Mark A. Ferguson
Appointment
Junior Fellow Academy - Alumni
Institution
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Country
USA 
Mark Ferguson is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point. He was a CIFAR Junior Fellow from 2009 to 2011, supervised by Social Interactions, Identity and Well-Being Fellow Rob Oxoby in the Department of Economics, University of Calgary. He was co-supervised by Fellows Nyla Branscombe in the Department of Psychology at the University of Kansas and Alex Haslam in the School of Psychology at the University of Exeter, UK. Mark completed his PhD in Social Psychology at the University of Kansas in 2008, with Nyla Branscombe as his thesis advisor. He also holds a B.S. in Family Studies (1999) and an M.A. in Sociology (2003), both from Western Michigan University. Prior to his Junior Fellowship, he held an appointment as Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at Syracuse University.
Mark is interested in the role of social identity and collective emotions in fostering behavior to reduce climate change. In one series of studies, he found that collective guilt for Americans’ greenhouse gas emissions fosters more willingness to reduce climate change than anxiety about the harmful effects of climate change on future generations. This occurred for behaviors such as greener transport choices, energy conservation, and support for greener tax policies. In another series of studies, he found that comparing an ingroup with a less pro-environmental outgroup fosters willingness to engage in pro-environmental behavior (such as supporting regulations on greenhouse emissions).
As part of his Junior Fellowship, Mark is examined the role of social identity in fostering consumption behavior. In one series of studies, he found that a salient social identity increases the perceived need for identity-relevant luxury products (such as cell phones or iPods). In another series of studies, he found that a salient social identity also increases the amount of actual money that people are willing to pay for such products. This research complements his earlier work by examining human contributions to climate change, rather than human responses to climate change.
Mark is interested in the role of social identity and collective emotions in fostering behavior to reduce climate change. In one series of studies, he found that collective guilt for Americans’ greenhouse gas emissions fosters more willingness to reduce climate change than anxiety about the harmful effects of climate change on future generations. This occurred for behaviors such as greener transport choices, energy conservation, and support for greener tax policies. In another series of studies, he found that comparing an ingroup with a less pro-environmental outgroup fosters willingness to engage in pro-environmental behavior (such as supporting regulations on greenhouse emissions).
As part of his Junior Fellowship, Mark is examined the role of social identity in fostering consumption behavior. In one series of studies, he found that a salient social identity increases the perceived need for identity-relevant luxury products (such as cell phones or iPods). In another series of studies, he found that a salient social identity also increases the amount of actual money that people are willing to pay for such products. This research complements his earlier work by examining human contributions to climate change, rather than human responses to climate change.