M.A. Erasmus Mundus
Journalism, Media and Globalisation (joint degree)
Can Leonardo DiCaprio change your mind?
Uncovering the effects of celebrity endorsement on
behavioural intention about climate change
by
Dung Phan
Student ID: 12367621
Master’s Thesis
Graduate School of Communication
Master’s programme Communication Science
Supervisor/Examiner: dr. L.P. Lukas Otto
Date of completion: 3
June 2019
While the effects of celebrity endorsement on socio-political issues have gained considerable attention, there are few studies examining its effects in the context of climate change. By means of an experimental survey (n = 90), this study tests the effects of celebrity endorsement on people’s behavioural intention about climate change, regarding their identification with the celebrity, and experience of self-conscious emotions. The findings did not find any significant effect of celebrity endorsement but showed that guilt was a strong predictor of behavioural intention toward climate change. Considering the urgency of climate change and the increasing number of environmental threats, the current findings are relevant to develop communication strategies to raise awareness and trigger behavioral changes.
Key words: celebrity endorsement, self-conscious emotions, identification, climate change, behavioural intention
Introduction
In October 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a report with an alarming message: We have only 12 years left to limit the irreversible damage from climate change (IPCC, 2018). Since then, it has become a hot topic. A new term “climate change election” has been coined to emphasise how the topic is expected to play a significant role in the races in 2019, from Australia to the European Parliament and the United States (Henley, 2019; Hirji, 2019; Morton, 2019). On the street, thousands of students in more than 100
countries went on school strikes and demanded more actions (Taylor et al., 2019). The debate about climate change has seen a gradual shift from raising awareness to adopting practical measures and mobilising people. However, what happened in France with the ‘Yellow Vests’ movement has shown that climate change is a complex issue not only because of the issue itself but also because of the social context that it is involved. Due to severe tensions and prolonged protests across the country, the government of President Emmanuel Macron eventually decided to drop the fuel tax plan (Nossiter, 2018). This once again raises questions for policymakers, government agencies and communication experts on how to better
communicate with the public to make efficient changes.
One of the challenging aspects in climate change communication is that the issue had primarily been discussed within the scientific communities, which in a way led to “a wish to transmit, educate and inform the public rather than an opportunity to transform decisions and commitments on both sides”. It is here that there needs involvement from non-expert actors. They can be celebrities, or “smiling professions” as Hartley (1992) called, who are able to provide a means of engaging with the public. There is a long list of celebrities including Leonardo DiCaprio, Harrison Ford, Natalie Portman, etc... who have been involved in environmental activism. Their voices matter because of their ability to quickly grab the audience’s attention. An important question is whether their endorsement does affect behavioural intention from the public in the context of climate change.
2 Research on environmental communication has looked at consumer behaviour and shown that there is a positive relationship between celebrity endorsement and green consumption (Jacobsen, 2011; Hanna & et., 2018), even though the results were not robust. To my knowledge, there has been no study examining the effects of celebrity endorsement on behavioural intention about climate change. Scholars’ opinions are still divided on whether or not celebrities are a good fit for a complex issue like climate change. Boykoff et al. (2010) argued that the extension of free market ideology and consumer-driven society promoted the notion that climate change should be the responsibility of individuals instead of the
government’s and policymakers’ at a macro level. While acknowledging that celebrities could help bring a distant issue closer to the public, they were concerned that it could turn the issue into an “individual fashion-fad rather than influence substantive long-term shifts in popular discourse and political action” (Boykoff et al., 2010, p.10). Goodman & Littler (2013) suggested an essential question of whether celebrities and climate change could be a mismatch as celebrities are the opposite of what climate change needs now: participation, collectivism, sustainability and systemic change. These considerations lead to a call for filling the research gap by answering an overarching research question: To what extent does
celebrity endorsement affect people’s behavioural intention about climate change?
I answer the question by conducting an experiment, testing the conditions in which
participants were asked to expose to the content with or without a celebrity. By gaining an understanding of the factors which are related to celebrity endorsement, it may be possible to shed light on the conditions it occurs and the degree of influence on behavioural intention. My purpose in the current study comprises three parts. First, the key theory and main concepts are introduced based on previous studies. This is followed by a description of methodology and statistical results. Finally, I discuss the research question and provide suggestions for future studies.
Celebrity endorsement
To understand why and how celebrity endorsement matters in the first place, it is essential to grasp a basic idea of what makes a celebrity. Daniel Boorstin (1971) provided one of the most cited sayings about celebrity: “The celebrity is a person who is known for his
well-knownness” (p.57). Celebrity, in this sense, comprises not only television stars but also
individuals working in politics, business, art, etc. Scholars trying to explain the pervasiveness of celebrity in modern times shared one point in common: People listen to celebrities because they have the power of generating different meanings which are more accessible and easier to understand (Hartley, 1992; Turner, 2004). For example, throughout history, the movie star with a distinct character has often functioned as a symbol of ‘individualism’, while the music star is constructed through the conceptions of ‘authenticity’ (Marshall, 1997). This process of a certain meaning being transferred from a well-known individual to the audience is what
McCracken (1989) defined as “celebrity endorsement”. However, studies citing McCracken’s definition are mostly conducted in the field of marketing and advertising (see Bergkvist & Zhou (2016) for a comprehensive review). In the political realm, endorsements can be defined as “a simple language for communication between interest-group leaders and group members” (Grossman & Helpman, 1999, p.501).
For the celebrity endorsement to be succeeded, McCracken’s (1986; 1989) suggested a model of three stages: First, a certain meaning which emerges in the celebrity’s repeated performance on the public stage (television roles, personality, lifestyles…) shifts to reside in celebrities. Next, the celebrity transfers these meanings to the public through media (ads, campaigns, interviews…). Here, the celebrity, working as “meaning suppliers” (McCracken, 1986) transfers certain cultural values, meanings or characteristics he/she represents to the endorsed idea. Lastly, whether the celebrity endorsement or meaning transfer succeed relies on the last stage where the audience decides to adopt the meanings or not.
4 McCracken argued that the success of endorsement process cannot be explained by the source models (which suggest such elements as “attractiveness”, “credibility”, “likability”, etc.) because they do not take the last two steps into account. In other words, they make
everything about celebrities and nothing about endorsed meanings and consumers.
Figure 1: The model of celebrity endorsement process suggested by McCracken (1989)
Celebrity endorsement and its consumers
Why does celebrity endorsement matter? According to McCracken (1989), the gradually decreasing power of institutions such as local communities, churches and families, which was a traditional source of meaning supply, opened up opportunities for the spread of celebrity culture. Together with the expansion of individualism, the freedom to choose and define oneself becomes “an obligation to decide, and this makes us especially eager consumers of the symbolic meanings contained in celebrities” (McCracken, 1989, p.318). What makes celebrities so powerful, is that they are successful at constructing an accomplished, outstanding and coherent self that the public can easily adapt and restructure to fit themselves. In other words, celebrities have the power and space to transform certain meanings into a vivid self-image.
But who needs the self-constructed by celebrities? McCracken (1986) suggested that the target audience are those who are undergoing a role or status change, moving from one age category to another in which they are likely to abandon one set of symbolic meanings and
adopt another (for example a transition from a teenager to a young adult). Cohen (2001) especially emphasised potential long-term effects of celebrities on adolescents “who are in the process of forming their own identity and are susceptible to influence by media characters” (p.249). Studies examining the correlation between age and the effects of celebrity
endorsement in advertising have shown mix results (Atkin & Block, 1983; Freiden, 1984; Ohanian, 1991). However, in the political sphere, opinions of celebrities were found to influence young audience on different levels, ranging from political engagement (Wen & Cui, 2014) to political opinions (Jackson & Darrow, 2005) and beliefs (Jackson, 2008). It is, therefore, crucial to investigate further the role of age in the perceived persuasiveness of celebrity endorsement.
Identification as a social function of celebrity endorsement
If celebrities are capable of taking part in the self-construction for the audience as argued above, it then begs the question of how the process occurs. Horton and Wohl (1956) were among the first to identify the mechanism between an individual and a media celebrity. They coined the term “parasocial relationship” to describe the phenomenon where an individual establishes a sense of intimacy with another person he/she knows only through the mass media rather than direct or face-to-face interactions. This relationship exists because the individual believes he/she knows the celebrity on a more intimate and profound level and also appreciates the values or characteristics that person represents more than others. Two years later, Kelman (1961) developed another concept called “identification” which was one of three processes of opinion change under social influence. According to Kelman (1961),
identification occurs when an individual adopts an attitude or behaviour from another person because that attitude or behaviour “is associated with a satisfying self-defining relationship” with that person (p.63). This relationship forms a part of the individual’s self-image and only exists or maintains if the individual continues accepting the influence.
6 expected to be stronger than those of parasocial relationship. Cohen (2001) suggested that identification involves the loss of self-awareness and a shift to the other self, while in the parasocial relationship, two separate selves interact with each other, forming a relationship that resembles a real-life friendship. In other words, identification diminishes the distinction between a self and the other, which on the other hand is the core of a parasocial relationship. Lots of studies have confirmed the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement through
identification. Research by Brown & Basil (1995), Basil (1996) and Basil & Brown (1997) consistently found that strong identification with American basketball player Magic Johnson, who made a public HIV disclosure, significantly affected the respondents’ personal concern about the risks of HIV and intended changes in sexual behaviour. Strong identification with celebrities also increases support for social causes that these celebrities are associated with, such as wildlife conservation (Brown, 2010), organ donation (Bae, Brown & Kang, 2010) and child abuse prevention (Brown et al., 2003). In short, identification with a celebrity makes an individual more susceptible to an endorsed message, especially when it is negative (Brown & Matviuk, 2010; Huesmann, 1984; Stack, 1987).
However, Slater & Rouner (2002) in a study examining persuasive content in entertainment-education narratives, provided us with another possibility. It is suggested that being
emotionally involved with a character might have more influence than identification on how a person perceived the persuasiveness of a message, or in this case, the effects of celebrity endorsement. They referred to the research of Stephenson (2003) where it showed that the effects of anti-marijuana ads were mediated by what he called “sympathetic distress”, occurring when an individual feels fearful and concerned about the characters in the ads. Identification might or might not occur in this process, but it is not a prerequisite. Escalas & Stern (2003) called sympathy a “with-feeling” - an emotional response in which a person is self-conscious of the other’s feelings and welfare. In short, sympathy is “a heightened awareness of another person’s state of mind” (Escalas & Stern, 2003, p. 567). More importantly, their study also showed that sympathy for the characters alone could directly
generate positive attitudes towards televised commercials. This raises the question of whether the effects of celebrity endorsement can be mediated by self-conscious emotions such as sympathy.
Self-conscious emotions and celebrity endorsement
What differentiates self-conscious emotions from “basic emotions” (sadness, anger, joy, etc.) is that they require self-awareness and self-representation (Tracy & Robins, 2007a). All emotions are social, but self-conscious emotions are especially “founded in social
relationships, in which people not only interact but evaluate and judge themselves and each other” (Fischer & Tangney, 1995, p.3). Self-conscious emotions, therefore, serve moral functions in which they provide punishment or reinforcement of behaviour through self-evaluation and self-awareness (Tangney et al., 2007). In relation to the effects in celebrity endorsement, self-conscious emotions might resemble identification in the sense that they are involved in the process of constructing self-identity. However, in identification, one’s identity is constructed by adopting the other’s identity meanwhile people build their identity through the eyes of the other when people experience self-conscious emotions. If identification occurs as a response to one’s private evaluation of themselves, self-conscious emotions are
experienced as a response to one’s evaluation of their relationship with other people (Leary, 2007).
So far, there has been no research examining the possible effects of self-conscious emotions on celebrity endorsement. In this study, I argue that they can play a mediating role in how celebrities transfer a image to the audience. Tracy & Robins (2007a) suggested that self-conscious emotions serve identity goals when one’s self-representation is threatened or elevated by an eliciting event which is relevant to the ideals of the self. In the case of celebrity endorsement, one is expected to feel positively self-conscious if the endorsed message is congruent with their identity goals and negatively self-conscious if it is incongruent. Depending on the valance, each emotion differs from each other in the operation of the self.
8 Understanding these emotions, therefore, can help us predict the behavioural intentions in relation to the effects of celebrity endorsement.
Negative self-conscious emotions
Negative self-conscious emotions comprise shame, guilt and embarrassment. Lewis (1971) and Tangney (1995) have tried to point out the distinction between shame and guilt. With shame, the focus of evaluation is on the self (“I -- did that bad thing”) while guilt brings attention to the specific behaviour of the self (“I did -- that bad thing”). When it is the self that gets impaired due to shame, it is likely to motivate an avoidance response (i.e.: hide or escape) or blame others involved in the event (Tangney, 1995), with a view to defending the self. In contrast, people experiencing guilt are less self-focused and more preoccupied with taking responsibility by confession, apology or reparative actions (Tangney, 1995). From this perspective, guilt is likely to direct one’s behaviours in a more constructive and communicative way. Embarrassment, often perceived as a less intense form of shame (Lewis, 1995), only occurs if there’s a presence of other people who witnesses the minor missteps happening (Miller, 2007). In the context of celebrity endorsement, embarrassment therefore is the least likely to happen because it does not involve a public self-representation, while guilt has the most potential to encourage subsequent behavioural intention.
Positive self-conscious emotions
Pride is the only positively valenced self-conscious emotion that has been studied so far, albeit being “something of an underdog” (Tracy & Robins, 2007b, p.263). Leary (2007) explained that awareness tends to elicit negative emotions because it requires self-reflection and oftentimes people feel they rarely meet their standards. However, pride still plays a crucial role in self-evaluative emotions because it is considered as “a powerful motivator for sustained altruistic behaviour” (Hart & Matsuba, 2007). Pride can be said to be the opposite emotion of shame. The focus of evaluation also centres around the self but it gets elevated thanks to one’s sense of self-accomplishment (Mascolo & Fischer, 1995). If the celebrity endorsement is congruent with one’s identity goals, people are expected to
experience pride. Over time, the sense of self-worth motivates positive attitudes and thoughts about the self and helps them maintain and enhance their social status (Tracy & Robins, 2007b).
The present research
For the purpose of this research, I am interested in the role of celebrity endorsement in environmental communication. The focus is on the self-identity construction associated with celebrity endorsement as a strategy to affect the behavioural intention about climate change. Many studies on the subject focus on the impact of celebrity endorsement in the political realm (Morin et al., 2012; Nownes, 2011; Nownes, 2017, Veer et al., 2010), especially among young people (Austin et al., 2008; Inthorn & Street, 2011; Jackson & Darrow, 2005). However, few of them specifically investigate its efficacy to behavioural intention towards environmental topics. Recently, scholars paid attention to the increasing involvement of celebrities in climate
change, but the arguments were mostly centred around the question whether it was done for a good cause (Anderson, 2011; Boykoff & Goodman, 2009; Boykoff et al., 2010). Alexander (2013) suggested that ‘eco-celebrities’ combining their star persona with eco-marketing strategies could contribute to the youth mobilisation in the environmental discourses. Devine-Wright & Clayton (2010) emphasised that the role of self-identification with a specific place or the surrounding environment, deriving from a sense of attachment and natural connection, could encourage pro-environmental actions.
Figure 2: Conceptual model for the effects of identification on the relationship between celebrity
endorsement and the subsequent behavioural intention about climate change.
Celebrity endorsement
Behavioural intention
about climate change
10 Considering the importance of the sense of self-identification in both celebrity endorsement and environmentalism, I therefore propose the hypothesis as follows:
H1: Identification affects the relationship between celebrity endorsement and behavioural
intention about climate change
Self-conscious emotions also play an important role in environmental behavioural intention. Rees et al. (2014) found that people experiencing guilt were more likely to show actual pro-environmental behaviours when confronted human-caused pro-environmental damages. Because guilt can explain a person’s sense of moral responsibility for the environment, it also predicts the tendency of ecological behaviours (Kaiser & Shimoda, 1999). Because most relevant studies so far have only focused on moral and group-based emotions (Ferguson & Branscombe, 2010; Harth et al., 2013), I aim to fill the gap by investigating the role of self-conscious emotions for an individual’s environmental behavioural intention. I predict that being exposed to celebrity endorsement can trigger self-conscious emotions and therefore motivate pro-environmental behaviours.
Guilt and is predicted to have more significant impacts on environmental behavioural intention than embarrassment because they motivate self-correction and remedial actions. Shame is predicted to immobilise action by avoidance or blame. Pride and desire for status
enhancement were also found to increase the possibility of green product consumption in public (Griskevicius et al., 2010). I therefore propose the following hypotheses (see Figure 3): H2a: The more people feel guilty after being exposed to celebrity endorsement, the more
likely they will change their behaviours about climate change
H2b: The more people feel proud after being exposed to celebrity endorsement, the more
likely they will change their behaviours about climate change
H2c: The more people feel embarrassed after being exposed to celebrity endorsement, the
less likely they will change their behaviours about climate change
H2d: The more people feel shameful after being exposed to celebrity endorsement, the less
Figure 3: Multiple mediation model for the indirect effect of celebrity endorsement on behavioural
intention about climate change via the mediator guilt, pride, embarrassment and shame. In this model, c’ is the direct effect of the X (no celebrity endorsement vs celebrity endorsement group) on the dependent variable Y (behavioural intention) or the effect of IV on the DV when the mediators are controlled. The indirect effect of the IV on the DV via M1(guilt), M2(pride), M3(embarrassment) and M4(shame) is quantified as a1, b1, a2, b2, etc. Source: Figure adapted from Lecheler, Schuck & de Vreese (2013)
As discussed above, the effects of celebrity endorsement were often found more significant among the group of young audience. Therefore, I also hypothesise that:
H3: The effects of celebrity endorsement on behavioural intention about climate change are
more significant among young people than older groups
Data and method
Participants
My subject pool was recruited online via different Facebook groups in the period of 3 weeks. There were 170 responses to the pretest and 109 to the posttest. After matching the
identification code, I collected a total number of 91 complete answers. One response was omitted because the participant’s age was below 18. I then randomly assigned 90 participants to one of two groups - the control group (n = 46) and the treatment group (n = 44). 76.9% of
12 participants are female. Regarding age of participants, 56.7% are from 18 to 24 years, which I consider belongs to the group of young audience.
Procedure
To test these hypotheses, I conducted a randomised pretest-posttest, control group
experiment. First, each participant (no matter the group) was administered a brief (the pretest) questionnaire. It contained several questions about each respondent’s attitudes, emotions and behavioural intentions about climate change. Prior to completing the pretest survey,
respondents were also informed that they were participating in a study for a Master’s thesis designed to gauge people’s emotions and opinions about environmental policies and climate change.
Within a week later, respondents in two groups were treated differently. Those in the control group were asked to watch a video about climate change and answer the posttest
questionnaire which had the same questions as in the pretest. Those in the treatment group were asked to watch two videos featuring actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The first video was about DiCaprio sharing views about his personal life and acting career. It was supposed to stimulate a sense of identification with DiCaprio. The second one was also about climate change in which featured DiCaprio’s inspiring speech about climate change to the United Nations in 2016. The video that the control group watched was the edited version of the second video that the treatment group watched. They shared the same content but there was no presence of DiCaprio in the control group as his images were cut out and the voice was dubbed by another narrator. The video for the control group looked like it was a news report about climate change1. The posttest survey for respondents in the treatment group looked slightly different from the pretest survey in which it contained several more questions about
identification with Leonardo DiCaprio2.
1 Transcripts for the stimuli are to be found in Appendix A
I chose Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio because of his well-known achievements in acting and also a long record in environmental activism through his “Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation”. DiCaprio has been using his career fame to promote environmental awareness and actions. In 2016 when DiCaprio used his Oscar acceptance speech to bring up the topic of climate change, tweets including the term “climate change” and “global warming” reached record highs, creating a “DiCaprio effect” (Leas et al., 2016). Therefore, DiCaprio is a good fit for both celebrity and climate change.
Measures
Attitudes toward climate change
An index of four Likert-type items was used to assess the participant’s attitudes toward climate change and environmental policies in the pretest and posttest. The items are: “I think climate change is the most urgent issue the world is facing now”, “I think we should invest more resources to cope with climate change”, “I think the world should abandon fossil fuels” and “I think fossil fuel companies should be banned from funding research and education programs”. Participants were asked to judge on a scale ranging from 1 (Strongly disagree) to 6 (Strong agree) the extent to which they agree with these statements. Ratings on these four items were averaged to create a measure of attitudes. These measures are celebrity endorsements which were adapted from the content of the video about climate change used in this study. This index is acceptable (Cronbach’s 𝛼 = .702)
Behavioural intentions about climate change
An index of four Likert-type items is used to assess participants’ behavioural intentions in the context of climate change in both the pretest and posttest, for example: “I want to discuss climate change with friends”. Participants indicated the probability of them performing specific actions related to climate change on a scale from 1 (Extremely unlikely) to 6 (Extremely likely). Ratings on these four items were averaged to create a measure of behavioural intentions about climate change. This index is acceptable (Cronbach’s 𝛼 = .76).
14
Identification with a celebrity
Following Brown & Bocarnea (2007), a shorter version (to not discourage participants from continuing the experiment) of scale is used to assess the participant’s identification with the celebrity only in the treatment group. On a five-point Likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree), participants indicate the degree to which they agree with six statements about their relationship with Leonardo DiCaprio, for instance: “I would like to be more like Leonardo DiCaprio”3. After the reliability test, the fifth item (“I advocate the same things that Leonardo DiCaprio advocates”) was omitted because its value of Cronbach’s 𝛼 if Item deleted was bigger than the Cronbach’s 𝛼 and the value of Corrected Item-Total Correction is too small (-.005). Ratings on these five items were averaged to create a measure of identification with a celebrity. This index is reliable (Cronbach’s 𝛼 = .83).
Self-conscious emotions
Apart from four self-conscious emotions, three other emotions (anger, gratitude and elevation) were added to make this measurement less obtrusive. Participants were asked to measure their emotions toward climate change on a scale ranging from 1 (does not describe my feelings) to 5 (clearly describes my feelings).
Results
Effects of celebrity endorsement
An independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare measured variables in the celebrity and no celebrity condition 4. Overall, there was not any significant difference in the scores for the celebrity and no celebrity condition, as can be seen in Table 1.
3 Please consult Appendix B for complete measurements
Table 1. Results of independent-samples t-test in the celebrity and no celebrity condition in the posttest Group 95% CI for Mean Difference No celebrity (n=46) Celebrity (n=44) M SD M SD t Attitude 4.84 0.87 4.94 0.88 -0.46, 0.27 -0.52 Behaviour intention 4.49 0.89 4.55 1.02 -0.45, 0.35 -0.25 Self-conscious emotions 2.94 0.73 2.95 0.83 -0.33, 0.32 -0.05
The behavioural intention of participants who had seen the video with DiCaprio (M = 4.55, SD = 1.02) does not differ significantly from that of respondents who had not seen DiCaprio (M = 4.49, SD = 0.89); t (88) = -0.25, p = .802, 95% CI [-0.45, 0.35]. The difference in the self-conscious emotional experience of people from the celebrity condition (M = 2.94, SD = 0.73) and people from the no celebrity condition (M = 2.95, SD = 0.83) is also not significant; t (88) = -0.05, p = .958, 95% CI [-0.33, 0.32]. These results suggest that celebrity endorsement does not have any significant effect on participants’ self-conscious emotions and behavioural intentions about climate change in my experiment.
Effects of identification
To test hypothesis 1, a four-stage hierarchical multiple regression was conducted with Behavioural Intention as the dependent variable. Age and Gender as demographic variables were entered at stage 1 of the regression. The Identification variable was entered at stage 2, Pre-existing attitude (measured before exposure to the stimuli) at stage 3 and Pre-existing behavioural intention (measured before exposure to the stimuli) at stage 4.
Table 2 shows that neither gender nor identification was a significant predictor of behavioural intention at any stage. According to hypothesis 1, identification affects the relationship
16 between celebrity endorsement and behavioural intention about climate change. This result, however, does not support this hypothesis.
Table 2. Summary of hierarchical regression analysis for variables predicting behavioural intention
about climate change
Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4
Variable B SE B SE B SE B SE Age -0.18 0.32 -0.23 0.36 -0.02 0.30 -0.47* 0.17 Gender 0.29 0.40 0.31 0.41 0.15 0.34 0.20 0.19 Identification -0.05 0.18 -0.03 0.14 -0.09 0.08 Pre-existing attitude 0.73*** 0.16 0.07 0.11 Pre-existing behaviour 0.76*** 0.08 R2 0.02 0.02 0.37 0.81 ΔR2 0.02 0.00 0.35 0.44 F for change in R2 0.41 0.08 21.86*** 87.91***
Note: Gender was coded as 0 = male, 1 = female. Age was coded as 0 = 18-24, 1 = over 24.
N=44. * p <.05. ** p <.01. *** p <.001.
Adding the variable Pre-existing attitude to the regression model explains an addition 35,1% of variation in behavioural intention and this change in R2 is significant, F (1,39) = 21.86, p <.001. Finally, an addition of the variable Pre-existing behaviour intention explains an addition 43,8% of variation in behavioural intention and this change in R2 is also significant, F (1,38) = 87.91, p <.001. These results can explain why exposure to celebrity endorsement and
Effects of self-conscious emotions
To test hypothesis 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d, multiple regression analyses were conducted to assess each component of the proposed mediation model. I used Hayes’s (2017) PROCESS Macro in SPSS to conduct the analysis.
Figure 2. The results of the multiple mediations testing the effects of celebrity endorsement on
behavioural intention about climate change via self-conscious emotions. N = 90. *p < .05.
Figure 2 shows an insignificant effect of celebrity endorsement on behavioural intention via conscious emotions. There is also no significant effect of celebrity endorsement on self-conscious emotions, which was not unexpected considering the results from previous parts. The findings, however, confirm that guilt significantly affected behavioural intention about climate change (b = 0.3, SE = 0.13, p<0.05). In this case, four hypotheses about self-conscious emotions were not supported.
Effects of age
According to hypothesis 3, the effects of celebrity endorsement on behavioural intention are more significant among participants aged from 18 to 24 than those over 24 years old. To test this hypothesis, I conducted a multiple regression analysis with two predictors (age and
18 control and treatment condition) and one dependent variable (behavioural intention). The results showed that age had no significant effect on the relationship between celebrity
endorsement and behavioural intention (b = -.134, SE = .21, p = .514). Therefore, hypothesis 3 is not supported.
Discussion
This study was carried out to test the extent to which celebrity endorsement affects
behavioural intentions about climate change. A group of participants, exposed to two videos having a celebrity and framed in such a way as to appeal a sense of self identification, was tested against a group exposed to a news-format content. The results were analysed to
evaluate the effectiveness of celebrity endorsement and to uncover to what extent effects
were transmitted by self-identification with the celebrity or by self-conscious emotions, and whether age plays a role in this process.
I based my argument on the premises that celebrity endorsement can influence the process of
constructing identity through either identification with the celebrity or experiencing self-conscious emotions, and subsequently motivate behavioural intention. Overall, the findings show no significant effect of celebrity endorsement. The results from the treatment group also
show no strong evidence for the effects of identification on behavioural intention. Pre-existing attitudes and behavioural intention are only significant indicators that direct one’s subsequent
behavioural intention after exposure to a celebrity endorsement. As for self-conscious
emotions, the data show that they do not mediate the effects of celebrity endorsement. Only guilt is found to significantly affect behaviour intention. These results raise the general
questions of the effectiveness of using celebrities to promote behavioural intention towards climate change.
Meaning transfer theory
First, the results challenge the utility of McCracken’s (1989) meaning transfer theory in the
perceptions of climate change. The theory was primarily developed in the field of consumer research in which the focus is consumer goods and material culture. McCracken (1986) even compared goods with language in the way that the world of goods is “always more
forthcoming and more revealing” (p.74). From this perspective, the meanings transferred from
celebrities to goods are, therefore, less arbitrary. In contrast, language plays a major role in conveying climate change to the public. It shapes how we define, interpret and react to the
issues. A recent example of increased attention to the role of language in communicating climate change is set by the UK’s Guardian newspaper when they decided to adjust the
language about climate change (Carrington, 2019). Considering the complexity and
continuous changes in language, it can be more challenging for a celebrity endorsement to be effective if the message is not unable to be transferred to goods or tangible things. In this
study, the messages delivered by Leonardo DiCaprio were to raise awareness and call for more general actions but not specifically aiming at any concrete idea (as compared with the
meanings of goods). This begs the question of whether the persuasiveness of celebrity endorsement in the domain of climate change can go beyond pro-environmental consumption
(Alexander, 2013; Jacobsen, 2011).
Group identity versus individual identity
Because the findings only confirm significant effects of prior attitudes and behaviours, it is
possible that motivated reasoning occurs in which people use prior knowledge and beliefs to rationalise the correctness of their position. Studies confirmed the role of motivated reasoning
20 within the context of climate change (Hart & Nisbet, 2011; Kahan et al., 2012), but it is mostly examined in regard to group identity (in-group versus out-group membership). From this
regard, it gives us a possible explanation for the findings. It is likely that self-identification with one group has more effects on behaviour intention than with an individual, especially in a
complex topic that has been polarised (Dunlap & McCright, 2008; McCright & Dunlap, 2011). If that is the case, we can reason that the success of celebrity endorsement depends on
whether the celebrity is regarded as part of the group (i.e. groups of environmental activists, groups of laypeople, etc.). On assessing how climate change communication can be
improved, Nerlich et al. (2010) raised an issue called the “public understanding of science model” in which there is an assumption that “the public was seen as being in need of
education from experts and that knowledge and consensus would increase as a result of more effective public engagement on the part of scientists” (p.99). This perspective stemming from
a superior position can lead to one-way dialogues instead of a mutual understanding from
both sides. It is here that using celebrities in climate change issues can be a double-edged sword. On one hand, the omnipresence of celebrities in society today can draw the public’s
attention to the issue that was previously restricted in the scientific community. On the other hand, celebrities can appear to belong to the elite group which do not represent the laypeople
and get backfired (see more Goodman & Littler, 2013). For this study, it is possible that
participants did not see Leonardo DiCaprio as their representative. It can be due to
perceptions of class and cultural norms which were not tested. The success of young Swedish
strikes (Watts, 2019) can set an example for the power of a representative voice for a generation group.
Self-conscious emotions
What is notable in the results is that guilt is a significant predictor of behavioural intention
toward climate change. While the data do not support its mediating role between celebrity endorsement and behavioural intention, they confirm guilt as a strong emotional motivator for
subsequent corrective actions. This result again emphasises the crucial role of emotions in engaging and mobilising people. Theoretically, pride is also expected to encourage
pro-environmental behaviours. However, because the survey question measuring self-conscious
emotions in the study are directed towards climate change, it is unlikely that people feel pride thinking about climate change. This result, despite not supporting the hypothesis, paves the
new way for climate change communication. Studies about emotions in motivating public engagement in climate change have been mostly centred around basic emotions, especially
fear and hope (Nabi et al., 2018; Ojala, 2015; O'Neill & Nicholson-Cole, 2009). However, there’s also a suggestion that emotion-based appeals should be oriented toward
self-conscious emotions to promote more sustainable behaviours (Ejelöv et al., 2018). As discussed above, self-conscious emotions require self-awareness and self-reflection which
might be more suitable for dealing with risks that seem abstract and distant with the public.
However, like any emotion, they should be treated with caution. One of the special features of self-conscious emotions is that they play a crucial role in the interpersonal relationships and
therefore can be interpreted differently among variations of cultural norms. Tracy & Robins (2007a) pointed out that the degree to which a person experiences shame or guilt depends on
22 which cultural environment the self is located in (individualism versus collectivism). Therefore, in the context of this study, it is possible that celebrity endorsement could not induce any
self-conscious emotion significantly.
Practical implications and suggestions for future studies
It is worth noting that there will be no one-size approach to climate change issues. There is no direct correlation between a means of communication and behavioural intention. Ockwell et al.
(2009) especially emphasised how common communication approaches failed to take implicit values and emotions into account. Therefore, when using celebrities to motivate the public to
act against climate change, the messages should be specific about certain meaning-making
activities and tailored to the segmented audience. If the goal is to call for massive, collective action, it might not ideal to use a single celebrity. To address the concerns of
individual-oriented solutions, it would be possible that grouping a large number of celebrities can create a more significant effect. It was the recent case as 200 celebrities, artists and scientists in the
world signed an open letter to the French daily newspaper Le Monde demanding more
political action to address climate change (Le Monde, 2018). This can inspire future studies on
the potential effects of collective celebrity endorsement on behavioural intention.
To balance the demand of both an urgent shift in behavioural intention about climate change
and a long-term vision, focusing on self-conscious emotions appears a good approach.
those who were already environmentally-aware5. Further research is needed to find out how to engage people with less concern about climate change.
Limitations
This study has certain limitations. First, due to the limited period of time, half of participants
(n=45) were required to answer their posttest questionnaire right after the pretest. It occurred because a large number of participants did not respond to the second online survey after two
weeks. This was expected to affect the posttest results.
Second, there is also a concern for the experiment length for participants in the treatment
group. While two videos (which last approximately 5 minutes in total) were used to induce a
sense of identification with the celebrity, they potentially caused distraction and information overload for respondents.
Third, due to time pressure, I decided to leave out many demographic questions and manipulation checks to ensure the experiment would not take long. It explains the limited
scope of this study in which cultural factors were not taken into consideration.
Despite these limitations, this current study raises the questions of effects of celebrity
endorsement on behavioural intention and provides much needed evidence to support the essential roles of self-conscious emotion in the domain of climate change communication.
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Control group
[Narrator]:
The natural balance of our planet is changing. Beijing is getting choked by industrial pollution. In India, crops have been literally washed away by historic flooding. In the US, there have been unprecedented droughts in California and sea level rise flooded the streets of Miami. In Greenland and the Arctic, ancient glaciers are rapidly disappearing well ahead of scientific predictions. Rainforests in Indonesia have been incinerated. There is no doubt in the world's scientific community that there is a direct result of human activity and the effects of climate change will become astronomically worse in the future. Our planet cannot be saved unless we leave fossil fuels in the ground where they belong. Now think about the shame that each of us will carry when our children and grandchildren look back and realise that we have the means of stopping this devastation but simply lack the political will to do something. Yes, we have achieved the Paris agreement and more countries have come together to sign this agreement today than for any other cause in the history of humankind. And that is the reason for hope. Unfortunately, the evidence shows us that will not be enough. One massive change is required right now. One that leads to a new collective consciousness. A new collective evolution of the human race inspired and enabled by a sense of urgency. Now is the time for bold, unprecedented action. It is time to declare no more talk. No more excuses. No more ten-year studies. No more allowing the fossil fuel companies to manipulate and dictate the science and policies that affect our future. You will be either be lauded by future generations or vilified by them. You are the last best hope of the Earth.
Video 1:
[Leonardo DiCaprio]
Being an actor is the first thing that I remember wanting to do in life. I remember…14 15 years old, watching some classical films and being so incredibly inspired by them and saying to myself: “One day I want to come close to doing something that good”. So, I think that that thirst or that drive to just achieve what I believe is something as good as those heroes that I have is what continues to make me want to do this. What gives me strength all the time is to be able to have formulated a group of people around me that are my friends and my family. Those two words are meshed in my opinion but it’s given me a grounding that, as insane as my life can be sometimes, is always refreshing and they are always so honest with me and I’m so thankful for that. I came from humble beginnings. I went to public school, but I always had loving parents. Both of my parents are unbelievable, so I was incredibly fortune in that regard, but my father is one of the wisest men I’ve ever met and he has stirred the course of my life in so many different directions in a positive way. Whether it be my environmental activism, who I believe I am as a person and as an actor is completely influenced by him. It was that year of rejection where I finally said to my… I suppose I took a different attitude towards that audition process and I started to get jobs after that. And I think it was really because I said to myself “I’m not dependent on this job. This isn’t going to define me.” And I started to sell myself less, prepare more for the roles and not feel like myself worth was dependent on whether I booked the job or not.
[Leonardo DiCaprio]:
As a UN messenger of peace, I have travelled all over the world for the last two years documenting how this crisis is changing the natural balance of our planet. I have seen cities like Beijing choked by industrial pollution. Ancient boreal forests in Canada that have been clear-cut and rainforests in Indonesia that have been incinerated. In India I met farmers whose crops have been literally washed away by historic flooding. In America, I’ve witnessed unprecedented droughts in California and sea level rise flooding the streets of Miami. In Greenland and in the Arctic, I was astonished to see that ancient glaciers are rapidly disappearing well ahead of scientific predictions. All that I have seen and learned on my journey has absolutely terrified me. There is no doubt in the world's scientific community that there is a direct result of human activity and the effects of climate change will become astronomically worse in the future. Our planet cannot be saved unless we leave fossil fuels in the ground where they belong. Now think about the shame that each of us will carry when our children and grandchildren look back and realise that we have the means of stopping this devastation but simply lack the political will to do so. Yes, we have achieved the Paris agreement. More countries have come together to sign this agreement today than for any other cause in the history of humankind and that is the reason for hope. Unfortunately, the evidence shows us that will not be enough. One massive change is required right now. One that leads to a new collective consciousness. A new collective evolution of the human race inspired and enabled by a sense of urgency from all of you. We can congratulate each other today but it will mean absolutely nothing if you return to your countries and failed to put beyond the promises of this historic agreement. Now is the time for bold, unprecedented action. It is time to declare no more talk. No more excuses. No more ten-year studies. No more allowing the fossil fuel companies to manipulate and dictate the science and policies that affect our future. The world is now watching. You will be either be lauded by future generations or vilified by them. You are the last best hope of Earth. We can you to protect it, or we and all living things we cherish, are history.
How green are you 1?
Start of Block: Block 1Dear participant,
I would like to invite you to participate in a research study to be conducted under the auspices of the Graduate School of Communication, a part of the University of Amsterdam.
For this study, you will be asked to fill out two online questionnaires. First, there will be several questions about your opinions and behaviours related to climate change. A few days later, you will be asked to watch one or two videos and answer some follow-up questions. The
questionnaires will take about 10 minutes in total. The goal of this research is to generate insight into the young voters' opinions about climate change and their behaviours towards environmental policies.
As this research is being carried out under the responsibility of the ASCoR, University of Amsterdam, we can guarantee that:
1) Your anonymity will be safeguarded, and that your personal information will not be passed on to third parties under any conditions, unless you first give your express permission for this. 2) You can refuse to participate in the research or cut short your participation without having to give a reason for doing so. You also have up to 24 hours after participating to withdraw your permission to allow your answers or data to be used in the research.
3) Participating in the research will not entail your being subjected to any appreciable risk or discomfort, the researchers will not deliberately mislead you, and you will not be exposed to any explicitly offensive material.
For more information about the research and the invitation to participate, you are welcome to contact me at thuy.phan@student.uva.nl at any time.
Should you have any complaints or comments about the course of the research and the procedures it involves as a consequence of your participation in this research, you can contact the designated member of the Ethics Committee representing ASCoR, at the following address: ASCoR Secretariat, Ethics Committee, University of Amsterdam, Postbus 15793, 1001
NG Amsterdam; 020‐525 3680; ascor‐secr‐fmg@uva.nl.
Any complaints or comments will be treated in the strictest confidence. I hope that I have provided you with sufficient information. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you in advance for your assistance with this research, which I greatly appreciate.
Kind regards, Dung Phan
