Issue: September 2004
News
From water use to family violence
How to change our attitudes and behaviour
The debate about water conservation - in which La Trobe University academic staff have played prominent roles - is just one of many dialogues about changing public attitudes and behaviour.
Successful campaigns for improved road safety practices like wearing seat belts, reducing speed, curtailing drink driving and establishing accident black spots have given Victoria a world reputation for changing for the better the behaviour of its citizens.
Other successful local or national campaigns that have enhanced Australia's international reputation include Quit (anti-smoking) and Slip-Slop-Slap (anti-skin cancer).
'Bold policy, guided by on-going, multidisciplinary research, has led to immense public benefit, including saving of life and suffering, not to mention money,' says La Trobe psychologist, Dr Geoff Cumming. 'Now we need to apply this strategy in further areas, such as the reduction of family violence, and water conservation.'
A Reader in Psychological Science and specialist in the field of public attitudes and behaviour, Dr Cumming says changing attitudes and behaviour is complex and requires multi-disciplinary research.
'Law, engineering, economics, education and social work are just some of the relevant fields. But attitudes and behaviour are the primary business of psychology, so psychologists need to play a prominent role.'
For example, Dr Cumming became interested in the question of water conservation when the Kennett Government changed the pricing structure of water to 'user pays'.
He says people make choices about how they use water for a number of reasons, not just price.
'A policy of restricting water use in a number of arbitrary ways runs the risk of being regarded as so unfair that it lacks respect. You can water your roses for hours every day, but I can't put even a drop on my lawn!'
Dr Cumming says campaigns to influence attitudes and behaviour are based on applied psychology, a science that took off during the Second World War.
'Then, for the first time we had large numbers of humans in charge of highly complicated and lethal machinery like aircraft and submarines. The behaviour in dangerous situations of humans in control of such complex systems became a vital component in their effectiveness as well as safety - so the science of trying to understand human attitudes and behaviour became very important.'
And it's still a field Dr Cumming and many students find fascinating, partly because it often produces community benefits.
'Applied cognitive psychologists work to improve the design and usability of all sorts of devices, and the ease of use of computer software and systems. But it is on major issues like family violence and water conservation that really notable practical advances can be made.
'What we need is recognition of the possibilities, and more support for applied research in these and other areas.'
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