Version 1
: Received: 8 April 2024 / Approved: 8 April 2024 / Online: 8 April 2024 (15:39:22 CEST)
How to cite:
Sörqvist, P.; Marsh, J.E. Questions and Answers in the Negative Footprint Illusion Paradigm: A Reply to Gorissen et al. (2024). Preprints2024, 2024040560. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.0560.v1
Sörqvist, P.; Marsh, J.E. Questions and Answers in the Negative Footprint Illusion Paradigm: A Reply to Gorissen et al. (2024). Preprints 2024, 2024040560. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.0560.v1
Sörqvist, P.; Marsh, J.E. Questions and Answers in the Negative Footprint Illusion Paradigm: A Reply to Gorissen et al. (2024). Preprints2024, 2024040560. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.0560.v1
APA Style
Sörqvist, P., & Marsh, J.E. (2024). Questions and Answers in the Negative Footprint Illusion Paradigm: A Reply to Gorissen et al. (2024). Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.0560.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Sörqvist, P. and John E. Marsh. 2024 "Questions and Answers in the Negative Footprint Illusion Paradigm: A Reply to Gorissen et al. (2024)" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202404.0560.v1
Abstract
When asked to estimate the carbon footprint of a bundle of relatively low carbon footprint items and relatively high carbon footprint items, people typically report a lower value compared to estimating the high carbon footprint items alone. This finding is called the negative footprint illusion and suggests people report the average rather than sum of the combined items’ carbon footprint. In a recent paper by Gorissen et al. (2024), the authors claimed that people are immune to this illusion if the question is framed differently. Specifically, they found that estimates of the environmental friendliness of a set comprising a burger (high carbon footprint) and an organic apple (low carbon footprint) was higher than for a set comprising the burger alone, whereas no difference was found between the two sets when participants were asked to estimate how environmentally damaging they were. Using larger item categories wherein the degree of the items’ environmental impact is clearly communicated, here we show it does not matter whether participants are required to estimate how friendly or damaging the items are. The roles of attribute substitution, dependent variables, and independent variables (stimulus characteristics) in modulating the negative footprint illusion is discussed.
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
