How Media and Climate Perception Affect Residents’ Willingness to Pay for Environmental Protection: Evidence from China

While scientific and technological advancements drive societal progress, they have concurrently contributed to environmental pollution and climate change. Given the intrinsic interconnection between communication and environmental studies, this research leverages data from the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS 2021) as its sample. Employing structural equation modeling (SEM), the study investigates the impact of media usage and perception of climate change issues on willingness to pay (WTP) for environmental protection. This study aims to investigate the interrelationships between media usage, climate perception, and WTP for environmental protection among Chinese residents through innovative model construction and variable selection, seeking to contribute to the enhancement of environmental protection from the perspective of media usage. Results indicate that media usage frequency (MU) positively predicts environmental concern (EC), climate risk perception (CRP), and WTP. Media trustworthiness (MT) positively influences climate impact perception (CIP), EC, and environmental satisfaction (ES). Climate impact perception negatively predicts WTP, while climate risk perception negatively affects ES. Environmental concern positively predicts both ES and WTP, and ES further positively predicts WTP. To enhance public environmental awareness, improve ES, and strengthen WTP for sustainable climate governance, we recommend that media institutions intensify climate risk communication and construct science-based narrative frameworks, while governmental bodies should improve environmental governance systems to elevate public satisfaction.