Exploring the Role of Social Media Influencers in Climate Change Advocacy in Pakistan: A Qualitative Study of Content Strategies and Audience Perceptions

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.16882703

Abstract

There is a growing trend in the formation of discourse in the conversations about environment in the world of social media influencers. In Pakistan, a nation that exemplifies extreme vulnerability to climatic effects, influencers can be a key to the translation of scientific risky messages into public discourse, attitude formation and action. In this work, the qualitative content analysis and semi-structured interviews will help to analyze the way the climate issues are set by Pakistani influencers, what content strategies are adopted, and how the various audience segments receive and respond to these messages. The data include 20 purposively sampled Pakistani influencers with Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok accounts (n=20) over 1 year, n=18 comprising influencers and n=30 epitomizing followers in urban and peri-urban communities, followed by in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis described four key influencer strategies (education-through-storytelling, lifestyle-led greenfluencing, emotion-driven disaster framing and calls-to-local action) and three major patterns in audience response (awareness, sceptical engagement and performative action). The results demonstrate conflict between reach and depth: in raising awareness and undertaking symbolic action, influencers are more effective than they are in translating into sustained collective action because of structural barriers (to political and infrastructural processes). Strategies were provided in the paper to enable influences, NGOs and policymakers to enhance credibility, local applicability, and pathways between online interactions and community-based climate resilience.

Keywords: Social Media Influencers, Climate Change Advocacy, Pakistan, Qualitative Study, Content Strategies, Audience Perceptions