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The DOI matches its Crossref record; 5 of the 5 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

“Fear Won't Do It”: Promoting Positive Engagement With Climate Change Through Visual and Iconic Representations

O'Neill, Saffron, Nicholson-Cole, Sophie·2009·Science Communication
DOI 10.1177/1075547008329201
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Abstract

Fear-inducing representations of climate change are widely employed in the public domain. However, there is a lack of clarity in the literature about the impacts that fearful messages in climate change communications have on people's senses of engagement with the issue and associated implications for public engagement strategies. Some literature suggests that using fearful representations of climate change may be counterproductive. The authors explore this assertion in the context of two empirical studies that investigated the role of visual, and iconic, representations of climate change for public engagement respectively. Results demonstrate that although such representations have much potential for attracting people's attention to climate change, fear is generally an ineffective tool for motivating genuine personal engagement. Nonthreatening imagery and icons that link to individuals' everyday emotions and concerns in the context of this macro-environmental issue tend to be the most engaging. Recommendations for constructively engaging individuals with climate change are given.

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Metadata

Authors
O'Neill, S., & Nicholson-Cole, S.
Venue
Science Communication
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2009-01-07
Volume
30
Issue
3
Pages
355-379
ISSN
  • 0164-0259 (ISSN-L)
  • 1075-5470
  • 1552-8545
DOI
10.1177/1075547008329201
OpenAlex
W2042349803
Cited by
1,405
References
5
FWCI
86.84
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: “Fear Won't Do It”: Promoting Positive Engagement With Climate Change Through Visual and Iconic Representations. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1177/1075547008329201
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O'Neill, S., & Nicholson-Cole, S. (2009). “Fear Won't Do It”: Promoting Positive Engagement With Climate Change Through Visual and Iconic Representations. Science Communication. https://doi.org/10.1177/1075547008329201

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