On behavioral changes towards sustainability for connected individuals: a dynamic decision-making approach

Abstract

In the context of sustainable lifestyle it has been observed that, while expressing eco-positive attitudes, individuals often do not act accordingly in their habitual behavior. This gap, termed the “value-action” gap, has been explained in terms of desire to seek social approval or as a consequence of the presence of overriding conflicting goals, associated for instance with material costs. In this work, we study a two-scale networked model for dynamic decision-making in which interacting agents are able to exchange opinions and discuss the different reasons they produce their choices and, in addition, are able to observe the actions of their neighbors in the network and adjust their preferences. Coupling on the two scales leads to a reduced value-action gap, and ultimately to a consensus. A numerical example illustrates the effect that tradeoffs between goals and social pressure have on the behavior of the group.