Abstract
Despite mounting evidence that car use is a prime culprit of global warming, our love affair with the car persists. General awareness of the environmental consequences of car usage is high but fails to correspond to moderated car use. This paper contributes to an understanding of how university students’ environmental beliefs affect decisions to engage in continued car use (persistence) and/or to discontinue or reduce car use (desistance). The aim of the research presented here was to explore the range of neutralizations and counter-neutralizations (affirmations) employed by students and to examine the ways in which they are used to justify and maintain either persistence or desistance in car use. The research consisted of six focus group sessions with thirty-four UK-based Higher Education students. Analysis of the study’s data highlights the range of neutralizations and counter-neutralizations employed by students in social settings. The article discusses the usefulness of neutralization theory in accounting for actual and/or intended non-environmentally friendly behaviour such as car use. In addition, the study’s findings are discussed in relation to prior research and to potential implications for public policy interventions which favour moderating car usage.
Highlights
Carbon emissions from the transport sector constitute a major source of household carbon footprint – outranked only by construction and food production (Lorek & Spangenberg, 2001; Klockner & Friedrichsmeier, 2011)
The study's findings are presented under three sections: (1) the neutralization techniques used by persisters, i.e., students who favoured continued use of the car despite acknowledgement of the environmental harm caused by their car use; (2) the affirmation techniques used by desisters, i.e. students who favoured reduced/discontinued use of the car for environmental reasons; and (3) the interplay of these techniques by both groups
This study explored university students’ justification accounts for persistence in and/or desistance from car use
Summary
Carbon emissions from the transport sector constitute a major source of household carbon footprint – outranked only by construction and food production (Lorek & Spangenberg, 2001; Klockner & Friedrichsmeier, 2011). In turn, a major contributor to overall emissions from the transport sector (Klockner & Friedreichsmeier, 2011). It constitutes the primary mode of daily commuting, especially for people living in the industrialized world (Bergstad et al, 2011). Car use as a specific travel behaviour is very resistant to change (Thorgesen, 2004)
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