Multivariate analyses of national survey data show that social background has an important influence upon environmental attitudes and behaviour in Australia. The tertiary educated consistently adopt a pro-environmental stance across a range of behaviours, including reducing their consumption, initiating lifestyle changes and voting for the Australian Greens. Men are less likely than women to see global warming as a serious threat and less likely to change their behaviour to protect the environment. However, men are far more likely than women to favour nuclear over coal-fired power, even after controlling for a range of other social background effects. While younger people claim they are willing to pay extra taxes or higher prices to reduce global warming, it is older people who are consuming less and changing their lifestyles because of their environmental concerns. A partisan divide over environmental issues and (in)action on climate change is demonstrated empirically, while conservative political leaders are shown to have an influence upon Green voting.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	Australia, climate change, environmental, global warming, nuclear energy, political leaders
Research Division:	Human Society
Research Group:	Sociology
Research Field:	Environmental sociology
Objective Division:	Environmental Policy, Climate Change and Natural Hazards
Objective Group:	Adaptation to climate change
Objective Field:	Social impacts of climate change and variability
UTAS Author:	Tranter, B (Professor Bruce Tranter)
ID Code:	79713
Year Published:	2014 (online first 2012)
Web of Science® Times Cited:	22
Deposited By:	Sociology and Social Work
Deposited On:	2012-10-01
Last Modified:	2017-01-18
Downloads:	0