Version 1
: Received: 9 June 2024 / Approved: 11 June 2024 / Online: 12 June 2024 (14:33:09 CEST)
How to cite:
Petersen, J.; Frantz, C. M. Changing Culture through Pro-environmental Messaging Delivered on Digital Signs: A Longitudinal Field Study. Preprints2024, 2024060785. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.0785.v1
Petersen, J.; Frantz, C. M. Changing Culture through Pro-environmental Messaging Delivered on Digital Signs: A Longitudinal Field Study. Preprints 2024, 2024060785. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.0785.v1
Petersen, J.; Frantz, C. M. Changing Culture through Pro-environmental Messaging Delivered on Digital Signs: A Longitudinal Field Study. Preprints2024, 2024060785. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.0785.v1
APA Style
Petersen, J., & Frantz, C. M. (2024). Changing Culture through Pro-environmental Messaging Delivered on Digital Signs: A Longitudinal Field Study. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.0785.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Petersen, J. and Cynthia McPherson Frantz. 2024 "Changing Culture through Pro-environmental Messaging Delivered on Digital Signs: A Longitudinal Field Study" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202406.0785.v1
Abstract
Delivering effective messages is critical to creating a more sustainable and resilient culture. The explosion of social media has enhanced information access but has often reinforced and polar-ized pre-existing viewpoints and norms. In contrast, digital signs are an “in your face in your space” technology that has the potential to deliver common content to a diverse local audience. Environmental Dashboard (ED) is a communications platform and set of content applications that combines information on current environmental conditions, real-time resource consumption, positive actions being taken by community members, and a community calendar. We conducted a longitudinal study to assess whether ED content delivered via digital signs in public locations would result in desirable psychological changes within a community. Participants completed surveys in six designated signage locations prior to installation (N = 174) and following two years of continuous exposure (N = 133). We observed: increases in pro-environmental social norms among people of color (a demographic emphasized); enhanced awareness of and sense of connection with the local community and ecology; increased self-reported electricity conservation; and increased perception of youth engagement (another demographic emphasized). Changes were mediated by exposure to digital signage. These findings support the hypothesis that content delivered through digital signs can strengthen pro-environmental and pro-social culture within communities.
Keywords
digital signage; environmental communication; environmental justice; pro-environmental behavior; pro-environmental norms; race; systems thinking; youth
Subject
Social Sciences, Psychology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
