Who is the ‘public’ when it comes to public opinion on energy? A mixed-methods study of revealed and elicited public attitudes to shale gas extraction

Lorraine Whitmarsh (Lead / Corresponding author), Yu Shuang Gan, Patrick Devine-Wright, Darrick Evensen, Jen Dickie, Irena Connon, Adam Varley, Stacia Ryder, Phil Bartie

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Abstract

Shale gas is a contentious energy source. Yet, ‘imagined’ notions of the public (for example, NIMBYs) rarely reflect the reality of public opinion. We use an inductive, empirical approach to define UK publics in relation to shale gas extraction, drawing on multiple data sources (social media, a national survey, and two local surveys) and composite measures. Cluster analyses and thematic coding reveal a diversity of responses ranging from active opposition, through ambivalence, to active support. The number of communities varies by data source and analytical method, but across all datasets we see more opposition than support. Across all datasets, political views were an important lens through which shale gas was understood. Our findings have implications for how developers and policy-makers engage with the public, and expose limitations of pre-defined notions of the public that may not reflect empirical realities.

Original languageEnglish
Article number103840
JournalEnergy Research and Social Science
Volume119
Early online date19 Nov 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2025

Keywords

  • Fracking
  • Imagined publics
  • Public attitudes
  • Segmentation
  • Shale gas

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
  • Nuclear Energy and Engineering
  • Fuel Technology
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Social Sciences (miscellaneous)

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