政策叙事中的受害者与公众政策支持:基于助推型减碳政策的实验研究

Victims in Policy Narratives and Public Policy Support:An Experimental Study on Nudge-Based De-carbonization Policies

助推型减碳政策具有促进公众低碳生活和缓解气候变化的潜力。但推广和实施此类政策的前提是获得广泛的公众支持。鉴于政策叙事能够塑造公众对政策的认知和支持,有策略地设计和使用政策叙事可作为提高助推型减碳政策公众支持的有效途径。本文基于叙事政策框架研究政策叙事中的受害者与助推型减碳政策公众支持之间的关系。研究结果显示,将政策叙事中的受害者类型设定为人类而非野生动物会显著提高公众对助推型减碳政策的支持,增加政策叙事中的受害者数量会显著降低公众对助推型减碳政策的支持。但是当公众的心理应对机制由自动情绪调节转变为刻意情绪调节时,受害者数量对政策支持的负面影响会减弱。本文的研究结果意在为提高助推型减碳政策的公众支持提供实践启示。

Incorporating nudges into de-carbonization policies holds significant promise for promoting widespread adoption of low-carbon lifestyles and effectively addressing the urgent climate crisis.However,successful implementation of nudge-based de-carbonization policies relies heavily on securing public support—a challenge in its own right.To cultivate this support effectively,a strategic approach to crafting and deploying policy narratives is essential.By skillfully constructing these narratives,policymakers can wield considerable influence over public perceptions and endorsement.Among the multifaceted components of a policy narrative,the portrayal of characters,particularly the victims,plays a pivotal role.Consequently,investigating the correlation between the characterization of victims in policy narratives and public support for nudge-based de-carbonization policies is of utmost importance.Achieving this objective requires addressing several critical issues.First,climate change victims encompass a wide spectrum,including both humans and animals.Selecting a specific type of victim serves to clarify the underlying nature of the policy problem.Therefore,the foremost question that needs to be addressed is:(1)What type of victim,when featured in policy narratives,is more conducive to bolstering policy support?Furthermore,once the nature of the problem has been ascertained,it is imperative to delineate the scale of the problem,which is often reflected in the number of victims.Hence,the second issue of concern is:(2)How does the number of victims in policy narratives impact policy support?Last,the effects of the number of victims depends on how the public responds to information,which may vary depending on an individual's psychological coping mechanisms.Therefore,the third question to be addressed is:(3)How does the relationship between the number of victims in policy narratives and policy support evolve when the public's psychological coping mechanisms undergo changes?Leveraging the narrative policy framework,this study conducts a comprehensive examination of the nexus between victim portrayal in policy narratives and public support for nudge-based decarbonization policies based on three experiments.The findings reveal that framing the victims as human(as opposed to animals)significantly enhances public support for nudge-based de-carbonization policies.Increasing the number of victims in policy narratives substantially diminishes public support for such policies.However,when the public's psychological coping mechanisms shift from automatic emotion regulation to deliberate emotion regulation,the negative impact of the number of victims on policy support diminishes.This study provides practical insights for policymakers advocating nudge-based de-carbonization policies.First,it recommends portraying victims as humans in policy narratives rather than as animals due to the noticeable boost in public support.Therefore,policymakers and advocates should reconsider their choice of victim types within these narratives.Second,policymakers must exercise caution regarding the effect of the number of victims because support tends to erode as the number of victims increases.To address this issue,policymakers can opt to focus on smaller victim groups within their narratives or to leverage immersive storytelling formats such as documentaries to foster deliberate emotional engagement,thereby avoiding the pitfalls of emotional detachment.