The influence of fundamental beliefs on a community's understanding and experience of climate change adaptation

Abstract

This study argues that religious beliefs significantly influence a community’s understanding and experience of climate change adaptation, indicating the need for an inclusion of such information in endeavours promoting climate change adaptation. Data were collected using the Q-method, whereby recurring statements were identified from semi-structured interviews in Phase One of the research project with participants from three rural communities in the North West Province of South Africa: Ikageng, Ventersdorp, and Jouberton. During Phase Two, participants were requested to indicate the extent to which they agreed with the Q-statements by taking a Likert scale assessment; this was done allowing a free distribution of responses. In Phase Three the process was repeated, although a forced distribution method was employed that required participants to place only a certain amount of statements under each column. Finally, in Phase Four participant responses were sorted based on their recurrence so as to construct clear narratives that represent differing participant worldviews (Factors: 1-Collectivist/Liberal, 2- Religious Fatalist/Determinist, 3- Religious, 4- Technological/Human, and 5- Governance/Structural). Conclusions indicate that community members who regard themselves as religious (overall of the Christian faith) fall under two groups: the religious determinists or fatalists who relate to Factor Two and see climate as a natural process that is governed by God (removing it from the realm of human influence, and therefore denying the anthropogenic nature of climate change), and religious participants loading significantly for Factor Three, who deny this “naturalness” and acknowledge human impacts on the climate. Both groups, however, indicated an overall willingness to change their beliefs if necessary. For the Factor Two group these changes will be based on a “seeing is believing” principle, encouraging the use of practical examples, and the group identifying with Factor Three requires intrinsic motivation in order to affect change, and the use of conceptual change literature is recommended when attempting any such changes of this group’s beliefs