Swaying public opinion on nuclear energy: A field experiment in Hong Kong

This research focuses on understanding the significance of information in affecting public opinion. Nuclear energy is among the most controversial of policy issues and the information-saturated mature civil society of Hong Kong makes it an ideal location for this study. A novel field experiment is set up in which pro-nuclear and anti-nuclear information collected from local media reports is inserted into two identical questionnaires, to which respondents are randomly assigned. The percentage of the public who switched their opinion was estimated to be 5-37%, depending on the framing of the question.