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Identifying the Problem or Identifying with the Solution? The Role of Motivated Reasoning and Identity Politics in Environmental Science

Heeren, Alexander, Heeren
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1468073451

Abstract Details

2016, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Environment and Natural Resources.
Public opinion polls show that people are generally concerned about environmental problems. Yet, policies to address environmental and natural resource problems are often controversial. The way an individual perceives an environmental problem may influence his or her support for the policies to address that issue. Likewise, an individual’s support for a specific policy could influence the way he or she perceives the problem. Therefore, an individual’s reasoning about an environmental issue might be circular, with his or her values, ideologies, affiliations and identities influencing perceptions about the problem and policies to address the problem. This dissertation examines how individuals in the Maumee River Watershed, the largest of Lake Erie’s watersheds, perceive Lake Erie’s algal bloom issue. The first chapter synthesizes the previous research examining how individuals perceive and reason about environmental problems and policies. Chapter 2 examines the role the media plays in portraying and framing Lake Erie’s algal blooms. Chapter 3 examines how agricultural, rural and urban communities living near and distant to Lake Erie perceive and discuss the algal blooms and policies to address the algal blooms. Chapter 4 examines how different forms of farmer identity contribute to how farmers perceive conservation practices. Chapter 5 provides a summary of the studies and discusses the implications that public perception has on participatory decision-making in natural resource contexts.
Eric Toman, Ph.D. (Advisor)
Robyn Wilson, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Jeremy Bruskotter, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
162 p.
Natural Resource Management

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Heeren, Heeren, A. (2016). Identifying the Problem or Identifying with the Solution? The Role of Motivated Reasoning and Identity Politics in Environmental Science [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1468073451

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Heeren, Heeren, Alexander. Identifying the Problem or Identifying with the Solution? The Role of Motivated Reasoning and Identity Politics in Environmental Science . 2016. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1468073451.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Heeren, Heeren, Alexander. "Identifying the Problem or Identifying with the Solution? The Role of Motivated Reasoning and Identity Politics in Environmental Science ." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1468073451

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1468073451
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© 2016, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.