Abstract
Living in rural areas has been described a driver for behaving in a pro-environmental way, mainly due to the more frequent contact with nature that people from rural areas have. However, the processes that link living in a rural area and behaving in a more ecological manner have not been systematically studied. Moreover, most studies have focused on adults living in developed countries. Given the importance that the actions conducted by people in developing countries have for the future of the environment, as well as the relevance of children’s pro-environmentalism for nature conservation, we present a brief research report examining the relationship between Mexican children’s place of residence and self-reported pro-environmental behavior (PEB). Participants were 200 children from Mexican rural areas (<1,000 inhabitants) and 200 from a Mexican urban city (>150,000 inhabitants). Children were between 9 and 12 years old. Children’s connection to nature was considered as a mediator in the relationship between children’s place of residence and PEB. Our findings revealed that rural children hold a stronger sense of connection to nature and behave in a more pro-environmental way than urban children. In addition, place of residence was directly and positively linked to their PEBs, and this relationship was mediated by children’s connection to nature. The relationship between connection to nature and PEB was stronger for girls than for boys. The model explained 45% of the variance of children’s self-reported PEBs.
Highlights
Human actions negatively affect the health of our planet (Milfont and Schultz, 2016; Evans, 2019)
Children from both urban and rural places of residence show a high sense of connection to nature, being higher for those living in rural areas (t = 360.76, p < 0.00)
They report a low frequency of conducting pro-environmental behavior (PEB), with urban children reporting a lower frequency than rural children (t = 395.13, p < 0.00)
Summary
Human actions negatively affect the health of our planet (Milfont and Schultz, 2016; Evans, 2019). We investigate whether Mexican children’s place of residence (urban/rural) is linked to their PEB, and if this relationship is mediated by children’s sense of emotional connection to nature (Mayer and Frantz, 2004). The present study considers connection to nature as a possible mediator of the relationship between those living in an urban and those in a rural context as well as PEB in Mexican children. Collado et al (2015) concluded that children who live in rural areas show stronger environmental attitudes and connection to nature which, in turn, lead to children’s PEB. The relationship between children’s environmental attitudes and PEB differed according to children’s place of residence, which determined the amount of time children spent in nature. We explored the possible variations in the direct and indirect associations between the place of residence and PEB according to gender (i.e., moderating role of gender), without any specific hypothesis in mind
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