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Promoting individual adaptation to extreme heat weather events: the role of affective and socio-cognitive factors in situational appraisals of challenge or threat
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Authors
Abstract(s)
Eventos climatéricos de calor extremo, como as ondas de calor, representam uma
preocupação crescente para agências e autoridades de saúde, principalmente devido aos
impactos destes eventos na saúde e bem-estar. Num cenário de alterações climáticas, espera-se
que as ondas de calor se tornem mais frequentes, intensas, e duradouras, com maior
probabilidade de ocorrência de crises de saúde pública. Para promover intenções e
comportamentos de proteção face ao calor, e facilitar a resposta institucional, é necessário um
melhor entendimento sobre o modo como as pessoas percecionam esses eventos.
Neste contexto, a presente Tese de Doutoramento teve como objetivo explorar e
compreender melhor as perceções de exigências face a ondas de calor e recursos para lidar com
estas, os efeitos que fatores cognitivos, afetivos, e sociodemográficos têm nessas perceções, e
o seu efeito combinado nas intenções de proteção face ao calor.
Após uma Introdução no Capítulo I, no Capítulo II reportamos o desenvolvimento de
uma abordagem baseada na teoria e na evidência científica para recolher e codificar expressões
relativas à perceção de exigências e recursos face a ondas de calor, permitindo identificar essas
perceções, e conceções enviesadas das mesmas. Este trabalho permitiu ainda criar escalas de
exigências e recursos percebidos usadas nos estudos seguintes.
No Capítulo III reportamos os efeitos que diferentes pistas emocionais (i.e., pensar sobre
eventos climatéricos de calor extremo com pista emocional positiva, negativa, ou sem pista)
tiveram nas: 1) estimativas de temperatura e agradabilidade; 2) intenções de proteção face ao
calor; 3) avaliações de recursos e exigências face a ondas de calor; e 4) descrições – número –
associadas a perceções de exigências e recursos. Isto permitiu ainda compreender se resultados
obtidos em estudos no Reino Unido seriam replicados em Portugal.
No Capítulo IV reportamos a identificação de preditores cognitivos (e.g., perceção de
risco face ao calor), afetivos (e.g., afeto positivo), e sociodemográficos das perceções de
exigências e recursos, bem como o seu efeito combinado nas intenções de proteção face ao
calor durante uma onda de calor em Portugal. Isto permitiu propor um modelo de análise de
trajetórias baseado na teoria, ilustrativo das interligações entre fatores.
No Capítulo V reportamos a identificação de variações sazonais nas perceções de
exigências e recursos face a ondas de calor em localizações geográficas de Portugal com
diferentes níveis de suscetibilidade à ocorrência desses eventos, bem como de preditores dessa
variação. A relação entre exigências e recursos percebidos foi usada como um indicador do
sentimento de ameaça e stress face a ondas de calor.
No geral, este trabalho permitiu um melhor entendimento das perceções de exigências
e recursos face a ondas de calor, enquanto indicador de ameaça e stress, ao longo do tempo e
em diferentes localizações geográficas de Portugal. Este representa assim um primeiro passo
para a criação e implementação de uma abordagem integrada para monitorizar perceções de
exigências e recursos ao nível individual e social, ao longo do tempo e em diferentes contextos.
Isto pode ter impactos práticos e teóricos relevantes, para que eventos futuros possam ser
avaliados mais como um desafio.
Extreme hot weather events such as heat waves have been an increasingly growing concern for health agencies and authorities over the last years, mainly due to its severe impacts on human health and wellbeing. In a scenario of climate change, heat waves are expected to become more frequent, intense, and long lasting, with greater probability of public health crisis emerging as result of changing environmental factors. As such, better understanding of how people perceive these events is needed to promote protection intentions and behaviours and facilitate current and future institutional responses. In this context, the current Doctoral Thesis aimed to explore and better understand the perceived demands associated with heat waves and the perceived resources to cope with these, the effects that cognitive, affective, and sociodemographic factors have on such perceptions, and their combined effects on heat protection intentions. After an Introduction in Chapter I, in Chapter II, we report the development of a theorydriven framework to collect and code expressions of demands and resources perceptions in the context of heat waves, allowing the identification of these perceptions, as well as potential misconceptions held by participants in Portugal, a country highly susceptible heat waves occurrence. This work allowed creating demands and resources perceptions scales used in subsequent studies. In Chapter III, we report the effects that emotional prompts (i.e., thinking about extreme hot weather events with a positive emotion prompt, negative emotion prompt, or without an emotion prompt) had on: 1) temperature estimates and perception of pleasantness associated with extreme hot weather events; 2) heat wave protection intentions; 3) extreme hot weather events demands and resources appraisals; and 4) the number of verbal descriptions of demands and resources perceptions made by the participants. This further enabled understanding if the results obtained in studies in the United Kingdom would replicate in Portugal. In Chapter IV, we report the identification of cognitive (e.g., heat wave risk perception), affective (e.g., positive affect about heat), and sociodemographic predictors of demands and resources perceptions and their combined effects on heat protection intentions during a heat wave in Portugal. In doing so, we propose a broader theory-driven path analysis model further illustrating the interconnections between factors. In Chapter V, we report the identification of seasonal variations in heat wave demands and resources perceptions, across different heat wave geographical susceptibility locations of Portugal, as an indicator of heat wave feelings of threat and stress, as well as predictors of such variation. Overall, this work enabled better understanding of perceived demands and available coping resources, as indicators of threat and stress, associated with extreme hot weather events such as heat waves, over time and across different geographical susceptibility locations in Portugal. Moreover, it provided a first step at creating and implementing an integrated approach for monitoring demands and resources perceptions at the individual and social levels, and across different contexts. This may have relevant impacts for theory and practice, so that future events can be appraised more as a challenge.
Extreme hot weather events such as heat waves have been an increasingly growing concern for health agencies and authorities over the last years, mainly due to its severe impacts on human health and wellbeing. In a scenario of climate change, heat waves are expected to become more frequent, intense, and long lasting, with greater probability of public health crisis emerging as result of changing environmental factors. As such, better understanding of how people perceive these events is needed to promote protection intentions and behaviours and facilitate current and future institutional responses. In this context, the current Doctoral Thesis aimed to explore and better understand the perceived demands associated with heat waves and the perceived resources to cope with these, the effects that cognitive, affective, and sociodemographic factors have on such perceptions, and their combined effects on heat protection intentions. After an Introduction in Chapter I, in Chapter II, we report the development of a theorydriven framework to collect and code expressions of demands and resources perceptions in the context of heat waves, allowing the identification of these perceptions, as well as potential misconceptions held by participants in Portugal, a country highly susceptible heat waves occurrence. This work allowed creating demands and resources perceptions scales used in subsequent studies. In Chapter III, we report the effects that emotional prompts (i.e., thinking about extreme hot weather events with a positive emotion prompt, negative emotion prompt, or without an emotion prompt) had on: 1) temperature estimates and perception of pleasantness associated with extreme hot weather events; 2) heat wave protection intentions; 3) extreme hot weather events demands and resources appraisals; and 4) the number of verbal descriptions of demands and resources perceptions made by the participants. This further enabled understanding if the results obtained in studies in the United Kingdom would replicate in Portugal. In Chapter IV, we report the identification of cognitive (e.g., heat wave risk perception), affective (e.g., positive affect about heat), and sociodemographic predictors of demands and resources perceptions and their combined effects on heat protection intentions during a heat wave in Portugal. In doing so, we propose a broader theory-driven path analysis model further illustrating the interconnections between factors. In Chapter V, we report the identification of seasonal variations in heat wave demands and resources perceptions, across different heat wave geographical susceptibility locations of Portugal, as an indicator of heat wave feelings of threat and stress, as well as predictors of such variation. Overall, this work enabled better understanding of perceived demands and available coping resources, as indicators of threat and stress, associated with extreme hot weather events such as heat waves, over time and across different geographical susceptibility locations in Portugal. Moreover, it provided a first step at creating and implementing an integrated approach for monitoring demands and resources perceptions at the individual and social levels, and across different contexts. This may have relevant impacts for theory and practice, so that future events can be appraised more as a challenge.
Description
Tese apresentada para cumprimento dos
requisitos necessários à obtenção do grau de
Doutor em Psicologia apresentada no ISPA – Instituto
Universitário, no ano de 2022.
Keywords
Exigências e recursos Ameaça e stress Adaptação e sesiliência Ondas de calor Demands and resources Threat and stress