Resource scarcity

A hallmark of sustainability is the balance between demand (i.e., how much is needed) and capacity (i.e., how much is available). In this line of work, Zhao and her group examine the cognitive and behavioral consequences of resource scarcity where demand exceeds capacity, with the goal of explaining why low-income individuals engage in counter-productive behaviors that perpetuate the condition of scarcity.

Zhao’s work with the Foundations for Social Change showed the impacts of an unconditional cash transfer of CAD $7,500 to individuals experiencing homelessness: recipients spent 99 fewer days homeless, increased their savings, and saved society an average of $777 each by spending less time in shelters.

Environmental behavior

A challenge for conservation is that people are often unaware of the amount of resources being used. To address this issue, Zhao’s group uses real-time visual feedback to reduce water and electricity consumption in residential and office buildings. In addition, they examine how preferences, attitudes, and messaging determine public actions to conserve biodiversity. To increase recycling and composting rates, Zhao’s group is currently conducting a series of field experiments that examine the role of convenience, signage, and knowledge in sorting behaviors.

Environmental cognition

Environmental actions can be driven by how people perceive their impact on the environment. In this line of work, Zhao’s group examines how people perceive their carbon footprint and how the carbon price tag of individual behaviors influences climate actions. They are developing a motivated attention framework to examine how people with different ideologies perceive climate change evidence, and what cognitive, motivational, and sociocultural factors shape the prioritization and the interpretation of climate evidence. This helps inform the communication of climate science.