Articles tagged with Social Change
A new IIASA study examines how collective behavior patterns emerge from personal, social, and environmental factors. The research highlights the importance of infrastructure in shaping sustainable behaviors, such as cycling, and demonstrates that even minor changes can have significant effects on adoption rates.
The study identifies six social tipping interventions that can trigger rapid change leading to decarbonization by 2050. These interventions include building carbon-neutral cities, divesting from fossil fuels, and increasing climate change education.
A recent study found that climate change NGOs from rich countries in the global north and Oceania are dominating the online conversation on Twitter, leaving those in developing nations at risk of being left out. The research highlights a stark divide in who is leading the international conversation on climate change among NGOs.
An independent group of international experts concludes that transformative action is needed to address the unprecedented impact of human activities on life on Earth. The study highlights the need for a system-wide reorganization across technological, economic, and social factors to achieve sustainability.
Research finds that community reactions to extreme weather depend on political leanings and resources before the event. Discussion about climate change is more likely in Democratic-leaning communities or those with highly educated residents.
A new study reveals that institutional failure, poverty, and social structures hinder women's ability to adapt to climate variability and change. Effective adaptation requires insights into what builds the adaptive capacity of women and men in specific contexts.
The study found Samoan villagers have developed a pragmatic and positive approach to impending climate changes, diversifying food and water sources, being geographically mobile, and strengthening social networks.
Researchers found that reflecting on past sacrifices made by others for future generations can increase a sense of moral obligation to protect the environment. However, this approach has limited impact in increasing pro-environmental attitudes or motivations, and may even evoke feelings of unworthiness.
A recent study analyzed climate change impacts on grain price anomalies in the NCP during 1736-1850. Grain prices increased significantly with climatic transition, and were negatively correlated with precipitation levels.
The article discusses how hurricanes Irma and Maria's destruction in Puerto Rico exposed the country's critical social and environmental situation. Colonialism and neoliberal policies are identified as primary contributors to the crisis, causing poverty, inequality, and inadequate social services.
Researchers at Michigan State University have found that scents emitted by songbirds are produced by certain bacteria in preen glands, which identify a bird to other birds. Altering these bacteria can disrupt the bird's ability to communicate and find a mate, highlighting the importance of maintaining a balanced microbiome.
Research on rhesus macaques reveals that past social status has a lasting impact on gene expression, with low-ranking females showing signs of 'molecular memory' even after improving their social standing. The study sheds light on how stressful experiences can shape long-term health outcomes.
A University of Houston study found that hope increases during cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for anxiety disorders, leading to greater recovery rates. Moderate-to-large increases in hope were consistent across different CBT protocols and anxiety disorders.
Repeated disasters and environmental changes are rapidly eroding the land in Southeastern Louisiana, affecting the tribe's ability to sustain its culture, health, and livelihoods. Tribe members express a deep sense of grief about the lost land and lack of agency in decisions impacting them.
Researchers found that telomere length changes are associated with structural changes in the brain, including thickening or thinning of the cerebral cortex. This study suggests that short-term changes in telomere length may reflect general fluctuations in health and aging status, but long-term effects remain unclear.
Researchers analyzed DNA samples from over 17,000 individuals and found that people with specific chromosomal changes tended to live in more deprived areas. The study suggests that these genetic changes may have cumulative effects on socioeconomic status even in the absence of a medical diagnosis.
Researchers at the University of Queensland have found that human-induced landcover change was globally extensive by 2000BC, four millennia ago. The study used crowdsourcing-from-experts approach to gather archaeological data and found long-term cumulative changes caused by early food producers.
The article proposes six major transformations to achieve SDGs, focusing on education, gender, energy decarbonization, sustainable food, digital revolution, and others. These transformations require deep, deliberate changes in resource use, infrastructure, institutions, technologies, and social relations.
Researchers developed a scientific model predicting public opinion changes on moral issues by analyzing the connection between moral positions and arguments. The model shows that opinions supported by fairness and harm arguments gain ground over time, while classical grounds like loyalty or authority lose support.
Traumatized individuals exhibit altered brain activity in response to touch stimuli, leading to a greater social distance towards strangers. The study suggests potential therapeutic avenues for retraining stimulus processing.
A new study from the University of Kansas shows that media coverage of climate change varies greatly by nation, with richer countries framing it as a political issue and poorer countries presenting it as an international concern. The researchers analyzed over 37,000 articles and found that a nation's gross domestic product per capita i...
Studies suggest that emphasizing shared scientific beliefs can help skeptics reconsider climate change facts. Additionally, sparking hope through resilience and perseverance can motivate climate action in science educators.
Researchers surveyed 135 college students and found that viewing exercise as a stress outlet can significantly increase their willingness to exercise. The most important factor in sustaining this habit was behavioral confidence, including visualization of future performance and external sources of encouragement.
A University of Liverpool study reveals that wild animals adjust their social preferences with the weather, affecting extinction risk. The research found that species alter their grouping patterns between wet and dry seasons, influenced by factors like migration and feeding preferences.
A meta-analysis of public opinion polls from 1946 to 2018 found that women are now perceived as more competent than men, especially in jobs that reward social skills. This shift is attributed to changes in women's labor force participation and education, as well as occupational segregation.
A new study reviewing 492 studies on changing implicit bias found only a small percentage examined changes over time or behavioral effects. Researchers question the promise of implicit bias training to address social problems like discrimination.
A new analysis reveals that energy availability and benign climate conditions played a crucial role in shaping societal development over the past 10,000 years. The study found that abundant energy led to societal expansion and prosperity, while declining energy sources resulted in contraction and collapse.
A new study of past climate changes and their effects on ancient societies offers lessons for the future. Climate disruptions in prehistoric Amazonia, such as changes in rainfall patterns and agriculture, may be comparable to the current human-caused climate change affecting most parts of the world.
Despite population density fluctuations, ants adjust their social interactions to maintain sophisticated organization and division of labor, ensuring colony survival. The study reveals that ant colonies actively regulate spatial distribution and interaction behaviors to preserve critical elements of their social patterns.
The article highlights the role of nurses in shaping cultural and social dimensions of public health policies, particularly during the 1918-1919 influenza pandemic. D'Antonio suggests that nursing history can provide insights into how agendas around change in public health policy might impact social justice.
A University of Guelph study found that including social processes in climate models can alter predictions and may hold the key to reducing global warming. Researchers developed a new model that accounts for social learning, finding that higher rates of social learning are needed to meet the 1.5-degree target.
A new climate modeling approach suggests that social processes strongly affect global warming predictions, and mitigation efforts should account for this influence. The rate at which people learn about climate mitigation strategies via social interactions can raise warming predictions by over 1 degree Celsius.
A study analyzing 21 years of data on Darwin's finches found that environmental perturbations can strongly bias the adult sex ratio, particularly among females. Females that changed mates gained a clear fitness advantage in terms of numbers of offspring that survived to the following year.
Researchers reveal how the modern human face evolved over four million years, influenced by dietary changes, tool use, and social interactions. The study's findings suggest that the face's shape and features reflect our species' adaptability to different environments and cultural contexts.
New research from Tepper School of Business finds that forcing employees to interact with unfamiliar colleagues in open work spaces encourages exploration, leading to improved financial performance and new product ideas.
Dr. Constance Nathanson, a professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, has been awarded the Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship to explore health crises and institutional change in France. Her research compares how HIV contamination of the blood supply played out in France versus the US.
Researchers propose introducing strategic interventions to address climate change by identifying sensitive intervention points in socio-economic systems. Such interventions could amplify into radical change, potentially averting a climate catastrophe.
A new study by University of Washington professor Jane Lee finds that partisan rhetoric and cultural divides contribute to poor health among immigrants. The study identifies 'sociopolitical context' as a key factor in shaping health-related behaviors, with participants reporting fear, uncertainty, and discrimination as major stressors.
The Gerontological Society of America (GSA) is leading the next phase of the Reframing Aging Initiative, a long-term social change endeavor to improve public understanding of aging. The initiative aims to counter negative views of aging and promote accurate perceptions.
A recent study by Robert Manduca at Harvard University reveals that income inequality is a major driver of the growing income gap between different regions in the United States. The study shows that over the past forty years, the number of people living in communities at the extreme ends of the income scale has increased three-fold, wi...
The ASA special issue calls for a rethinking of statistical inference, moving beyond the use of p-values and instead reporting continuous quantities that describe what the value means in scientific context. This shift aims to promote reproducible science and diminish the impact of statistical significance on publication and funding.
In a study published in The Royal Society Interface, researchers at NYU Tandon found that individuals in small groups dynamically decide who to follow based on performance over time. This leads to the emergence of group leaders, exerting stronger influence on others as their accuracy increases.
A recent study published by the American Psychological Association found that employees who frame their arguments in moral language are more successful in getting buy-in from management when the issue aligns with the company's values and mission. The study suggests that using moral language without explicit links to the organization's ...
A new study projects that global well-being will depend more on social factors than economic ones in the next three decades. The researchers used a mathematical approach to project the subjective well-being of the world's population, taking into account dimensions such as freedom, corruption, generosity, and social support.
A study published in Psychological Science found that participants' self-reported attitudes toward various social groups have shifted towards neutrality over a decade, while their implicit attitudes also decreased in bias. Notably, changes in implicit sexual orientation and race attitudes occurred across all generations.
A study found a significant increase in dust in northern Iran around 4,200 years ago, suggesting a period of drying and relatively arid climate conditions. This event coincided with the decline of the Akkadian Empire and the abandonment of North Mesopotamian settlements.
The presence of alcohol on greeting cards reinforces a social attitude that excess drinking is acceptable and associated with celebration. This can influence views on drinking and contribute to increased consumption, particularly among young people.
A new study published in Science finds that the scientific basis for the EPA's 2009 Endangerment Finding is even stronger now than it was then. The research assesses changes in the nine years since the finding was issued, expanding on climate change impacts for public health and welfare.
A comprehensive review assesses growing climate change science, strengthening the Endangerment Finding's conclusion on public health risks. The study highlights new evidence on climate change impacts, including extreme weather events, ocean acidification, and national security threats.
Male tungara frogs in urban environments produce more complex and conspicuous calls to attract females, which are preferred over those of forest frogs. This adaptation suggests that urbanization drives changes in sexual signaling to improve mating success.
A new paper argues that promoting climate change as a moral issue can help solve the problem, rather than relying solely on scientific arguments. Governments and policymakers must appeal to a range of values, including fairness, duty, and patriotism, to make progress in addressing climate change.
A new research from Imperial College London found that social marketing campaigns play a crucial role in the recovery of threatened wildlife populations. The study examined the success of a conservation campaign for the yellow-shouldered Amazon parrot and identified behavior change campaigns as a key factor in its population growth.
A new report by IIASA researchers reveals that climate change is causing millions of premature deaths globally due to air pollution, with older people in Europe and the East Mediterranean being particularly vulnerable to heatwaves. The study also finds that phasing out coal-use can significantly reduce pollution-related deaths.
A new UBC study found that 55% of Canadians consider physical inactivity a serious public health concern. The social climate around physical activity is seen as a key factor in addressing the issue, with two-thirds believing it is both a private and public health matter.
A global report by the Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance shows that childhood physical inactivity is a pervasive public health problem affecting children worldwide. The report grades 49 countries on their physical activity levels, revealing that excessive screen time and urbanization are major contributors to this issue.
Researchers found that traditional tools used to study human behavior are ineffective in diverse settings. They developed new methods that work well in different global applications and revealed a surprising finding: social closeness has no impact on generosity in rural Bangladesh.
A new study finds that Bitcoin's heavy hardware requirements and large electricity demands could produce enough emissions to warm the planet above 2°C in just 22 years. The use of bitcoins emitted 69 million metric tons of CO2 in 2017.
Researchers find that greater freedom of movement and social opportunities can help vulnerable populations adapt to climate change. Policies giving people more freedoms reduce the impact of environmental changes on these groups.
A new study published in Nature Climate Change synthesizes the effects of climate change and environmental problems in the Mediterranean region. The research highlights interconnected risks to sustainable development, including water scarcity, biodiversity loss, and human security threats.
Experts are advocating for a new approach to caring for patients with multiple long-term conditions. The report recommends patient-centered care, better integration between general practice and hospitals, and more emphasis on self-care to manage health conditions effectively.