The Francis Effect

The report identifies a 'Francis Effect,' where American adults, particularly Catholics, became more engaged and concerned about global warming between spring and fall 2015. Key shifts include increased trust in the Pope as an information source, a greater perception of global warming as a moral and social justice issue, and heightened concern for the impact of climate change on the world's poor and developing nations. While support for unilateral U.S. emission reductions increased slightly, support for specific policies like carbon dioxide limits on coal plants remained stable or decreased slightly.

• Public perception of Pope Francis and trust in him as a source of information on global warming increased between spring and fall 2015. Nationally, the proportion of people with a very positive opinion of the Pope rose by 7 percentage points, while trust in him as an information source on global warming increased by 11 points.
• The salience of global warming increased in the media and personal discourse. More Americans (+4 points) and Catholics (+10 points) reported hearing about global warming in the media at least once a month or more, and more people became likely to discuss the issue with family and friends.
• A significant portion of the population felt influenced by the Pope's views. Approximately 17% of all Americans and 35% of Catholics stated the Pope's position on global warming influenced their own views; of those influenced, about half reported becoming more concerned.
• There was a measurable increase in the certainty and personal importance of global warming. The proportion of Americans certain that global warming is happening rose by 6 percentage points, and 26% of Americans now view the issue as very or extremely important personally, up from 19% in the spring.
• Perceptions of the risks associated with global warming shifted toward the vulnerable and the domestic population. Belief that global warming would harm the world's poor increased by 12 points nationally (and 20 points among Catholics), while belief that it would harm people in the U.S. increased by 9 points.
• Global warming is increasingly viewed through a moral and ethical lens. Belief that global warming is a moral issue increased by 7 percentage points nationally, and the perception of it as a social justice and fairness issue rose by 6 points.
• Support for unilateral U.S. action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions increased by 7 percentage points, though support for other specific policies was mixed. While support for renewable energy research rose by 2 points, support for strict carbon dioxide emission limits on coal-fired power plants decreased by 3 points.

APA

Maibach, E., Leiserowitz, A., Roser-Renouf, C., Myers, T., Rosenthal, S., & Feinberg, G. (2015). The Francis Effect. Center for Climate Change Communication. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/2015-Nov-The_Francis_Effect.pdf

Chicago

Maibach, Edward, Anthony Leiserowitz, Connie Roser-Renouf, Teresa Myers, Seth Rosenthal, and Geoff Feinberg. The Francis Effect. Center for Climate Change Communication, 2015. https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/2015-Nov-The_Francis_Effect.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Maibach |first1=Edward |last2=Leiserowitz |first2=Anthony |last3=Roser-Renouf |first3=Connie |last4=Myers |first4=Teresa |last5=Rosenthal |first5=Seth |last6=Feinberg |first6=Geoff |title=The Francis Effect |publisher=Center for Climate Change Communication |date=November 2015 |url=https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/2015-Nov-The_Francis_Effect.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{maibach2015francis, author = {Maibach, Edward and Leiserowitz, Anthony and Roser-Renouf, Connie and Myers, Teresa and Rosenthal, Seth and Feinberg, Geoff}, title = {{The Francis Effect}}, institution = {Center for Climate Change Communication}, year = {2015}, month = nov, url = {https://climatecommunication.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/2015-Nov-The_Francis_Effect.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }