely to identify the research they mentioned as preprint research, compared to identifying it as simply "research." This work has significant implications for public health communication within the changing media landscape. While current best practices in public health risk communication promote identifying and promoting trustworthy sources of information, the uptake of preprint research by online media presents new challenges. At the same time, it provides new opportunities for fostering greater awareness of the scientific uncertainty associated with health research findings.

Logos, Ethos, Pathos, Sustainabilitos? About the Role of Media Companies in Reaching Sustainable Development

As producers of economic and cultural goods, media companies are subject to a double responsibility: regarding how they operate and how they represent reality in their products. Thus, their social responsibility is primarily the “brain print” they leave on their audience. Communication of, about, and for sustainability through mass media is therefore essential to create a shared understanding of societal values on sustainability, creating public engagement, and contributing to sustainable development. Accordingly, the present study aims at understanding how media (companies) take their responsibility as key communicators in the public sphere and analyze how they communicate and thus construct the sustainability discourse through their products. For this, sustainability-related content produced and broadcasted by the two largest commercial media companies in Germany (RTL and ProSiebenSat1; n = 50 online articles and n = 89 videos, 601 min in total) was analyzed by qualitative content analysis and rhetoric text analysis to understand what and how media communicate sustainability. Results show that most media sustainability-related content addresses food issues, followed by issues regarding resources and the environment, thus contributing to the achievement of some of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Namely: SDG#2 (zero hunger), #6 (clean water and sanitation), #13 (climate action), #14 (life below water), and #15 (life on land). These issues are primarily communicated logically, appealing to the audience’s reason (logos, 76%), while the ethical appeal ethos (22%) and the emotional pathos (2%) scarcely occur. The analysis also leaves room for discussion regarding the responsibility of media companies in their role as communicators of, about, and for sustainability; about how they fulfill their responsibility in accordance with the SDG Media Compact, and about the opportunities and risks of applying different rhetorical appeals.

Public perceptions of Lyme disease and climate change in southern Manitoba, Canada: making a case for strategic decoupling of climate and health messages

BACKGROUND

Despite scientific evidence that climate change has profound and far reaching implications for public health, translating this knowledge in a manner that supports citizen engagement, applied decision-making, and behavioural change can be challenging. This is especially true for complex vector-borne zoonotic diseases such as Lyme disease, a tick-borne disease which is increasing in range and impact across Canada and internationally in large part due to climate change. This exploratory research aims to better understand public risk perceptions of climate change and Lyme disease in order to increase engagement and motivate behavioural change.

METHODS

A focus group study involving 61 participants was conducted in three communities in the Canadian Prairie province of Manitoba in 2019. Focus groups were segmented by urban, rural, and urban-rural geographies, and between participants with high and low levels of self-reported concern regarding climate change.

RESULTS

Findings indicate a broad range of knowledge and risk perceptions on both climate change and Lyme disease, which seem to reflect the controversy and complexity of both issues in the larger public discourse. Participants in high climate concern groups were found to have greater climate change knowledge, higher perception of risk, and less skepticism than those in low concern groups. Participants outside of the urban centre were found to have more familiarity with ticks, Lyme disease, and preventative behaviours, identifying differential sources of resilience and vulnerability. Risk perceptions of climate change and Lyme disease were found to vary independently rather than correlate, meaning that high climate change risk perception did not necessarily indicate high Lyme disease risk perception and vice versa.

CONCLUSIONS

This research contributes to the growing literature framing climate change as a public health issue, and suggests that in certain cases climate and health messages might be framed in a way that strategically decouples the issue when addressing climate skeptical audiences. A model showing the potential relationship between Lyme disease and climate change perceptions is proposed, and implications for engagement on climate change health impacts are discussed.