University of Twente Student Theses
Climate fiction : how do climate fiction readers perceive the future?
Ganzer, L. (2022) Climate fiction : how do climate fiction readers perceive the future?
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| Abstract: | In recent years, it has been suggested that climate fiction can help people to deal with the uncertainty of climate change (Constantino & Weber, 2021; Johns-Putra, 2016; Nikoleris et al., 2017). In the context of an increasing emergence of climate fiction and scientific interest in its impact, it is important to understand the readers’ imagination of a future with climate change in association with climate fiction. This study analyses how climate fiction readers discuss their perception of the future in the face of climate change and its consequences. The paper presents the results of a thematic analysis of 15 interviews with climate fiction readers. In total, seven themes represent the ways interviewees constructed their perception of the future when discussing climate fiction or climate change in the future. The most common theme was “Reflective”, followed by “Variety of possible futures”, and “Uncertainty”. Despite participants vaguely debating possible scenarios while applying critical reflection, they described uncertainty regarding a future with climate change. They constructed the future as being perceived as threatening in the present but did not seem to be able to draw a connection to imaginations of concrete action taking in the future. The paper suggests that climate fiction has the potential to be discussed in settings such as classrooms or book clubs when the content is close to the reader’s personal situation. This may facilitate the formation of more concrete shared future imaginations and the readers’ perception of being able to envision and create a more sustainable future. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Master) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 77 psychology |
| Programme: | Psychology MSc (66604) |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/92847 |
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