Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs & Attitudes, Spring 2024

The report finds that a majority of Americans believe global warming is happening and is mostly human-caused, with significant numbers reporting personal experience with its effects and emotional distress. While many feel a personal responsibility to act, there is a notable gap in understanding the strength of the scientific consensus, and a majority rarely discuss the issue with family and friends.

• A strong majority of Americans believe global warming is occurring, with those who believe it is happening outnumbering those who do not by a ratio of approximately 5 to 1 (70% vs 13%).
• While 59% of Americans recognize global warming as mostly human-caused, there is a significant lack of awareness regarding the scale of scientific agreement; only 21% know that more than 90% of climate scientists agree that human-caused global warming is happening.
• Half of Americans (50%) report having personally experienced the effects of global warming, and 47% believe people in the United States are currently being harmed by it.
• Global warming is linked to a range of emotional and mental health impacts: 64% of Americans are at least "somewhat worried," and approximately 10% report symptoms of anxiety or depression specifically due to global warming over a two-week period.
• Americans perceive global warming as affecting a wide array of environmental issues in the U.S., most notably extreme heat (74%), wildfires (73%), droughts (72%), and rising sea levels (70%).
• Despite 62% of Americans feeling a personal responsibility to reduce global warming, the issue is rarely discussed in social circles, with 66% saying they "rarely" or "never" discuss it with family and friends.
• Public perception of personal agency is split: 53% disagree that individual actions make no difference, and 50% disagree that new technologies can solve the problem without individuals making significant life changes.

APA

A., L., E., M., S., R., J., K., E., G., J., C., M., B., M., V., T., M., J., M., S., L., M., G., N., B., & K., T. (2024). Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs & Attitudes, Spring 2024. Center for Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/climate-change-in-the-american-mind-beliefs-attitudes-spring-2024/

Chicago

A., Leiserowitz,, Maibach, E., Rosenthal, S., Kotcher, J., Goddard, E., Carman, J., Ballew, M., et al. Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs & Attitudes, Spring 2024. Center for Climate Change Communication, 2024. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/climate-change-in-the-american-mind-beliefs-attitudes-spring-2024/.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{a2024climate, author = {A., Leiserowitz, and E., Maibach, and S., Rosenthal, and J., Kotcher, and E., Goddard, and J., Carman, and M., Ballew, and M., Verner, and T., Myers, and J., Marlon, and S., Lee, and M., Goldberg, and N., Badullovich, and K., Thier,}, title = {{Climate Change in the American Mind: Beliefs \& Attitudes, Spring 2024}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2024}, month = jul, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/all/climate-change-in-the-american-mind-beliefs-attitudes-spring-2024/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }