Who is most likely to talk about climate change?

The analysis finds that a majority of Americans (63%) rarely or never discuss global warming. Those most likely to engage in these conversations include Democrats, individuals with higher education, urban residents, Gen Z and Millennials, and Hispanic/Latino Americans. The study highlights a strong correlation between climate concern—specifically those in the 'Alarmed' category—and the frequency of discussion, as well as the influence of supportive social norms and media exposure in encouraging climate conversations.

• Most Americans do not frequently discuss global warming; 63% of respondents report they "rarely" (30%) or "never" (33%) talk about it with family and friends, while only 37% do so "occasionally" (29%) or "often" (8%).
• Certain demographic groups are more likely to discuss global warming (over 40% doing so at least occasionally), specifically Democrats, people with a Bachelor’s degree or higher, urban residents, Gen Z and Millennials, and Hispanic/Latino Americans. Conversely, Republicans, rural residents, those with a high school education or less, and those uninterested in politics are the least likely (under 30%).
• Political affiliation shows a stark divide in conversation frequency, with Liberal Democrats (68%) being the most likely to discuss the issue and conservative Republicans (11%) being the least likely.
• There is a strong link between the level of worry about climate change and the likelihood of talking about it; 83% of those categorized as "Alarmed" discuss global warming, compared to much lower rates for the Cautious (14%), Disengaged (9%), Doubtful (3%), and Dismissive (10%) groups.
• Social norms and external triggers significantly increase the frequency of climate discussions. 76% of Americans who hear others talk about global warming at least once a month discuss it themselves, compared to 22% of those who hear it less often. Additionally, 66% of those perceiving strong descriptive norms and 61% of those perceiving strong injunctive norms are more likely to discuss the issue.

APA

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (2023). Who is most likely to talk about climate change? https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/who-is-most-likely-to-talk-about-climate-change/

Chicago

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Who is most likely to talk about climate change? 2023. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/who-is-most-likely-to-talk-about-climate-change/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |title=Who is most likely to talk about climate change? |date=18 May 2023 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/who-is-most-likely-to-talk-about-climate-change/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yaleprogramonclimatechangecommunication2023who, author = {{Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Who is most likely to talk about climate change?}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2023}, month = may, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/who-is-most-likely-to-talk-about-climate-change/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }