Do “environmental losers” pay the price? The role of individual and country vulnerabilities in the relationship between environmental concern and willingness to pay to protect the environment

Abstract

Previous research consistently finds a weak relationship between environmental concern and willingness to pay for the environment. Although individuals are concerned for the environment and believe climate change is a serious problem, a major part of concerned individuals fail to act pro-environmentally or to support climate policies. Existing research has not yet provided a complete understanding of the relationship between perception of environmental problem and pro-environmental behaviors. In this study, we add to previous research on the environmental attitude-behavior gap by focusing on economic and climate-related vulnerabilities that might act as barriers in the translation of environmental concern into willingness to pay. Using multilevel analysis on data from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP), we find that economic constraints and the perception of having experienced an extreme weather event affect people’s willingness to pay to protect the environment. We also find that concerned people are more likely to engage in pro-environmental behaviors in countries where national wealth is higher, whereas living in climate-vulnerable countries mostly affects the willingness to pay of non-concerned individuals.