(Press-News.org) In a world increasingly aware of the environmental challenges posed by microplastics, a pioneering study conducted by Ruxandra Malina Petrescu-Mag from Babes-Bolyai University, and published in PeerJ Life & Environment, sheds new light on the impact of media narratives on public perception and awareness of microplastic risks.
Microplastics - tiny plastic particles that pollute both terrestrial and marine ecosystems - have garnered significant scientific, media, and public attention in recent years. However, this study reveals a lack of consensus between the scientific community and the media, particularly when it comes to how the risks associated with microplastics are portrayed and perceived over time.
"The Influence of Media Narratives on Microplastics Risk Perception" addresses a critical need for a better understanding of the social aspects surrounding microplastics, including the factors that influence public awareness and risk perception.
In the quest for answers, the study pursued two primary objectives. Firstly, it investigated whether media narratives had an impact on the awareness of microplastics among the Romanian population. Secondly, it delved into the influence of media narratives on how Romanians perceived the health and environmental risks associated with microplastics.
In an online survey of 417 respondents from Romania, participants were asked a series of 21 questions designed to gauge their awareness of microplastics, their perception of the health and environmental risks, their exposure to media narratives regarding microplastics, and demographic information. The study then employed binary logistic regression to identify the specific media narratives that played a significant role in influencing awareness and risk perception.
Key findings of the study demonstrated that media narratives play a pivotal role in shaping public awareness. Notably, the media narrative "Microplastics in the sea threaten fish stocks" was found to significantly influence the awareness of microplastics. This means that as the exposure to this narrative increased, so did the awareness of microplastics among the surveyed population. Additionally, the study observed that age had a positive correlation with increased awareness of microplastics, further emphasizing the influence of media in shaping public perception.
Moreover, the perceived health risk associated with microplastics was heavily influenced by the media narrative "Leakage of harmful chemicals from microplastics affects the soil." These findings underscore the growing importance of media narratives in shaping public awareness and perceptions of environmental and health risks. With the mass media's expanding role in shaping public perception regarding health and environmental issues, this study reaffirms the need for accurate and balanced reporting on microplastics.
The research suggests that providing the public with clear and accurate information on microplastic risks is crucial to combat misinformation and foster informed decision-making. Furthermore, by gaining a better understanding of public perceptions, it becomes possible to design targeted interventions to reduce plastic consumption, ultimately mitigating the risks associated with microplastic pollution, with profound benefits for both human health and the environment.
This study published in PeerJ Life & Environment represents a significant step forward in understanding the dynamics of media narratives on microplastics. It offers a valuable foundation for future research and policymaking, as the world grapples with the increasingly pressing issue of plastic pollution.
END
The influence of media narratives on microplastics risk perception revealed
2023-11-02
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
TU Delft researchers discover new ultra strong material for microchip sensors
2023-11-02
Researchers at Delft University of Technology, led by assistant professor Richard Norte, have unveiled a remarkable new material with potential to impact the world of material science: amorphous silicon carbide (a-SiC). Beyond its exceptional strength, this material demonstrates mechanical properties crucial for vibration isolation on a microchip. Amorphous silicon carbide is therefore particularly suitable for making ultra-sensitive microchip sensors.
The range of potential applications is vast. From ultra-sensitive microchip sensors and advanced solar ...
Buzz around new centralized pollination portal for better global bee data
2023-11-02
A powerful new way to fill major gaps in public bee data – including from Africa, Asia and other under-reported zones – has been addressed with a centralised tool for consolidating bee pollinator occurrences around the globe.
Called BeeBCD, the package outlined in a new Nature journal article, brings together more than 18 million bee occurrence records from multiple public and private databases to improve accuracy and accessibility of species data from around the world for future conservation, research and farming management.
The rationalised bee occurrence datasets will help support future plant and crop production ...
What a “2D” quantum superfluid feels like to the touch
2023-11-02
Researchers from Lancaster University in the UK have discovered how superfluid helium 3He would feel if you could put your hand into it.
The interface between the exotic world of quantum physics and classical physics of the human experience is one of the major open problems in modern physics.
Dr Samuli Autti is the lead author of the research published in Nature Communications.
Dr Autti said: “In practical terms, we don’t know the answer to the question ‘how does it feel to touch quantum physics?’
“These experimental conditions are extreme and the techniques complicated, but I can now tell ...
NIH grants support UCLA and Charles Drew University researchers' efforts to end HIV epidemic
2023-11-02
NIH grants support UCLA and Charles Drew University researchers' efforts to end HIV epidemic
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has granted $2.1 million to UCLA’s Center for HIV Identification, Prevention, and Treatment Services (CHIPTS) and the UCLA-CDU Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) to support four research projects and an implementation science consultation hub. These awards will fund projects to strengthen research-community collaborations and enhance implementation strategies needed for the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative.
“These awards will support our scientists and ...
AI trained to identify least green homes by Cambridge researchers
2023-11-02
University of Cambridge media release
First of its kind AI-model can help policy-makers efficiently identify and prioritize houses for retrofitting and other decarbonizing measures.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Model identified ‘hard to decarbonize’ houses with 90% precision and additional data will improve this.
Model trained with open source data including from energy performance certificates, and street and aerial view images. It could be used anywhere in the world.
Model can even identify specific parts of houses losing most heat, including roofs and windows.
‘Hard-to-decarbonize’ (HtD) houses are responsible ...
EU MiFID II unbundling rules damaged research and liquidity in London’s main stock market – new study
2023-11-02
New research from the University of Bath shows the European Union’s MiFID II financial market reforms inadvertently reduced research activity and adversely affected liquidity in London’s main stock market but that the impact on London’s less regulated Alternative Investment Market was mitigated by its special adviser rules.
The EU’s Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II (MiFID II) from 2018 aimed to improve transparency around research costs, which were previously bundled into brokers’ overall fees to clients. The legislation demanded the fees be ‘unbundled’ to make the hidden costs more explicit ...
International study led by researchers in Singapore reveals critical insights into timely interventions for maternal depression
2023-11-02
SINGAPORE – A large-scale international study spanning three continents, led by researchers from A*STAR’s Translational Neuroscience Programme of the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS) in Singapore, has found that maternal depressive symptoms begin from early pregnancy and can last up to two years after childbirth.
While health professionals often emphasise the postpartum stage after childbirth as a high-risk period for the onset of depression, findings from this latest study reveal a different reality – that maternal depressive symptoms can appear from early pregnancy ...
Paper argues reducing greenhouse gas emissions is not enough to combat climate change
2023-11-02
According to a new paper in Oxford Open Climate Change, published by Oxford University Press, the strategies humanity must pursue to reduce climate change will have to include more than reducing greenhouse gases. This comes from an analysis of climate data led by researcher James Hansen.
Scientists have known since the 1800s that infrared-absorbing (greenhouse) gases warm the Earth’s surface and that the abundance of greenhouse gases changes naturally as well as from human actions. Roger Revelle, who was one of the early scientists to study global warming, wrote in 1965 that industrialization meant that human ...
Research examines why mask usage in Japan persists
2023-11-02
Osaka, Japan – When you think of Japan in the age of COVID, you might imagine a crowd of people wearing masks. But why do so many Japanese people wear masks?
In an article published this month in the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, a researcher from Osaka University analyzed mask use before and after the government of Japan downgraded the legal status of COVID-19. Results showed that many people continue to wear masks for socio-psychological reasons – including reasons related to ‘relief’ and ‘norm’.
Of course, the obvious motivation for mask use is disease prevention. In the first ...
Exercise therapy based on smart data to improve patients' quality of life
2023-11-02
Regular and moderate physical activity can significantly improve the quality of life of people with internal diseases such as cancer and depression. Unfortunately, many people with internal disorders cannot sufficiently participate in exercise training for several reasons. For example, they often do not have access to appropriate exercise training programs, have a high therapeutic burden, fatigue, or simply no time to engage in physical activity. Accordingly, the Sports Medicine research group led by Professor Perikles Simon at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) investigates how physical activity can be promoted and integrated into patients' daily lives by applying digital tools ...