Abstract:
Successful climate change adaptation requires behavioral and policy changes at the
individual, community, and national levels. Although most research on adaptive capacity
focuses on the role of the economy and technology, an increasing body of research
suggests that socially shared beliefs, norms, and networks are also critical in increasing
individuals’ and communities’ adaptive capacity. Based on Bandura’s social cognitive
theory, this dissertation examined the role of collective efficacy—people’s shared beliefs
about their group’s capabilities to accomplish collective tasks—in influencing Indians’
adaptive capacity to deal with drinking water supply scarcity, a condition likely to be
exacerbated in the future by climate change. The hypotheses were individual-level
collective efficacy perceptions will be positively associated with (1) behavioral
involvement in adaptation, and (2) support for adaptation policy, and (3) communityx
level collective efficacy perceptions will be positively associated with community
adaptation measures.
To test these hypotheses, face-to-face interviews were conducted with 4031 randomly
selected Indian respondents using a stratified random national sampling plan during
December 2011 and January 2012, resulting in a response rate of 39.7%. To test these
hypothesis, correlational analysis, and hierarchical regression models was used. Partial
support for the first hypothesis was found: individuals’ with robust collective efficacy
beliefs are more likely to be involved in community activities, although the relationship is
not linear. The second hypothesis was fully supported: individuals with high levels of
collective efficacy beliefs are more likely to support government adaptation policies. The
third hypothesis was also fully supported: communities with high collective efficacy are
more likely to implement adaptation measures. These results demonstrate that collective
efficacy beliefs are positively associated with individuals’ and communities’ capacity to
successfully adapt to climate change. Taking steps to increase the collective efficacy
beliefs of community members—for example, through mass media campaigns—may
bolster the adaptive capacity of communities to climate change; this important possibility
should be tested in future research.
