Global Warming’s Six Americas

The document describes the 'Six Americas' framework for categorizing public opinion on global warming into Alarmed, Concerned, Cautious, Disengaged, Doubtful, and Dismissive segments. It reports that as of 2022, 53% of Americans are either Alarmed or Concerned, while 22% are Doubtful or Dismissive. Over the decade since 2012, the Alarmed segment more than doubled from 12% to 26%, while the Cautious segment decreased from 29% to 17%.

• The American public is divided into six climate opinion audiences: the Alarmed (convinced of human-caused warming and strongly support action), Concerned (convinced but less motivated), Cautious (uncertain and less motivated), Disengaged (largely unaware), Doubtful (question the cause and perceive low risk), and Dismissive (reject the idea and oppose policies).
• As of December 2022, 26% of Americans are categorized as Alarmed, which is more than double the 11% who are Dismissive. A majority of Americans (53%) are either Alarmed or Concerned, whereas 22% are either Doubtful or Dismissive.
• Between 2012 and 2022, the Alarmed segment grew from 12% to 26% of the U.S. population, while the Cautious segment shrank from 29% to 17%. The Concerned, Disengaged, Doubtful, and Dismissive segments remained relatively stable during this period.
• The growth of the Alarmed segment correlates with an increased public understanding that global warming is a current problem causing harm to communities in the U.S. Trusted sources of information include NASA, climate scientists, TV weathercasters, and doctors.

APA

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (2023). Global Warming’s Six Americas. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/global-warmings-six-americas-december-2022/

Chicago

Yale Program on Climate Change Communication. Global Warming’s Six Americas. 2023. https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/global-warmings-six-americas-december-2022/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Yale Program on Climate Change Communication |title=Global Warming’s Six Americas |date=14 March 2023 |url=https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/global-warmings-six-americas-december-2022/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{yaleprogramonclimatechangecommunication2023global, author = {{Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}}, title = {{Global Warming’s Six Americas}}, institution = {Yale Program on Climate Change Communication}, year = {2023}, month = mar, url = {https://climatecommunication.yale.edu/publications/global-warmings-six-americas-december-2022/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }