Environmental Psychology Literature Research Articles

Evaluating third places, walkability, and positive mood in Los Angeles, USA: using social media data

ABSTRACT Past studies have stressed the importance of designing urban neighborhoods to be walkable and accessible to local amenities; however, the psychological benefits of urban design have been vastly understudied. The current study integrates theoretical insights from urban planning and environmental psychology literature in analyzing spatial relationships between third places, walkability, and positive mood across Los Angeles city blocks. To measure positive mood, this study utilized geotagged social media (Twitter) data to conduct sentiment analysis on tweets, using mood as a proxy for psychological well-being. Regression analyses revealed the independent and joint positive influences of third places and walkability on the expected number of positive tweets. The results indicated that more positive tweets were expected on blocks that (a) were more walkable and (b) had more third places. Notably, the number of third places on focal and surrounding blocks mattered more for psychological well-being on less walkable blocks. This research shows how big data can be leveraged by urban planners to make sense of human – environment relationships and the neighborhood context of well-being.

Pride or Guilt? Impacts of Consumers’ Socially Influenced Recycling Behaviors on Closed-Loop Supply Chains

Problem definition: Social influenced emotions of pride and guilt have been identified by the environmental psychology (EP) literature as crucial drivers impacting recycling behavior, but they have mostly been overlooked in operations management (OM) research. In contrast, EP studies often ignore firms’ operational decisions. We analyze the impacts of both social influence and firms’ operational decisions to provide a comprehensive understanding of consumers’ recycling behaviors, which is essential for realizing remanufacturing’s full potential. Methodology/results: We consider a closed-loop supply chain consisting of a manufacturer selling a single product to a consumer community. Consumers’ recycling behavior depends on both the recycling reward offered by the manufacturer, as well as intrinsic and socially influenced pride (guilt) from recycling (not recycling). We develop an evolutionary game to model consumers’ recycling behavior and characterize the resulting equilibrium recycling rate, which is then integrated into the manufacturer’s decision problem. We characterize the manufacturer’s optimal strategy and the equilibrium recycling rate in four distinct regions defined by both the product’s overall difficulty of remanufacturing and the underlying strengths of consumers’ socially influenced pride and guilt. We show that in settings where the product has a moderately high difficulty of remanufacturing and consumers have stronger socially influenced pride than guilt, the manufacturer optimally induces an interior recycling rate. In such scenarios, there exist win-win pathways in using social influence–based interventions to increase both the manufacturer’s profit and the recycling rate. However, misalignment may occur when consumers substantially care for the product’s recyclability. Managerial implications: This study bridges sustainable OM and EP literature by analyzing how consumers’ socially influenced emotions of pride and guilt affect a manufacturer’s optimal decisions, profits, and the resulting recycling rate. We provide important insights for designing effective and efficient social influence–based interventions to improve recycling rates. Funding: W. Chen was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant 71902017], and C.-L. Tseng was supported by the University of New South Wales UNOVA Knowledge Hub. Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/msom.2023.0721 .

The moderating effect of place attachment on visitors’ trust and support for recreational fees in national parks

The success of fee programs on public lands hinges on visitors' perceptions and reactions towards recreational fees, emphasizing the importance of understanding visitor dynamics in park management decisions. Using Indiana Dunes National Park in the U.S. as the study context, this study investigates the role of trust and place attachment in shaping visitors' support for national park entrance fees. Informed by social judgment theory, we hypothesize that place identity (socio-emotional attachment) will strengthen the relationship between trust and fee support, while place dependence (functional attachment) will weaken it. Our sample included 900 park visitors. The findings showed that as visitors’ place dependence increased, trust in the park agency became less critical in fee support. However, place identity did not significantly impact the trust-fee support relationship. These results underscore the importance of building trust and fostering place dependence among visitors to increase support for fee-related decisions by park managers. This study extends the environmental psychology literature and the recreation fee literature by furthering our understanding of the interplay among trust, place attachment, and fee support in the context of protected area management, providing insights for policymakers and park managers grappling with the contentious discourse surrounding park fees.

Comparing attitudinal structures between political orientations: A network analysis of climate change attitudes

Research into climate change attitudes consistently and across countries finds ideologically and worldview-determined differences in threat perceptions and policy endorsements. To further our understanding of these ideological differences, the current study explores the underlying structure of climate attitudes across right- and left-oriented individuals. Based on survey data from a representative sample from Denmark (N = 1365) we deployed the Causal Attitude Network model to formalize attitudes as networks of interacting attitude elements. We compare the networks of different ideological groups and relate the observed patterns to previous findings and theories within the environmental and political psychology literatures. Overall, the two networks were found to be characterized by many similarities, for example, in global connectivity and patterns of node strength. Yet, the results also revealed differences in the most central nodes of right and left networks, as well as theoretically interesting differences in the predictors of important nodes. We discuss the implications of the findings for communication and engagement efforts.

Sport tourist perceptions of destination image and revisit intentions: An adaption of Mehrabian-Russell's environmental psychology model

In environmental psychology literature, an individual's perception of the surroundings leads to subsequent behaviors. In this regard, small-scale sport events (SSE) have been used as a marketing tool for tourism development. However, how SSEs are leveraged to improve destination image (DI) for tourists has not been fully understood. Building on Mehrabian-Russell's environmental psychology model, this study examined the relationship between the SSE environmental stimuli and revisit intentions through the sequential mediation of cognitive and affective DI. Data from the 423 respondents were collected from 2023 Wuxi Marathon held in Wuxi, China. Structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the hypothesized framework. The results indicated that the SSE environmental stimuli were positively associated with both cognitive and affective DI, which were positively correlated with revisit intentions. The applicability of the serial mediation of cognitive and affective DI within the relationship was confirmed. This study contributes to the sport and tourism literature by extending the applicability of Mehrabian and Russell's model to SSE settings and identifying the serial mediating effects of cognitive and affective DI.

Designing for Mindfulness and Global Public Health: Where Inner Awareness Meets the External Environment

AbstractIn this paper, we offer a commentary on Oman’s article “Mindfulness for Global Public Health: Critical Analysis and Agenda” from the perspective of external environments, be they natural or built spaces. Utilizing the 14 domains of mindfulness and public health identified by Oman, we examine how spatio-environmental concerns are aligned, or have potential synergies with, these dimensions. We consider spatial and environmental qualities and relationships, for example, the presence of nature or a sense of safety, as supportive for public health and formal mindfulness practice, synthesizing a growing evidence base within environmental psychology and design literature. We highlight particular points of alignment, namely the impact of environments on mental health, stress, and attentional qualities. Potential synergies are evident where these domains seek to increase resilience and the sustainability of our planet, communities, and individuals, and through the increasing emphasis on designing places that offer inclusive access to, and direct involvement in, the creation of belief (spirituality) and culture-specific interventions. Although these domains offer the potential for greater holistic research and practice, more interdisciplinary research is needed to bridge gaps and bring this potential into the mainstream.

Urban identity and planning: a conceptual study on identity of urban, identity in urban, and identity for urban

Urban identity is gaining increasing attention across different research disciplines. However, there is no consensus as to how this concept can be integrated into planning theory, because every discipline has diverse concepts of urban identity, which are often included in planning theory without clarity. For example, environmental psychology literature and the social sciences have defined urban identity as human or social identity, while architecture and urban design characterize it as the urban/city or architectural identity. Therefore, this paper provides a conceptual framework for applying urban identity in planning theory and practice. This paper used the literature review method by synthesizing several relevant and reliable sources, particularly in planning, architecture, environmental psychology, social science, and geography. The result is an explanation of three concepts of urban identity, which are the ?identity of urban,? ?identity in urban,? and ?identity for urban?. The identity of urban helps planners to design functional and characteristic cities. Meanwhile, identity in urban helps planners to achieve the humanist aspect of a city and social justice; and identity for urban helps planners to advance a city?s economy and attract investors and tourists. These concepts are interrelated and can be integrated to support the sustainability of cities and their citizens, by achieving harmony between the population's need for orientation and identification, the function and aesthetics of the city, and the city?s attractiveness to visitors.

Communicating environmental data through art: the role of emotion and memory in evoking environmental action

Innovative approaches to environmental communication are needed to transcend existing scientific knowledge, challenge individual value-action gaps, and engage more people in science. Within a co-created community science project, a case-control study was conducted to determine whether data visualization type could impact participant scientific learning, emotional response, behavioral outcomes, and environmental action. Two novel data sharing types were designed to communicate roof-harvested rainwater data to environmental justice communities: (1) A static booklet and (2) An interactive environmental art installation called Ripple Effect paired with a booklet. Our results indicate that environmental art can not only communicate complex scientific data effectively, but can also overcome barriers associated with traditional science communication by affecting people’s emotion and memory—which increases the likelihood of changing their behavior or taking new action in their environment. These results are consistent with the environmental psychology literature; however, we have successfully captured the role of memory and long-lasting impacts of environmental art on pro-environmental health behavior. This research further paves the way for others to create innovative environmental communication formats to communicate environmental health.

Perceptions of Self-Motives and Environmental Activists’ Motives for Pro-Environmental Behavior

The manuscript presents a thematic analysis of a U.S. adult sample’s self-reported motives and perception of environmental activists’ motives to engage in pro-environmental behavior via a qualitative online survey. I identified themes using a two-stage coding procedure. First, undergraduate research assistants coded all content into 1 or more of 17 inductive content categories. Second, I examined the categories and created five themes based on both inductive and theoretical considerations: (a) harm and care, (b) purity, (c) waste and efficiency, (d) spreading awareness, and (e) self-interest (mostly non-financial). Some themes (harm and care; preserving purity; and self-interest) were consistent with previous research and theory, but themes of waste and efficiency and spreading awareness have been less explored by previous work as key motivators of pro-environmental behavior, suggesting ripe avenues for future research. Conversely, some factors that have been proposed by previous research as key possible motives of pro-environmental behavior were not described by participants in the present work. The endorsement of themes was qualitatively similar across individuals’ descriptions of their own vs. environmental activists’ motives. Collectively, these findings suggest that individuals’ descriptions of common motives for pro-environmental behavior partially aligns with factors commonly proposed in environmental psychology literature, but key discrepancies warrant further investigation.

Measuring place attachment with the Abbreviated Place Attachment Scale (APAS)

Despite place attachment's prominence within the environmental psychology literature, the scales and items used to measure place attachment vary significantly, hindering the ability of researchers to rally behind a standard measure. These types of discrepancies hamper the ability of researchers to directly compare findings across communities and conduct metanalyses on the antecedents and outcomes of place attachment. Furthermore, scales consisting of more than three items may unnecessarily burden respondents, thus impeding opportunities to add new constructs to surveys so that the precursors and outcomes of place attachment can be better understood. With this in mind, the purpose of this paper is to present and test the cross-cultural reliability and validity of an Abbreviated Place Attachment Scale (APAS) (i.e., three items for place identity and three items for place dependence) across seven samples spanning five data collections and four countries (United States, Cape Verde, Nigeria and Poland) involving residents and visitors. Confirmatory factor analysis reveals that the abbreviated scales perform just as well as their extended parents, and the multi-group confirmatory factor analysis reveals full measurement invariance demonstrating that the APAS is equivalent across cultures. Based on these results, the APAS should be given full attention by place attachment researchers seeking to expand the literature on the understanding of how people connect to places and the implications that these connections have on other important constructs such as quality of life, support for tourism, and place-based conservation efforts or individual environmental behaviors.

A Qualitative Exploration of Individual Experiences of Environmental Virtual Reality Through the Lens of Psychological Distance

ABSTRACT How to increase public engagement in environmental issues is a central question in environmental communication and environmental psychology literatures. Psychological distance (PD) is one potential barrier to public engagement. PD describes the perceptual distance between a person’s experience and an external target. Immersive technologies such as virtual reality (VR) have the potential to shrink PD. Yet, we know little about how people perceive and react to an environmental VR experience or about the role that PD plays in these reactions. To address this gap, we use interviews and focus groups to examine how people react to a VR experience about ocean acidification. We find that PD is prevalent in the reactions of VR users, especially first-time users, and that 62% of participants described feeling psychologically close to ocean acidification.

Attitude toward environmental protection and toward nature: How do they shape consumer behaviour for a sustainable tomato?

Several research efforts have tried to explain the forces driving food-related decisions. In this article, we explore how individual attitude toward the environment could be a potential determinant of green behavior. This research offers an original methodological framework never adopted in the food consumption domain that is based on the contribution of Campbell Paradigm and the related advancements on attitude measures proposed by the environmental psychology literature. We also contribute to the literature by envisaging a two-dimensional environmental attitude, that distinguishes between attitude toward environmental protection and toward nature appreciation. The ultimate target is to explain consumer purchasing intentions, represented by Willingness to Pay, toward a hypothetical tomato with improved resource use efficiency taking into account consumer psycho-attitudinal propensity towards environmental issues. The analysis is conducted in Italy and in the UK, two countries characterized by different perceptions about tomato as a consumption good and about water related issues. Findings indicate that the two dimensions of consumer attitude affect differently the spending propensity for a sustainable tomato and these differences are also country-specific. The analysis suggests that policies aimed at promoting sustainable food products should also target the consumer type (naturalist or environmentalist) that is more sensible to environmental sustainability.

Integrating Individual Behavior Dimension in Social Life Cycle Assessment in an Energy Transition Context

Energy transition is a result of mankind’s reaction to climate change and individuals are expected to have a crucial role in achieving it in developed countries. The purpose of this study is to apply the social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) tool and investigate the social performance of the Dutch energy transition while focusing on individual behavior, and if this is not possible, to develop indicators focusing on individual behavior dimension. The social performance of the energy transition in the Netherlands was assessed on a hotspot level. Additionally, the S-LCA guidelines were examined to identify the human dimension and behavior in the existing subcategories, and environmental psychology literature was explored to identify drivers and behavior that are important for the energy transition. Existing subcategories fail to show the extent of social progress of the Dutch energy transition nor how individuals perceive it. As a result, a total of 8 subcategories and 25 indicators at a hotspot and site-specific levels are developed. These subcategories and indicators focus on prosumer’s and individual’s behaviors, and traits of local communities. Application of the developed hotspot indicators shows that the Dutch government still subsidies fossil energy and, even though Dutch citizens show environmental concerns, the energy transition is delayed due to insufficient top-down coordination. Developed indicators are considered to be both feasible and relevant to investigate the social aspects of the energy transition in developed countries.

Modeling the Influence of Public Risk Perceptions on the Adoption of Green Stormwater Infrastructure: An Application of Bayesian Belief Networks Versus Logistic Regressions on a Statewide Survey of Households in Vermont

There is growing environmental psychology and behavior literature with mixed empirical evidence about the influence of public risk perceptions on the adoption of environmentally friendly “green behaviors”. Adoption of stormwater green infrastructure on residential properties, while costlier in the short term compared to conventional greywater infrastructure, plays an important role in the reduction of nutrient loading from non-point sources into freshwater rivers and lakes. In this study, we use Bayesian Belief Networks (BBNs) to analyze a 2015 survey dataset (sample size = 472 respondents) about the adoption of green infrastructure (GSI) in Vermont’s residential areas, most of which are located in either the Lake Champlain Basin or Connecticut River Basin. Eight categories of GSI were investigated: roof diversion, permeable pavement, infiltration trenches, green roofs, rain gardens, constructed wetlands, tree boxes, and others. Using both unsupervised and supervised machine learning algorithms, we used Bayesian Belief Networks to quantify the influence of public risk perceptions on GSI adoption while accounting for a range of demographic and spatial variables. We also compare the effectiveness of the Bayesian Belief Network approach and logistic regression in predicting the pro-environmental behaviors (adoption of GSI). The results show that influencing factors for current adoption differ by the type of GSI. Increased perception of risk from stormwater issues is associated with the adoption of rain gardens and infiltration trenches. Runoff issues are more likely to be considered the governments’ (town, state, and federal agencies) responsibility, whereas lawn erosion is more likely to be considered the residents’ responsibility. When using the same set of variables to predict pro-environmental behaviors (adoption of GSI), the BBN approach produces more accurate predictions compared to logistic regression. The results provide insights for further research on how to encourage residents to take measures for mitigating stormwater issues and stormwater management.

Sustainable outcomes: INS/IEO and the relevance of proximity and control to drive change

Purpose This study aims to explore and develop new theories. These theories emerged from combining environmental psychology literature with sustainability literature and the five research questions at the core of the work built upon a central theme of sustainability that argues us and the organizations require a relationship of entwinement rather than separation and the language can reinforce or diminish the path to sustainable outcomes. Design/methodology/approach The study used an electronic questionnaire to explore five research questions. The study consisted of survey individuals from across the world on their connection with nature using the inclusion of nature in self scale (Schultz, 2002). An adaptation of this scale called the inclusion of environment in organization scale to understand individuals’ views of their organization and then three pairs of questions that had alternative phrasing within each pair. Findings In total, 632 respondents from across the globe responded to the survey. The results highlight that respondents consider their organization’s conceptual relationship with the environment as far from ideal for sustainable outcomes and that their organization is out of synch with them personally. Further, respondents believe that asking a question that emphasizes proximity and control such as “would I want to breathe this”? is more likely to yield sustainable outcomes than an alternative phrasing that does not emphasize proximity and control, phrasing such as “do the gaseous outputs meeting regulation requirements”? Research limitations/implications Given the study was exploratory the number and range of respondents ensure the study has a perspective, that is useful to organizational leaders and academics in exploring new directions. However, at the same time given the exploratory nature of the work, more studies are required to understand the “why” of respondents’ choices and to more fully develop and understand the implications of a wider range of alternatively phrased questions (only three were tested) that emphasize proximity and control such as that shown earlier “would I want to breathe this”? Practical implications For organizational leaders, the research highlights that respondents view their organizations as being far from ideal in realizing sustainable outcomes, which, in turn, should be a spur to do more. Further, it indicates that simple phrasing that emphasizes proximity and control could be a tactic in helping an organization pursue sustainable strategies. For academics, the results of this study point us towards phraseology, as a key technique for helping drive organizational strategy towards sustainable outcomes. Social implications See prior implications Originality/value The value of this work is that it combines environmental psychology with sustainability management and provides a foundation and confidence for scholars and practitioners to explore the potential of new theories and thus follow new lines of enquiry.

Welcome to your plaza: Assessing the restorative potential of urban squares through survey and objective evaluation methods

Psychological restoration is a widely study topic in environmental health, environmental psychology and urban studies literatures. Most of the attention has been directed towards the benefits of the contact with natural/green spaces. On the contrary, the study of the restorative properties of built settings, even though it has experienced a relative increase in recent years, remains greatly understudied. In this work, we assessed the objective design features of a sample of 6 urban squares and conducted a survey study to measure the patterns of use of such settings and restorative experiences of their users. Regression analyses revealed that both objective variables and the patterns of use were scarcely associated to the experience of restoration whereas psychological variables such as the perception of the restorative qualities of the squares and the psychological bonding to them remained strongly associated even in the presence of the rest of the variables included in the study. The implications of the study for this line of research and for urban planning initiatives are discussed.

Positive Social Interaction by Spatial Design: A Systematic Review of Empirical Literature in Memory Care Facilities for People Experiencing Dementia.

Objective: The objective of this review is to outline a comprehensive set of possible design interventions focusing on spatial and environmental design factors influencing positive social interaction, which is one of the key aspects of quality of life (QoL) in long-term care facilities (LTCFs). Methods: This systematic literature review synthesized research evidence from seven databases (after the year 2000) spanning medical and health literature, environmental psychology, architecture, interior design, and evidence-based design literature. Results: The key spatial design characteristics of the facilities shown to affect positive social interaction were as follows: (a) The Physical Environment and Setting; (b) Accessibility, Legibility, and Layout; (c) Social Environment and Network; and (d) Staff-Resident Ratio and Care Philosophy. Conclusion: Several critical spatial design features of the facilities were identified. Spatial design interventions could influence the design decisions for future care facilities and provide designers the guidelines that are generalizable regardless of geographic location of the LTCF.

Task-related pro-environmental behaviours of architectural designers: LEED-based evidence from Turkey

ABSTRACTArchitecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry significantly contributes to environmental degradation through material and energy flows and a huge amount of waste generation as a result of the demolition and refurbishment of buildings. Evidence from environmental psychology literature suggests that being informed about environmental problems does not automatically translate to pro-environmental behaviour (PEB). Clarifying the profiles and perspectives of designers who tend to display low- and high-PEB can provide insights for developing environmental intervention strategies. A questionnaire was designed and delivered to the members of Istanbul Chamber of Architects (CAT). Hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted to classify respondents as relatively low-PEB and relatively high-PEB designers, where PEB was operationalized by the self-reported adoption and implementation of LEED criteria in projects within the past 10 years. Following the classification of design professionals according to PEB scores, quantitative data from 274 respondents and qualitative data from 95 respondents were analysed respectively. Keeping other factors constant, findings suggest that the predictive power of awareness about pro-environmental practices in the business domain appears stronger when compared with that of general awareness of people about environmental problems. Apart from contributing to a theoretical understanding of PEB at the workplace, findings provide insights into developing target-group-specific intervention strategies, as they indicate that being technically informed may more easily translate to PEB in the business setting if appropriate motivational incentives are used and continuing professional development programs are designed, especially for the low-PEB designers.

Understanding pro‐environmental intentions by integrating insights from social mobility, cosmopolitanism, and social dominance

To offer an integrative account bridging individuals’ sociocultural orientations with pro‐environmentalism, the current research tested the mediating and moderating relationships among pro‐environmental intentions and three person‐level factors: perceived social mobility, cosmopolitan orientation, and social dominance orientation (SDO). With a Singaporean college student sample (N = 220), we found support for the hypothesized second‐stage moderation model that perceived social mobility positively predicts cosmopolitan orientation, and in turn, cosmopolitan orientation is moderated by SDO to positively predict pro‐environmental intentions. Specifically, lower levels of SDO strengthen the pro‐environmental advantages of endorsing higher levels of cosmopolitan orientation. These findings add novel knowledge to the environmental psychology literature by advancing an integrative approach that demonstrates how the interplay of people's perceptions about the social, cultural, and group standing impacts their likelihood to engage in pro‐environmental actions. We discuss the implications that an egalitarian worldview toward other cultures, social groups, and human–nature relations might be the key to addressing the global challenge of climate change.

Model specification issues in PLS-SEM

研究目的本论文使用两种不同的PLS-SEM处理软件来测试理论模型。通过解析模型设定参数问题, 特别是通过结构关系本性分析, 本论文指出选择合适的软件测试模型在酒店旅游领域的PLS研究中是非常关键的。研究设计/方法/途径本论文借助图像拍摄手段采用实验的采样方式, 在两个不同的酒店服务场所—按摩和高档餐厅—搜集350份数据。本论文采用Smart PLS 3.2 和Warp PLS 5.0 软件来测试PLS-SEM。 这两款软件支持线性和非线性理论关系的比较。研究结果通过Smart PLS 3.2 和Warp PLS 5.0 软件得出的报告结果分析, 不同软件处理PLS得出的结果可能有偏差, 而且会不符合理论设定。如果模型设定参数不正确, 通过使用合适的PLS-SEM软件和相关的数据分析加以辅助, 可能会解决参数不正确的问题。研究实践意义本论文的比较分析结果可能会帮助到酒店和旅游领域的研究者们, 在做对有关PLS-SEM软件选择的时候, 哪些软件可以更加合适的测试模型有着参考意义。研究原创性/价值本论文重点指出了模型设定参数的相关问题, 比如旅游酒店领域常见的变量种类和关系属性等。本论文还研究了如何选择合适的数据分析方法来克服测试复杂模型时的限制, 并且提供实践结果来支撑理论。