Is it good to feel bad about unsustainable behaviours? Reflexivity around environmental emotions

Abstract

Environmental problems abound and it can be difficult for individuals to know how to act for the best. Moreover, knowing how we should feel about these problems and our potential actions has become increasingly unclear and confusing. Navigating these complexities involves reflecting on one’s own and other people’s emotions. This article explores how individuals put their emotional reflexivity to use in relation to two specific environmental emotions: eco-guilt and eco-shame. We conducted 20 in-depth interviews with Danish citizens about their experiences and emotions connected to being consumers in these times of substantial environmental challenges. A chief part of this emotional reflexivity involved judgements about whether it was good or bad to experience eco-guilt and eco-shame. These judgements were often made with reference to how useful the emotions were in motivating pro-environmental behaviour and whether or not the emotions were authentic. Some respondents expressed a strong sense that they ‘ought to’ experience eco-guilt and eco-shame, while others showed resistance to experiencing these emotions and the perceived social pressure to be more sustainable. Exploring emotional reflexivity around eco-guilt and eco-shame provides insights into the social and moral forces that pull people in different – and at times conflicting – directions regarding their feelings about environmental issues. We discuss our results in light of an emotional regime imposing on individuals the sense that they ought to experience emotions of care for the environment.