Modelling the Relationship between the Environmental Factors and Environmental Behavioural Intentionamong University Students using a Partial Least Squares–Structural Equation Model (PLS-SEM)

Abstract

Currently, the world is facing an exceptionally alarming scale of environmental problems involving phenomena such as climate change, ozone layer depletion and global warming. The affected world urgently requires an immediate way out to counter these environmental problems. Evidences show that environmentalproblems occurrencesare mainly due to irresponsible human activities. As part of overcoming these problems, behavioural solutions areneeded to make individuals friendly to the environment. As university students ‘populationrepresents huge users of large environmental resources, universities can play a major role in endorsing environmentally friendly behavior in society through proper environmental education to their students. However, information on the students’ pro-environmental behaviour is lacking in local universities such as in UniversitiTeknologi MARA (UiTM). Recent studies have found pro-environmental behavior can be explained by many direct factors, however, indirect factors have received far less attention. This study aims to (1) determine specific Environmental Factors that may affect Environmental Behavioural Intention among UiTM students and to (2) determine the mediation effect of Environmental Attitude on the relationship between Environmental Factors and Environmental Behavioural Intention.These Environmental Factors and mediation factors are analyzed using Partial Least Square - Structural Equations Modelling (PLS-SEM). Self-administered questionnaires were distributed among a sample of 382 UiTM students, selected using Stratified random sampling. The results indicate that two significant factors directly affect Environmental Behavioural Intention i.e. Environmental Knowledge and Social Norms.This implies that students with environmental knowledge and are surrounded by pro-environmental persons tend to have responsible environmental behaviour. Meanwhile, another two other factors i.e. Environmental Concern and Perceived Risk were found to be indirectly influencing Environmental Behavioural Intention through the mediation of Environmental Attitude. The finding indicates that students who are concerned about the environment and aware of the environmental risk related will behave in a responsible environmental manner if and only if the students have a positive attitude. Overall, integrating both types of direct and indirect factors to explain pro-environmental behaviour gives abetter understanding of the student’s attitude and behaviour towards the environment.