Recognized but Restricted: Environmental Norms, Structural Position, and the Politics of Carbon Constraint

This study examines how the moralization of environmental responsibility shapes evaluations of environmental burden claims. It focuses on whether structural carbon constraint—activities that remain carbon-intensive due to technological and infrastructural limits—is evaluated differently depending on (a) individuals’ endorsement of moralized environmental norms and (b) individuals’ structural position in the labor market, particularly proximity to low-carbon activities. The central objective is to test whether recognition of social necessity (essentiality) coexists with selective restriction of political support (legitimacy, responsibility attribution, transition assistance, regulatory flexibility), and whether such differentiation is conditioned by normative and structural benchmarks.