Research · Master’s thesis
Sustainability in Social Media
An Examination of the Forms Used to Express Sustainability Awareness. Master’s thesis in Business and Economic Education, University of Mannheim, 2023. Written in German; the full thesis is available on request.
01 · Abstract
Summary
Context
Climate change confronts society with ecological, economic and social challenges. The sustainability awareness of each individual is one foundation of sustainable development. Social media can strongly influence how people find information and how their sustainability awareness develops.
Aims
The thesis examines how Instagram users express sustainability awareness. It describes the current state of this awareness, the opinions and forms of argument on three widely discussed topics, and the content discussed most often in the comments.
Method
A coding strategy was developed and applied to 1,090 comments on posts about sustainability topics. It was first applied to two of the three topics and then validated with the comments on the third. Forms of argument and content were analysed qualitatively.
Results
Sustainability awareness was low. Most users were interested in acting sustainably but had little belief in their own ability to make a difference. Opinions were mostly emotional and rhetorical, which carries a risk of misinformation.
Recommendations
Educational institutions should create opportunities for participation that strengthen self-efficacy. Sustainability deserves more attention in schools and universities, and education for sustainable development should be strengthened. Media literacy is equally important to reduce hate speech and the risk of misinformation.