Anaïs Voşki

All Publications

• A new planetary affective science framework for eco-emotions: Findings on eco-anger, eco-grief, and eco-anxiety GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Voşki, A., Wong-Parodi, G., Ardoin, N. N. 2023: 1-31

  View details for DOI 10.5964/gep.11465

• The ecological significance of the overview effect: Environmental attitudes and behaviours in astronauts JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Voski, A. 2020; 70

  View details for DOI 10.1016/j.jenvp.2020.101454

  View details for Web of Science ID 000564243300018

• Effect of a portion-size default nudge on meat consumption and diner satisfaction: controlled experiments in Stanford University dining halls BMC PUBLIC HEALTH Voski, A., Braginsky, M., Zhang, A., Bertoldo, J., Egan, S., Levig, L. A., Ihrig, M., Mathur, M. B. 2025; 25 (1): 1434

  Abstract

  Reducing meat consumption, especially in high-intake countries such as the United States, is crucial in mitigating the climate and biodiversity crises and improving public health and animal welfare. Choice-architecture interventions or nudges in the food domain, such as choice defaults (e.g., reduced default portion sizes), can be powerful levers of behavior change. However, evidence remains limited in large-scale, real-life settings, and little is known about potential effects on diner satisfaction and backfiring effects that reduce or even reverse the desired behavior. These uncertainties have posed substantial barriers to scalability and wider adoption by the food service industry. In our single-blinded, quasi-experimental, pre-registered field interventions in Stanford University dining halls with staff-served portions, a 25% reduction in the serving spoon size (Study 1, 24 days, 364 diners, made-to-order burritos) produced a non-significant trend of 18% less meat served per day without reducing overall diner satisfaction (p = 0.059, d = 0.64) but with a wide CI that included the null (- 49.2, 1.07). A more substantial 50% reduction in serving spoon size (Study 2, 29 days, 1802 diners, varying menu items) did not reduce the amount of meat served (p = 0.60, d = 0.20), triggered backfiring effects, and significantly decreased diner satisfaction. Combining the two studies, the intervention did not significantly reduce meat consumption. While the trends in our findings are consistent with the 'norm range model'-i.e., that moderate portion reductions may decrease intake but drastic reductions may prompt compensatory eating-key differences and contextual nuances between the two studies help explain the mixed results. Future studies on the 'norm range' of default portion size nudges to reduce meat consumption across different menu items and food service models is suggested to increase our understanding of effective and scalable interventions that facilitate collective shifts towards more sustainable dietary behaviors.

  View details for DOI 10.1186/s12889-025-22495-9

  View details for Web of Science ID 001470264400002

  View details for PubMedID 40241017

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC12001533

• Eco-emotions as the planetary boundaries: framing human emotional and planetary health in the global environmental crisis. The Lancet. Planetary health Voski, A., Wong-Parodi, G., Ardoin, N. M. 2024; 8 Suppl 1: S1

  Abstract

  BACKGROUND: Affective processes play an important role in physical and mental health and in adaptation responses to the global environmental crisis. Eco-emotions-emotions that are substantially associated with the environment and anthropogenic changes happening within it-are complex and culturally varied. Despite the disproportionate impact of the global environmental crisis on low-income and middle-income countries, most psychological research to date has been conducted in high-income countries and has focused on climate change and negative climate emotions (eg, climate anxiety). The absence of diverse, globally representative evidence about emotions associated with the global environmental crisis beyond climate change hinders evidence-based action on psychological adaptation and the development of contextually and culturally appropriate coping strategies toward the wider range of negative anthropogenic effects. To account for this wider range of anthropogenic effects, we previously introduced an eco-emotions framework built on the planetary boundaries concept. We aimed to apply this framework to the current research on eco-emotional responses to identify remaining gaps that hinder evidence-based action.METHODS: We conducted a literature review of peer-reviewed studies assessing core affect (ie, emotional valence and arousal) and emotions with emphasis on study populations from low-income and middle-income countries and on the eight non-climate change planetary boundaries (biodiversity loss, freshwater use, ocean acidification, chemical pollution, air pollution, land system change, ozone depletion, and nitrogen and phosphorus perturbation). We searched Web of Science from database inception to Oct 31, 2023, for observational empirical studies of adults, using planetary boundary-specific (eg, freshwater use) or wider, newer, or overarching emotional concept (eg, solastalgia, environmental change) search terms.FINDINGS: In contrast to previous climate emotions work, our preliminary results of 135 peer reviewed studies identified a significant body of literature beyond climate change concerning emotional responses to the planetary boundaries of biodiversity loss, freshwater scarcity, and chemical pollution as well as emerging evidence of emotional responses to the other five planetary boundaries.INTERPRETATION: We found that the spectrum of eco-emotional responses ranged from being specific to a single planetary boundary to encompassing all planetary boundaries. Our findings underscore the importance of and urgent need for more holistic and diverse psychological intervention strategies targeting the wider range of anthropogenic effects during the rapidly intensifying global environmental crisis.FUNDING: Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources; McGee and Levorsen Research Grant Program; and Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society at Stanford University.

  View details for DOI 10.1016/S2542-5196(24)00066-4

  View details for PubMedID 38632904

• Underwater virtual reality for marine education and ocean literacy: technological and psychological potentials ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION RESEARCH Fauville, G., Voski, A., Mado, M., Bailenson, J. N., Lantz-Andersson, A. 2024

  View details for DOI 10.1080/13504622.2024.2326446

  View details for Web of Science ID 001185132300001