‘The Grip of Culture’ explores how cultural forces influence public perceptions and behaviours related to climate change.

The author, Andy West, posits that understanding cultural dynamics is crucial to answering key questions about the dominance of climate catastrophe narratives, the demonisation of dissenting voices and the allocation of resources to potentially ineffective or harmful climate-related projects.

‘The Grip of Culture: The Social Psychology of Climate Change Catastrophism’ is about the social psychology associated with climate change.  It examines a narrative of climate catastrophe that dominates public discourse, independent of climate science, indicating a potent culture is operating throughout society  –  the culture of climate catastrophism.

West’s interest in climate change began in 2007 after watching Al Gore’s film ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, which highlighted the power of cultural narratives. Intrigued by the influence of cultural narratives on climate change discourse, West began researching social psychology aspects of the climate change debate.

West’s research, influenced by social psychologist Dan Kahan’s work on cultural cognition, revealed a dominant cultural entity based on “climate catastrophism” within the climate change domain. 

And so, ‘The Grip of Culture’ delves into the social psychology surrounding climate change, particularly how a “culture of climate catastrophism” shapes public attitudes and behaviours.  A culture which exerts a powerful influence on society regardless of scientific consensus on climate change.  The book also discusses the significant influence “climate catastrophist culture” has on public perception and policy decisions.

In an attempt to understand the strong cultural element to the climate change discussion, in 2006 West set himself a task to characterise and identify what he refers to as a “cultural entity” based on “climate catastrophism.”  In 2019, he started to measure with “hard social data” from public surveys on climate change to establish whether a “cultural entity” was dominating the climate domain.

He describes “cultural identity” as:

There are many definitions of ‘culture’ or ‘a culture’ used in academia, and still more in common usage. My own definition does not mean ‘a night at the opera’ or ‘a traditional activity’, say, but a ‘cultural entity’: a social movement or group bound by strong beliefs. Religions are common examples. I could have used the term ‘ideology’ rather than ‘culture’, but this tends to be used primarily for political movements (so only secular, not religious ones).

The grip of culture: The social psychology of climate change catastrophism, Andy A. West, pg. 7

In his book, West includes his measurements of the “cultural entity” which “robustly confirm a culture of climate catastrophism across global publics.”  He examines the origins of such cultural entities, their impact on children and the role of emotive narratives in fuelling cultural beliefs. He also explores the phenomenon of “innate scepticism” and how cultural forces can lead to the demonisation of dissenting voices.

Frank Furedi, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent said:

Climate change catastrophism is a cultural disease haunting Western society.  Andy West’s excellent study of this problem explains the different drivers of this disease. It is an important contribution to a debate where reason must prevail.

Professor Judith Curry, professor emerita of Earth and Atmospheric Science, Georgia Institute of Technology said:

As the “climate crisis” and its “existential threat” extends its tentacles to all aspects of our lives and economies, science and reason has left the room in our thinking about this issue. Andy West’s new book ‘The Grip of Culture’ is a timely and much needed analysis of the social psychology of climate catastrophism, providing a warning to us all.

You can purchase a copy of the book HERE or read a PDF for free online HERE.

Featured image: Chris Packham joins environmental activists in mock funeral procession, The Guardian, 20 April 2024