Psychology and Best Practice in energy efficiency and climate change

Dr Mike PageUniversity of Hertfordshire

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Why Psychology?• Climate change is not just (not even?) a technological problem but is also a profound behavioural problem.

• Cognitive and social-cognitive psychology tells us much about the way in which people think and behave

– for example, changing attitudes does not necessarily change behaviour.

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HOT Topics

• Habits

• Opportunities

• Thoughts

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Opportunities

What don’t we see?

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Inattentional blindnessThere is a sense in which people don’t see things to which they are not paying attention.

This is not just true of artificial “laboratory situations”.

Sometimes people don’t even see things that are very much in their interest (cf. Luck School)

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How many of us don’t see the energy that we’re wasting?

How many opportunities do we routinely miss for reducing our impact on the environment and, simultaneously, our impact on costs?

BUT simply knowing about it doesn’t always help…

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Green opportunities

Thoughts

“Men are not disturbed by things, but the view that they take of them” Epictetus (55-135 C.E.)

This is the foundational credo of the Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies (CBT and REBT).

How can we adapt this insight to green issues?

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ABCs and NATs

Activating events → Beliefs → Consequences

These beliefs are often negative automatic thoughts (NATs) that flood the mind at times of challenge

What are your environment-related NATs?

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A possible environmental NAT?It’s no use me doing anything! What about the Chinese?

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Historical Responsibility

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NET: LED lighting

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• But aren’t LEDs very expensive?• For an 8W LED replacing a 35W “energy

saving” halogen downlighter, on 20 hours per day.

Rules for living• In order to reduce the incidence of negative automatic thoughts, people often devise “rules for living”, giving rise to habitual behaviour.

• These rules establish what people think of as a comfort zone.

• More often than not this is actually a discomfort zone.

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Habits – FIT insights

• habits don’t come in ones – they are linked together in habit-webs• habits cannot be broken in ones• habit-breaking is somewhat generic (cf. NDD)• both behaviour and thinking can be habitual• if you want a different result then Do Something Different

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FIT• FIT is a scientifically researched development tool for individuals and organizations.• It includes a number of measurement instruments based around the FIT Profiler.• The FIT Profiler measures behaviour on 15 dimensions, specifically addressing the degree of flexibility in each.• FIT also measures 5 dimensions of thinking and decision-making.

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FIT (contd.)

FIT Profiles are diagnostic and are used to motivate positive development via a tailored DSD program comprising generic and specific elements.

This program is the equivalent of a series of behavioural experiments, to break habit-webs, to encourage flexibility and to drive behaviour change

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Messages for a Green Psychology• thoughts have consequences• we should recognize thoughts as thoughts not necessarily facts• Unhelpful thoughts can be replaced by helpful ones• acceptance at a gut level involves practice via discrete behavioural experiments• we best break habits by breaking habit-webs• things only change if we Do Something Different

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The EASIER Project and Green PotentialThe EASIER Project aims to reduce the carbon emissions of participating SMEs by 20%, via targeted advice of Green Potential partners.

Among the specialist advice that the businesses will get (energy, transport, ISO14001,marketing), they will be encouraged to develop their behavioural flexibility.

Green Potential is the equivalent consultancy offering.

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Green Psychology and the CUBE Project

The CUBE Project is an ambitious attempt to build a compact (3mx3mx3m) home in which one person can live with a minimum impact on the environment.

The CUBE Project has attracted the collaboration of a number of high-profile producers of low-carbon technologies, and the first CUBE was exhibited at the Edinburgh International Science Festival last month.

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The Cube Project at the Edinburgh International Science Festival

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The Cube Project at the Edinburgh International Science Festival (contd.)

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Thank you for your attention

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