Abstract

Polls conducted in the United Kingdom following the Fukushima nuclear accident (March 2011) indicated a fairly muted and temporary shift in public approval of nuclear power. This study investigated how: (a) comparative preferences for nuclear power in the United Kingdom might have been affected by the accident; and (b) how supporters of nuclear power reconciled their pro-nuclear attitude in the wake of the disaster. Between-subjects comparisons with a pre-Fukushima sample revealed our post-Fukushima sample to have comparable preferences for nuclear power. Further analysis suggested that supporters retained their pro-nuclear stance in response to Fukushima by emphasizing the necessity of nuclear power in the U.K. context. The theoretical, practical and methodological implications for these findings are discussed.