How Social Comparison Shapes Our Response to Climate Change: Motivations, Barriers, and the Power of Leading by Example

As we are faced with the acceleration of climate change, which is happening right before our very eyes, every person’s actions are becoming more and more crucial. I’m going to have a look into social comparison and the effects it can have on us as a community and our attitudes towards climate change action. Measures such as reducing energy consumption, conserving finite resources, and making the choice to adopt more sustainable lifestyle choices play such a huge role in shaping a broader societal response to climate change. Yet people are constantly looking around them at others, using them as a benchmark for their own behaviour.  

‘The Social Comparison Theory’ was first brought to us by Leon Festinger (1954), it talks about an individual who is constantly comparing themselves to those around them as part of a self-evaluation. Up to 10% of all our thoughts are influenced by some kind of self-comparison (Festinger, 1954) Environmental psychologists over the years have identified a vast range of social comparison mechanisms that influence our sustainability practices in particular, fueled by peers, and the need for social standards (Gifford, 2011; Goldstein et al., 2008) 

In the context of climate change, people have taken on more environmental actions, such as recycling and trying to use less energy, when they became informed of the actions of others (Schultz, 1999; Schultz et al., 2007). Additionally, being aware of these issues and their causes can heighten an individual’s concern and their intent to act. People are so much more likely to seek knowledge about issues like climate change when it becomes a priority within their social groups. (Schuldt, Eiseman, & Hoffmann, 2020; Poortinga et al., 2019). 

The concept of social comparison can be a motivating way to tackle climate change, but it can also lead to competition rather than cooperation. Reactions to questions such as ‘who is greener?’ can lead to an unsustainable habit developing, resulting in it being more focused around holding a social status rather than the environmental impact itself (Griskevicius et al., 2010).  In a research project published by the NLM, almost all “individuals believed they took more action to mitigate climate change than their peers” (Ulichney, Jarcho, Shipley, Ham & Helion, 2021), a self-favouring inaccuracy. 

Peer driven campaigns have had an immense proven success in Irish communities across the country, altering attitudes in the direction of sustainability. 94% of schools all over Ireland have come together to take part in the ‘Green Schools’ operation! This nationwide initiative encourages students to develop newer, good environmental habits. There has been a 24% increase in recycling and a 12% reduction in water usage in the schools, largely due to introduced social norms and peer reinforcement (Green Schools, 2024) 

Being the person who chooses sustainable actions in their everyday life can inspire others to create a strong foundation for change, no matter how big or small. Action for our climate is in our hands and making an impact is possible and important. Lead by example and help make a resilient, sustainable world!  

Festinger, L., 1954. A theory of social comparison processes. Human relations, 7(2), pp.117-140. 

Gifford, R., 2011. The dragons of inaction: psychological barriers that limit climate change mitigation and adaptation. American psychologist, 66(4), p.290. 

Goldstein, N.J., Cialdini, R.B. and Griskevicius, V., 2008. A room with a viewpoint: Using social norms to motivate environmental conservation in hotels. Journal of consumer Research, 35(3), pp.472-482. 

Griskevicius, V., Tybur, J.M. and Van den Bergh, B., 2010. Going green to be seen: status, reputation, and conspicuous conservation. Journal of personality and social psychology, 98(3), p.392. 

Poortinga, W., Whitmarsh, L., Steg, L., Böhm, G. and Fisher, S., 2019. Climate change perceptions and their individual-level determinants: A cross-European analysis. Global environmental change, 55, pp.25-35. 

Schools: Working together for a sustainable future (no date) Green. Available at: https://greenschoolsireland.org/ (Accessed: 06 November 2024).  

Schuldt, J.P., Eiseman, D.L. and Hoffmann, M.P., 2020. Public concern about climate change impacts on food choices: The interplay of knowledge and politics. Agriculture and Human Values, 37, pp.885-893. 

Schultz, P.W., 1999. Changing behavior with normative feedback interventions: A field experiment on curbside recycling. Basic and applied social psychology, 21(1), pp.25-36. 

Schultz, P.W., Nolan, J.M., Cialdini, R.B., Goldstein, N.J. and Griskevicius, V., 2007. The constructive, destructive, and reconstructive power of social norms. Psychological science, 18(5), pp.429-434. 

Ulichney, V. et al. (2021) Social comparison for concern and action on climate change, racial injustice, and covid-19 [Preprint]. doi:10.31234/osf.io/6j2zq.