title: Informing Public Perceptions About Climate Change: A 'Mental Models' Approach.
abstract: As the specter of climate change looms on the horizon, people will face complex decisions about whether to support climate change policies and how to cope with climate change impacts on their lives. Without some grasp of the relevant science, they may find it hard to make informed decisions. Climate experts therefore face the ethical need to effectively communicate to non-expert audiences. Unfortunately, climate experts may inadvertently violate the maxims of effective communication, which require sharing communications that are truthful, brief, relevant, clear, and tested for effectiveness. Here, we discuss the 'mental models' approach towards developing communications, which aims to help experts to meet the maxims of effective communications, and to better inform the judgments and decisions of non-expert audiences.
authors.affiliation: Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA. gwongpar@cmu.edu.
authors.forename: Gabrielle
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wong-Parodi
authors.affiliation: Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA.|Leeds University Business School and Centre for Decision Research, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.
authors.forename: Wändi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Bruine de Bruin
mesh_terms: D022126:Access to Information; D002980:Climate; D057231:Climate Change; D003142:Communication; D003657:Decision Making; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment; D008960:Models, Psychological; D011639:Public Opinion; D011640:Public Policy; D012106:Research; D012108:Research Personnel
keywords: Climate change communication; Decision making; Mental models approach