John Fraser

Dr. John Fraser

orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

23Years (2004-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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1 August 2021 in Journal of Environmental Psychology
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
Nathaniel GeigerNathaniel Geiger
Nathaniel Geiger
JSJanet Swim
Janet Swim
KGKaren Gasper
Karen Gasper
John FraserJohn Fraser
John Fraser
KFKate Flinner
Kate Flinner

1 June 2013 in Ecopsychology
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
John FraserJohn Fraser
John Fraser
VPVictor Pantesco
Victor Pantesco
KPKaren Plemons
Karen Plemons
RGRupanwita Gupta
Rupanwita Gupta
SRShelley J. Rank
Shelley J. Rank
Environmental work is emotionally laden because of the struggle on behalf of ethical positions and the daily experience of loss and frustration. Such ongoing stressful experiences may be understood better within a trauma-based framework that acknowledges their implications, similar to clinical diagnosis and treatment of acute stress disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder. This paper reports on two studies of the emotional experience of environmentalists, conservationists, and environmental educators working with profound awareness of how current human behavior is degrading the environment, some would say beyond recovery. It explores the question of whether these environmentally aware workers may suffer from a subtype of acute stress disorder and posttraumatic sequelae. The results suggest that there is reason to believe this subtype exists and is mediated by cortical assessments of salience and urgency. This paper suggests results that are ominous for mental health professionals—that indicators of depression, anxiety, and enervation are significantly elevated in those arguably most needed to help society come to terms with the problems we face in a degrading biosphere. We conclude that mental health professionals are urgently needed to help those who are at risk of becoming debilitated by their knowledge of the consequences of human impact on the planet and recommend that these professionals work to develop a new language, context, and treatment for this subtype condition.

2 January 2020 in Journal of Museum Education
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
WSWilliam Spitzer
William Spitzer
John FraserJohn Fraser
John Fraser
Addressing complex global issues – such as alterations in nutrient cycles, climate change, large-scale drought, widespread erosion, and new disease vectors – require adaptive changes in our collective behavior and policies. To date, approaches to advancing science literacy to address such challenges have generally failed to produce sufficient changes in behavior at the necessary scale. We suggest that past interventions have come up short due to a primary focus on individual change, rather than change that results that accrue in the small groups that are a basis for affiliation, social and cultural capital, and the domain where impacts tend to be replicated by others. Importantly, these are the same communities where scientific literacies are negotiated and grown. The authors illustrate the unique authority and social position that museums hold to activate such small groups toward solutions at a civic scale capable of matching scale of action to need.

1 April 2020 in Journal of Education for Library and Information Science
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
RNRebecca Joy Norlander
Rebecca Joy Norlander
JBJena Barchas-Lichtenstein
Jena Barchas-Lichtenstein
John FraserJohn Fraser
John Fraser
MFMary Davis Fournier
Mary Davis Fournier
JVJohn Voiklis
John Voiklis
EDElizabeth Danter
Elizabeth Danter
This paper presents a study of the specific disciplinary competencies required of library programming professionals and the training pathways where they develop those skills. Most existing competency frameworks focus on general library service or audience, rather than the specializations required for public programming. Reflecting the emerging importance of programming to libraries’ service model, this US research study demonstrates that excellence in programming requires a unique set of competencies not found in other areas of library practice. The evidence shows that most public-programming competencies are learned outside of MLIS training but could be introduced as an MLIS concentration or learned as professional development.

10 December 2024 in British Journal of Social Psychology
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
Nathaniel GeigerNathaniel Geiger
Nathaniel Geiger
JSJanet K. Swim
Janet K. Swim
John FraserJohn Fraser
John Fraser
Hope is a future‐oriented emotion that attunes people to the possibility of positive change, and thus could potentially catalyse societal engagement with climate change. A recent meta‐analysis suggests that the relationship between hope and climate action is most robust when the target of hope is climate engagement (i.e. action hope ) rather than climate change more broadly. Yet, this previous meta‐analysis also suggests that fostering action hope and climate engagement may be challenging via typical short media messages used in many studies. Here we consider an alternative source of action hope: receiving social support. Two studies tested whether social support motivates climate action via increased action hope. Study 1 (correlational online survey, pre‐registered, N = 887) demonstrates that, as predicted, both instrumental and emotional support predict intentions to take civic action and these effects are explained by action hope. Study 2 (field study, N educators = 84, N contacts = 520) mostly replicates and extends these findings in a field setting, demonstrating that social support recipients' action hope is also associated with social support reported by support providers (here, environmental educators) and that this action hope again explains a possible relationship between social support and climate engagement.

11 May 2012 in Museum Management and Curatorship
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
John FraserJohn Fraser
John Fraser
JHJoe E. Heimlich
Joe E. Heimlich
JJJohn Jacobsen
John Jacobsen
VYVictor Yocco
Victor Yocco
JSJessica Sickler
Jessica Sickler
JSJeanie Stahl
Jeanie Stahl
The authors review the giant screen (GS) film literature to determine if the form has unique attributes that contribute to science learning. They find that four attributes are claimed to contribute to higher learning outcomes: the sense of immersion by reducing peripheral views to a minimum; first person perspective contributing to the sense of presence in the film; narrative structure; and sensory stimulation of mirror neurons that promote kinesthetic learning. They demonstrate that most claims are without support in empirical research but uncover some recent results that give reason to believe these claims may be supportable. The authors conclude with a recommendation for a research agenda to support these claims as necessary, in order to defend the high production cost of GS film over conventional film.