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Continuous Theta Burst Stimulation of the Posterior Medial Frontal Cortex to Experimentally Reduce Ideological Threat Responses
Published on: September 28, 2018
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Psychological interventions that decrease psychological distance or challenge system justification increase
Jo Cutler1,2,3, Luis Sebastian Contreras-Huerta4,5,6,7,8, Boryana Todorova9
1Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK. J.L.Cutler@bham.ac.uk.
Communications Psychology
|November 5, 2025
Summary
Two psychological interventions effectively increased effortful pro-environmental actions by reducing psychological distance and framing climate action as patriotic. These findings are crucial for motivating climate-friendly behaviors globally.
Area of Science:
- Psychological Science
- Environmental Psychology
- Behavioral Economics
Background:
- Climate change necessitates widespread pro-environmental actions, but human aversion to effort hinders engagement.
- Identifying psychological interventions to increase willingness to exert effort for climate mitigation is critical.
- Understanding individual differences in motivation and effort aversion is key to designing effective interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate psychological interventions that enhance motivation for effortful pro-environmental behaviors.
- To quantify the impact of interventions on willingness to exert physical effort for climate protection.
- To explore individual-level factors influencing motivation to benefit the climate.
Main Methods:
- A large-scale study (N=3055) across six diverse countries using an effort-based decision-making task (Pro-Environmental Effort Task).
- Participants experienced one of 11 interventions or a control condition before choosing to exert physical effort to reduce carbon emissions.
- Computational modeling was used to quantify motivation for climate action versus a matched non-environmental cause.
Main Results:
- Two interventions—reducing psychological distance and framing climate action as patriotic/preserving way of life—consistently increased effortful pro-environmental behaviors.
- Motivation to benefit the climate correlated with belief in climate change and support for pro-environmental policies.
- Trait apathy and effort aversion were associated with lower motivation for both climate and non-environmental causes.
Conclusions:
- Psychological interventions can effectively promote effortful climate action by altering perceptions and framing.
- Reducing psychological distance and leveraging social identity (patriotism) are promising strategies for climate engagement.
- Findings offer crucial insights for designing scalable interventions to encourage necessary pro-environmental behaviors.
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