LAUSR

ABSTRACT Environmental organizations have become increasingly interested in identifying groups in the general population that understand scientific issues in an internally cohesive way. However segmenting these groups empirically is contingent on employing metrics with high levels of reliability and validity, and many existing metrics are dated or make assumptions about what constitutes pro-environmental attitudes. This research project explores the heterogeneous worldviews of a non-random sample of contemporary environmentalists. Through the use of surveys and repertory grid interviews, research participants were differentiated into sub-groups based on their attitudes towards nature’s resilience, locus of control, catastrophism, and faith in technology. While cognizant of the potentially instrumentalist nature of audience segmentations, this study is descriptive rather than normative. As environmental organizations seek to communicate science more effectively, this study reveals how subgroups of environmentalists make sense of existing problems and challenges and why recognizing these differences can facilitate progress in achieving social change goals.