Elyse Collyer & Gabrielle Filip-Crawford
Developing an Interactive Ecofeminist-Based Intervention
Contact at: elysecollyer@gmail.com
Ecofeminist theory argues the oppression of women and non-dominant groups, more broadly, is linked with the domination of the environment. Indeed, nations with more gender equality enact greater environmental protections. Exploring this connection at the individual level, this study frames and begins pilot-testing elements of an interactive game-style intervention to improve attitudes and behaviors surrounding pro-environmentalism and social justice through civic engagement. Game-style interventions offer a practical and accessible opportunity to educate participants and alter corresponding behaviors. Such interventions can be more effective compared to traditional behavioral interventions because they are accessible to large, diverse audiences via smartphones and computers and present information in fun or approachable formats. In the first pilot test of this future intervention, participants viewed multiple fictitious profiles of city council candidates formatted in two different styles and responded to questions measuring their perceptions and the expected voting behavior of the candidates. In the second pilot test, participants read one of two descriptions of a hypothetical city, allocated funds for a city budget, and voted for city council candidates. In both studies, participants reported their environmental and gender attitudes and political identification. Data from both studies will guide the continued development of this ecofeminist game-style intervention.
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