Policies without behavioral results or when environmental policy becomes robust

Climate crisis represents a challenge for modern communities to be addressed through both individual and collective pro-environmental behaviors (PEB). Therefore, the present study proposes a theoretical model of community-related assets that may promote citizens’ engagement in pro-environmental collective and individual PEB. 427 Italian citizens answered an online questionnaire detecting their Sense of Responsible Togetherness (SoRT), Sense of Community (SoC), pro-environmental Civic Engagement Behaviors (CEB), individual PEB, and interest in collective initiatives about the use of renewable energy sources. A multiple sequential mediation model was run using Structural Equation Modeling. The results suggest that SoRT fosters active engagement in pro-environmental collective actions, up to supporting individual PEB. Conversely, a paradoxical effect emerges as to SoC as a disengagement trigger for both individual and collective PEB. Therefore, promoting feelings of responsibility toward one’s community may represent a more effective resource than enhancing individuals’ affective bond to it to address the climate crisis.

Environmental protection has become a public concern as the economy grows, especially in developing countries. Previous studies have examined determinants of individual pro-environmental behaviors. Using data from a nationwide survey carried out in mainland China in 2013, we intend to estimate the effects of religious beliefs on individual pro-environmental behaviors. We employ a linear econometric model and apply an Ordinary Least Square estimator to estimate the model. We use five measures to represent pro-environmental behaviors and distinguish between plain and strong religious beliefs. Estimation results show that, in general, holding any religious belief has a significant impact on all types of pro-environmental behaviors. Moreover, strong religious beliefs have greater impacts on different types of pro-environmental behaviors. Policy implications of the paper could be that people with religious beliefs should not be the target of programs aiming at promoting individual pro-environmental behaviors.

The purpose of this study is to explore how pro-environmental energy behavior is manifested at a military unit and what behavioral change factors can enhance such behavior. The military unit represents an organization dominated by an exceptionally strong sense of community and belonging where individual pro-environmental energy behavior goes in line with a collective one. The application of Capability-Opportunity-Motivation-Behavior (COM-B) approach led to a better understanding of energy-saving behavior in the military as an organization where personnel are trained to increase their awareness of their peers’ behavior. Methods: The results were obtained using data collected from two independent samples of both professional soldiers and conscripts at a military unit of Lithuanian defense forces located in a fixed installation in the time frame of 2018–2019. The total sample of respondents (professional soldiers and conscripts) was N = 454. A series of statistical tests were performed at the 0.05 level of confidence. Results: An extended COM-B model for the analysis of pro-environmental energy behavior in the military was proposed and applied. The results show that the three behavioral change factors—capability, opportunity, and motivation—are first of all positively linked with the collective energy behavior at the military unit and only then with the individual soldier’s pro-environmental energy behavior. This is a new insight into the COM-B model as collective and individual behavior are identified as separate indicators and then combined into a single measurable construct. In addition, the results indicate that in the military unit, communality plays an important role in sustaining pro-environmental energy behavior, even if an individual behavior indicates low-involvement.

Factors that influence pro-environmental behaviour in individuals can be examined to assess the influence of a single element or combination of elements. In this study, eight factors were investigated for their influence on pro-environmental behaviour: environmental knowledge, environmental attitude, the influence of others, environmental responsibility, age, qualification level, employment status and locality (rural or urban). These factors were established from behavioural theory in the field of psychology, specifically the theory of planned behaviour. Data were collected via an online questionnaire, for which the participants were scored on answers to pro-environmental behaviour questions, which, in turn, were correlated against established influences of such behaviour. A multiple linear regression analysis examined the level of significance that environmental knowledge, environmental attitude, the influence of others and environmental responsibility had on predicting an individual’s level of pro-environmental behaviour. An ordinal logistic regression examined the level of significance that age, qualification level, employment status and locality (rural or urban) had on predicting levels of pro-environmental behaviour. The analyses did not detect a statistically significant relationship between any of the independent variables on individual pro-environmental behaviour. However, the level of contribution of each factor provides insights into approaches that can be used in policy formation in the education and marketing domains.

Although individuals cumulatively contribute significantly to pollution problems, regulators have generally avoided targeting them. However, many of the most vexing environmental problems that remain cannot be resolved without limiting individuals' environmentally destructive choices, or at least spurring individuals to take actions that reduce the harm that they cause to the environment. For a variety of reasons, targeting individuals through command and control programs or market-based programs, such as pollution trading or taxes, may be difficult. Consequently, building on Robert Ellickson's groundbreaking work in Order Without Law, in a series of recent articles, Professor Michael Vandenbergh has argued that activation of personal norms is the best approach for reducing environmentally harmful actions by individuals. Vandenbergh and others argue that information disclosure programs can be used by government to stress to individuals the important role that their actions play in contributing to climate change and other environmental problems. Disclosure of that information, they argue, will activate personal norms in individuals tied to environmental protection or personal responsibility and will motivate individuals to avoid taking actions that are environmentally harmful. While Vandenbergh focused on government efforts to activate personal norms in favor of environmental protection or personal responsibility, the recent shift in public attitudes toward global warming and the increased willingness of individuals to act to reduce their impact on global warming demonstrate that another constituency can, and has, played an important role in norm activation and influencing environmentally conscious behavior. Over the past decade, churches and religious organizations have delivered strong messages through words and deeds about the role that individuals play in contributing to global warming and the harm that they can cause to the environment and the poor through their actions and daily choices regarding energy use and transportation. Through these efforts, religious groups have activated personal norms of stewardship and social justice that have spurred changes in individual attitudes and behavior even without the imposition of command and control or economic-based programs by government. As regulators begin to target individual behavior to address global warming and a variety of other environmental problems caused to a significant degree by individual action, regulators should recognize the role that religious organizations play in influencing individual behavior. If the government relies on information disclosure laws and strategies to activate personal norms to influence individual behavior change, it should explore ways to involve religious organizations in the information disclosure and could even provide grants to facilitate those efforts. At a minimum, the government should ensure that it does not frustrate the efforts of churches and religious organizations. This article explores the feasibility of using information disclosure to activate personal norms as a means of changing environmentally harmful individual behavior, and the role that churches and religious organizations have played and can play in influencing individual values and behavior regarding the environment.

This research project focused on developing a better understanding of the role of consumer and management in mainstream hotels in achieving sustainability. The structure of this research is initiated by providing more information about the main research background, followed by a literature review and development of the models used. The research design is presented with the models. Results of three studies are explained and discussed. The main research question to be answered is ‘What is the role of consumer and management in creating sustainability in a hotel context?’ The literature review on stakeholder theory in strategic green management suggested a multi-perspective involvement (company and customers) in establishing green management in hotels. The hotel consumer literature review found a high extent of Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) approaches used to conceptualise individual Pro-Environmental Behaviour (PEB) in existing models. However, fewer studies clearly pointed out that the inclusion of hotel green attributes contributes to a better explanation of customer loyalty in hotels. There is also scarcity in the inclusion of behavioural elements and mindfulness in existing PEB models. This research includes a novel feature of mindfulness, domestic green habits (behaviour), and hotel green attributes (context) as an alternative approach to explain individual PEB in hotels. In accordance with stakeholder theory, this research examines co-operations between hotel management and customers to establish business sustainability and provide win-win-win solutions for customers, company, and the natural environment. This research is designed on the pragmatist paradigm. A sequence of mixedmethods design (qualitative – quantitative – qualitative) was selected as the strategy of inquiry. In the first qualitative phase, two customer focus group discussions were conducted to develop some questionnaire items. After the pilot study, a survey targeting 3-star to 5-star hotel users was conducted in Indonesia (n=324). A similar survey was also carried out in Australia (n=339). Hotel management interviews (n=26) were also conducted to develop better understandings on hotel pro-environmental management from managers’ perspectives. The empirical studies presented in this research suggest that the proenvironmental collaboration between consumer and hotel management maintains a significant role in achieving sustainable hotel business. The study of individual PEB in hotels suggests that mindfulness significantly impacts consumer PEB in hotels. Hotel green attributes are found to be prominent in facilitating green behaviours in hotels. The study of the influence of hotel green attributes on customer loyalty suggests that the establishment of hotel green attributes supports customer’s positive attitudes towards the hotel’s brand and exhorts customer loyalty. The significance of green attributes in hotels conforms to the results of manager interviews. The green typology developed from the management interviews suggests high-level motivation, wide scope, very good processes and monitoring, and enhanced levels of customer communication enables best practice pro-environmental management. Exploring PEB in hotels from different perspectives contributes a green collaboration concept between consumer and hotel management to the hotel sustainability literature. A typology of hotel green management is presented to predict the extent of green practices in mainstream hotels. The green management criteria of the typology contribute insights to the actualisation of green management in mainstream hotels, and detailed standards to achieve best green practices in hotels. Supporting the stakeholder theory, staff participation and customer communications are necessary to achieve best green management practices. The novel concept of mindfulness and the behavioural approach to determining consumer PEB in hotels contribute a new perspective to the consumer behaviour literature. This research contributes to hotel management literature by providing insights on the prominent role of hotel green attributes in the actualisation of customer PEB in hotels. Findings of this research add deeper understandings of the role of hotel green attributes and customer experience in generating customer loyalty in hotels. Practically, this research mainly points to green collaboration between stakeholders (managers, staff, and consumer) that can be applied in hotel management. The green management typology criteria developed from this research can be applied to measure the extent of a hotel’s green practices. It can also assist hotel managements by providing a valid reference to enable best green practices in their hotels. Results of this research encourage hotel managers to involve the staff in formulating a green strategy and communicate the green strategy to their customers. Noting the positive impact of hotel green attributes and good hotel customer experience on loyalty, findings of this research deliver a novel approach for hotel management to gain a better understanding of their customers and to improve customer loyalty in their hotel. The inclusion of behavioural aspects and mindfulness in determining hotel PEB challenges and encourages the enactment of PEB among hotel customers.

As the Chinese economy grows, Chinese people’s environmental behavior enormously affects the environment of neighboring countries as well as China. Many studies have related environmental behavior to personal characteristics such as environmental knowledge and attitude or to national policies such as environmental taxes and regulations. Few studies have looked at how regional factors affect residents’ environmental behaviors, particularly for China. This is a substantive gap in the literature regarding the effects of regional governments on resident behavior at a closer distance via different mechanisms than the national government. This paper examines determinants of individual pro-environmental behavior (PEB) in terms of regional attributes as well as personal characteristics in China. For this purpose, we applied a multi-level regression model that regresses the degree of PEB on both individual and regional level factors, using Chinese General Social Survey data and the China Environment Yearbook data for the year 2010. The analysis shows that environmental attitude, willingness to pay for the environment, objective and subjective environmental knowledge, and environmental risk perception all promote PEB at the individual level. These results are in line with the existing literature on environmental behavior. In addition, at the regional level, environmental budgets, administrative enforcement, and economic development have positive impacts on resident PEB, while environmental pollution has a negative effect. Specifically, the levels of regional economic development and administrative enforcement not only directly affect behavior, but also indirectly affect behavior by controlling the influence of individual level variables. This means that the relationships between individual level variables and environmental behavior can be changed by regional contextual factors. These results suggest that regional government efforts for the environment can effectively promote PEB.

This study examines whether pro-environmental behavior crowds-in (associates positively with) or crowds-out (displaces) political activism. This research is part of a broader debate on the nature of individual pro-environmental behavior and whether it can be considered a political act. Studies generally show a positive association between pro-environmental behavior and political activism. However, few have differentiated between types of pro-environmental behavior. In contrast, our study uses Flemish survey data to examine the relationship between political activism and different modes of pro-environmental behavior: sustainable transport, shopping decisions, energy curtailment, and waste sorting. The results are generally consistent with previous studies. Political activism was positively related to sustainable transport, shopping decisions, and waste sorting. However, it was negatively associated with energy curtailment. Results thus suggest that energy curtailment may displace political action. In conclusion, by differentiating between various modes of pro-environmental behavior, our study confirms but also nuances the usefulness of concepts such as sustainable citizenship. These notions often frame individual pro-environmental behavior as part of broader political and collective strategies to address environmental issues. Our study shows that this may exclude some forms of ecologically significant behavior such as energy curtailment.

Prosocial behaviors, and more recently, proenvironmental behaviors, have been proposed as two dimensions of an overarching disposition towards the common good. Both behaviors imply a moral dimension and are influenced by the social contexts in which they unfold. In the present study we test these associations, assessing the effect of moral disengagement and peer social norms on prosocial and proenvironmental behaviors. We analyzed the first data wave of an ongoing longitudinal study including 704 Chilean adolescents (301 male, 378 female and 25 do not answer; from 6th to 10th graders). Structural Equation Models showed that prosocial and proenvironmental behaviors were significantly associated with each other, and both with moral disengagement. Direct and cross effects of peer social norms were found for prosocial and proenvironmental behaviors. Moreover, peer social norms on proenvironmental behavior moderated the association between moral disengagement and individual proenvironmental behavior, but the same moderation effect for prosocial norms was not observed. These results highlight the moral nature of prosocial and proenvironmental behaviors and the relevant role that peers have in promoting these behaviors. Results are further discussed regarding their educational and developmental implications.

Explaining the factors that influence individual pro-environmental behavior (PEB) in the tourism context may help to enhance sustainability. This study employs a meta-analysis to systematically compare the influence of rational, affective, and moral factors on individual PEB in the tourism context. According to the results, individual PEB in the tourism context is jointly influenced by rational, affective, and moral factors, among which the influence of affective factors plays a leading role. On this basis, this study further explores the moderating effects of related variables from the perspectives of rationality, affect, and morality, including personal characteristics and region characteristics.

The increasing concerns of Korean consumers towards environmental issues appear to have generated little discernable impact on individual pro-environmental behaviors. Therefore, it is important to look into the comprehensive process in which pro-environmental behavior is generated. The aim of this study is to seek predictors of pro-environmental behavior of Korean consumers and to test interrelationships among environmentally relevant variables: environmental concern, environmental knowledge, perceived consumer effectiveness, and environmental affect, and their effect on preference for products with pro-environmental attributes. We wish to provide an account of the way Korean pro-environmental behavior is shaped, with a specific focus on three types of behavior: green purchase behavior, green product use behavior, and green product disposal behavior. Key words: Green consumer, pro-environmental behavior, environmental knowledge, environmental concern, environmental affect.

Protect the environment for impressing others? Understanding whether, why, and when relational mobility shapes individual pro-environmental behaviors

This field experiment investigated whether purposefully adopting a new pro-environmental behavior (e.g., unplugging appliances, reusing shopping bags) led to positive spillover by altering people’s subsequent pro-environmental behaviors and political attitudes. Participants ( N = 125) recruited through community organizations were randomly assigned to either adopt a new pro-environmental behavior of their choice for three weeks, or were not invited to do so. Behavior adoption increased participants’ likelihood of contacting their senator about climate change, but had little direct spillover effect on other individual pro-environmental behaviors, their likelihood of making household-wide changes, the political importance they placed on climate-related issues, or their support for emissions-reducing policies. Behavior adoption increased sense of environmental responsibility among some participants, leading to indirect positive effects on purchasing organic/local produce and policy support. Overall, observed positive spillover effects were limited and relatively small. There was little indication that behavior adoption led to any meaningful negative spillover effects.

Dynamics of COVID-19 based on spontaneous individual behaviors of vaccination.

Individual pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) are essential for addressing critical global environmental challenges. Drawing on the social identity approach, this study examines how different types of social identity (including world, national, regional, and city identities) influence individuals’ engagement in PEBs. Using data from the seventh wave of the World Values Survey (2017–2022), which includes responses from 60,577 participants across 48 regions, a hierarchical linear model was used to analyze these relationships. The results show that world identity has a stronger effect than city, national, or regional identity on green orientation and subsequently on PEBs, emphasizing environmental sustainability as a global priority. Moreover, previous cross-cultural research has focused on individualistic and collectivistic cultures. Our study introduces a novel perspective to the existing literature by examining the moderating effect of long-term versus short-term societal orientations. The findings indicate that long-term cultural orientations strengthen the influence of green orientation on PEBs. This study provides actionable insights for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers seeking to develop culturally sensitive strategies to promote sustainable behaviors.