The effects of emotions on the generation of environmental arguments / Efectos de las emociones en la generación de argumentos sobre el medio ambiente natural

Abstract

Abstract This paper analyses the effects of inducing emotions on thought-action repertoires related to nature following the Broaden-and-Build Theory (BBT). Based on a pilot study conducted with 279 university students, this study transculturally validated five videos that generated two positive, one neutral and two negative emotions. The main study, conducted with 300 Spanish university students, utilized experimental manipulation to ascertain whether videos that induced positive emotions increased the number of thought-action repertoires in comparison with the video that induced a neutral emotion. In the case of the negative videos, a significant discrepancy was observed in the number of repertoires generated depending on the type of emotion induced, with sadness generating a greater number than disgust. Furthermore, attitudes pertaining to affective bonds with nature increased thought-action repertoires, regardless of the emotion induced. The paper discusses the need to examine in greater depth the effect of different negative emotions on the generation of environmental arguments.