Getting energised about behaviour

Last week some of the PrimeDecision team attended Communicate 2011, the annual conference for environmental communicators. There we witnessed a real appetite among the attendees to understand the practical application of the psychology of behaviour. It was fantastic to see Professor Geoffrey Beattie, prolific psychologist at Manchester University, sharing some of his recent findings – and sparking more questions than any other speaker slot.

In a whistle-stop tour of recent research, Prof. Beattie tackled the distinction between implicit and explicit attitudes – and the gap between what people say and what they ultimately do. In one study his team had asked people questions about green purchases while tracking their body-language. Even though they all said positive things about making green choices, their hand gestures would betray the truth – and predictably confirm or contradict what they were saying. In another study the psychologists were able to predict which candidates people would choose from a selection of CVs, based on whether they were holding implicit racist attitudes. It's fascinating that such strong biases can exist in people who are not consciously aware of them. The team are also doing extensive work with eye-tracking to understand how people process environmental messages on product packaging. We'll definitely be keeping tabs on their progress.

Interestingly, over six thousand miles away, a roundtable organised by the Energy Studies Institute at Singapore International Energy Week was taking place and grappling with the same topic of irrational behaviour. The speakers there challenged the way energy is described, discussed green envy and explored the implications of behavioural economics for energy policy. A short summary from the session is available here. It’s reassuring to see such growing global recognition for the role of psychology in making green choices.