Browsing by Author "Belland, Stephanie"
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Item Climate change in the 2019 Canadian federal election(2021) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, Stephanie; Sleptcov, Nikita; Larsson, Anders OlofIn the weeks before the 2019 federal election, climate change strikes occurred in Canada and across the globe, which may have increased the salience of this policy issue. We use two data sources to examine the role of climate change in the 2019 federal election: a representative survey of 1500 Canadians and 2109 Facebook posts from the five major party leaders. After accounting for political ideology and region, we find that concern about climate change was a strong positive predictor of liberal support. We triangulate these findings by analyzing Facebook posts. We find that left-wing politicians were more likely to post about climate change and that posts about climate change received more likes, comments, and shares than other posts. This higher level of user engagement did not differ depending on which political party posted the climate change message. The combination of sources offers news insights into citizen-elite interactions and electoral outcomes. Climate change was important in the election, whether this importance was measured through survey data or user engagement with leaders’ climate change posts.Item Climate denial in Canada and the United States(2022) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, StephanieOne type of climate change denial is the belief that climate change is naturally occurring instead of human caused; this form of denial is known as attribution skepticism or soft denial. While considerable research has addressed outright climate change denial, little research has focused specifically on soft denial and its complex and politicized relationship with science. We examine this form of denial using original survey data collected in 2017 in the United States (n = 1510) and in 2019 in Canada (n = 1545). Contrary to expectations about the United States being more divided by political ideology on the topic of climate change, we find that – after accounting for trust in political leaders – Canadians’ views are driven more by ideological position than those of Americans. In the United States, climate denial is related to trust in President Trump as a source of information about climate change. The study of soft denial is important as it undermines the rationale for climate change solutions.Item Comment signaler la désinformation sur les plateformes de médias sociaux(2021) Friesen, Kelsey; Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, StephanieCes infographies offrent des instructions étape par étape sur la façon de signaler des informations erronées sur Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, Reddit, Snapchat, YouTube et TikTok. Cette infographie met également en évidence les principales conclusions d'une enquête dans quatre pays (États-Unis, Royaume-Uni, France, Canada) en février 2021.Item How to report misinformation on social media platforms(2021) Friesen, Kelsey; Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, StephanieThese infographics offer step by step instructions about how to report misinformation on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, Reddit, Snapchat, YouTube, and TikTok. This infographic also highlights key findings from a four-country (USA, UK, France, Canada) survey conducted in February 2021.Item La mésinformation sur les plateformes de médias sociaux et dans différents pays(2021) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, Stephanie; Tenove, Chris; Friesen, KelseyL’exposition des citoyens à la mésinformation en ligne et leur réaction constituent des sujets de préoccupation importants, surtout lorsque des informations intentionnellement fausses sont susceptibles de nuire à la confiance en des procédés démocratiques clés (p. ex. les élections) et de perturber les efforts de santé publique pour la gestion de la pandémie de COVID-19, causant ainsi des décès évitables. En 2019 et en 2021, nous avons collecté des données d’enquête dans quatre pays : le Canada, la France, le Royaume-Uni et les États-Unis.Item Misinformation across social media platforms and across countries(2021) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, Stephanie; Tenove, Chris; Friesen, KelseyCitizens’ exposure and reaction to online misinformation are important concerns, particularly when intentionally false information can undermine faith in key democratic processes (e.g., elections) and disrupt public health efforts to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in unnecessary deaths. In 2019 and 2021, we collected survey data in four countries: Canada, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States.Item The portrayal of climate change in the Edmonton Journal(2018) Belland, Stephanie; Boulianne, ShelleyThe presentation will detail the results of a content analysis of Edmonton Journal articles that examines the publication's portrayal of climate change from 2013 - 2016. Articles were coded for valence (whether climate change was portrayed positively or negatively), voice (which actors were given the opportunity to discuss the issue), scope (if the issue was emphasized as being a local versus global problem), skepticism (support versus denial of climate change as being an issue), and responsibility (who should be acting to resolve the climate change issue). Results for valence, responsibility, and skepticism will be discussed autonomously, but also within the context of current political attitudes in North America regarding climate change. Limitations of the study as well as ideas and implications for future research will also be addressed. Content analysis research began as an independent study and was completed with the USRI grant under the supervision of Dr. Shelley Boulianne.Item Principales conclusions: désinformation sur les plateformes de médias sociaux et dans tous les pays(2021) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, Stephanie; Tenove, Chris; Friesen, KelseyCette infographie met en évidence les principales conclusions d'une enquête dans quatre pays (États-Unis, Royaume-Uni, France, Canada) en février 2021.Item Report highlights: Misinformation across social media platforms and across countries(2021) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, Stephanie; Tenove, Chris; Friesen, KelseyThis infographic highlights key findings from a four-country (USA, UK, France, Canada) survey conducted in February 2021.Item Unknown cost: the psychological implications of animal rescue work(2020) Belland, Stephanie; Legge, EricTens of thousands of abandoned and orphaned animals are taken in by rescue organizations across Canada every year. These animals are then rehabilitated by caring individuals who often work as volunteers. While the plight of the animals and the financial toll associated with their rescue is made clear through aid requests by organizations, very little attention has been paid to the effect this work has on the humans involved (Englefield, Starling, & McGreevy, 2018). Research has revealed that animal health care professionals (AHCPs), such as veterinarians, experience higher-than-average levels of psychological distress due to the nature of their work (Nett et al., 2015; Polachek & Wallace, 2018). Animal rescue workers (ARWs) experience many of the same stressors as AHCPs, and what little research has examined ARWs suggests that the psychological consequences they face may be even more severe (Figley & Roop, 2006). Our study was designed to systematically examine the work-related stressors and associated mental health ramifications of animal rescue workers across Canada. As predicted, we found significant correlations between respondent scores on measures of depression, compassion fatigue (which includes secondary traumatic stress and burnout), and trauma. Furthermore, scores on some measures were correlated with the types of animals rescued, and the tasks that ARWs performed. Overall then, our research demonstrates that depending on the stressors that they are exposed to, individuals who work in animal rescue within Canada are at risk of experiencing detrimental psychological outcomes associated with their work.Item Who matters in climate change discourse in Alberta(2019) Boulianne, Shelley; Belland, StephanieClimate change is major global policy issue. The news media play a vital role in conveying information about climate change to the public, giving voice to a variety of perspectives as well as outlining policy responses to this issue. However, the growing distrust of news media could lead to dire outcomes on the public's knowledge and policy support related to climate change. This paper uses a mixed method approach (random digit dialing survey, content analysis of newspaper articles) to examine information sources used in learning about climate change, whose voices are presented in climate change discourse, and whose voices are trusted. While news media are the most popular source of information about climate change (n=1207), only half of respondents reported trusting the news media. Scientists are the most trusted source of information (n=1208) and most cited source in news coverage (n=48). Their messages focus on the sources of climate change and the seriousness of this problem. Scientists' messages about climate change are clouded by high levels of distrust in the news media, the primary venue through which their messages are conveyed. In this context, climate change knowledge, level of concern, and support for public policies may suffer.