The role of perceived policy effectiveness in explaining climate change mitigation policy support behaviour

Opinion surveys of the Australian public over the last few years have shown an overwhelming support for the idea that governments, through their policies, should play an important role in climate change mitigation. However, there is little agreement on exactly what form these mitigation policies should take (Nielsen, 2012; TCI, 2013). Taking the carbon tax for an instance, since the introduction of it in 2012 by the Labor government, there has been continuing public debate and controversy on the policy's cost-benefit to the public. One of the reasons for this ambivalence is perhaps due to the to the public's perceived low effectiveness of the policy. Consequently, the carbon tax is now under review in the parliament, with a strong push from the Liberal government to remove it (Daily Telegraph 2013). This paper explores the dynamics of this situation by proposing that the role of individuals' perceived policy effectiveness (PEP) plays a crucial role in driving public support for climate change mitigation policies (CCPS) - a link that has not been adequately investigated in the literature (Bostrom et al., 2012; Ellen, O'Connor, Bord, & Fisher, 1999; Stern, Dietz, Abel, Guagnano, & Kalof, 1999).