November 20, 2026: Decision Making and Communication Approaches to the World’s Urgent Problems, from Nuclear Weapons to Climate Change

Talk summary:

Recent empirical research in the psychology of decision making and ecocritical approaches to climate change discourse has revealed important problems with how people think about some of the world’s most worrisome challenges. Studies show that there is no “nuclear weapons taboo,” a moral red line blocking the use of such weapons—instead, nuclear weapons decision making appears to be remarkably and frighteningly malleable. For example, introducing a far more destructive nuclear option can make a smaller but still catastrophic nuclear strike appear “good”—a “better bomb” or lesser-evil effect. These and other findings reveal psychological vulnerabilities that make use of nuclear weapons unacceptably likely. In the context of climate change communication, recent research shows that even articles designed to be accessible and “public facing” have strikingly little impact on intended audiences, undermining some of the basic premises of the disciplines of ecocriticism and environmental communication studies—but there is the potential to touch readers who already have at least some interest in the topic of climate change and motivation to act. The work presented in this joint lecture will identify psychological and communication challenges, while also offering some solutions.

Bios:

Paul Slovic is a senior scientist at the Oregon Research Institute and a professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Oregon. One of the pioneers in the fields of decision making and risk perception, his recent research examines psychological mechanisms that can lead to catastrophic mistakes to use nuclear weapons. His latest publications include “When Our Minds Go Nuclear: Rethinking Nuclear Strategy Through the Psychology of Risk and Decision-Making” (Texas National Security Review, Summer 2026) and an article in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: “AI doesn’t need ‘superintelligence’ or evil intent to start a nuclear war”.

Scott Slovic is a senior scientist at the Oregon Research Institute and a distinguished professor of environmental humanities emeritus at the University of Idaho. He was the founding president of the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment and served as editor-in-chief of ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment for twenty-five years. His latest publications include Imagining Ecocatastrophe: Reading Literary and Cultural Texts in the Global Context (Routledge, 2025) and Chinese Ecocriticism: Toward an Ecological Civilization (Springer Nature, forthcoming in 2026).