Our Research: Psychology of Sustainability and Behavior Change

The focus of our research is on understanding the psychological processes underlying individual and collective decision-making in the energy and climate domain. Our goal is to develop evidence-based interventions and provide valuable insights for behavioral public policy. Our work also extends to the integration of psychological data into energy and climate models, allowing us to examine the wide-ranging impacts of human decisions at a systems level. Through rigorous research methods, our center is advancing behavior change research in the context of sustainability.

Our Research in Detail

person deciding between fossil fuel and renewable energy

Sustainable Judgment and Decision-Making

The evidence base for the damaging effects of anthropogenic climate change is clear. Behavior change towards less carbon intensive lifestyles, however, has been largely insufficient. Reasons for limited actions are manifold, spanning from polarization and politicization of the topic – fueled by systematic climate disinformation – to established habits, misperceptions, and contextual barriers. We aim to better understand the psychological mechanisms of individual and collective sustainable behavior in various environments and societal groups by using a broad methodological spectrum.

Evidence Based Behavioral Interventions

Classic policy instruments such as taxes, subsides, and bans are often not sufficient to motivate systematic behavior change or lack the needed support in the public. We develop and validate theory-based behavioral interventions to promote more sustainable behavior and test how their effectiveness varies across contexts. We further aim to unravel the cognitive, affective, and social mechanisms driving individual and collective behavior change, for instance by coupling experimental paradigms with process tracing tools.

Human-Centered Climate and Energy Modeling

Behavior does not occur in isolation but is impacted by our social and physical environments. Research from psychology however often neglects such influences and dynamics in the study of human behavior. Moreover, policy making is primarily interested in accumulated effects of behavior on the level of larger societal systems rather than individual behavior. We address this issue by developing modelling frameworks based on state-of-the-art psychological research, paying particular attention to the integration of experimental human decision data into system modelling.

Current Projects

We are currently working on several research projects with the goal of creating a better understanding of individual and collective judgment and decision making in the energy and climate domain and the effectiveness of interventions, as well as integrating psychological decision data into energy and climate models.

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