Pro-environmental Values Research Articles

Analysing the Environmental Values and Attitudes of Rural Nepalese Children by Validating the 2-MEV Model

The Two-dimensional Model of Ecological Values (2-MEV), developed and verified in Western Europe, successfully explores the environmental values and attitudes of the children (11−16 years old) using questionnaires/items. However, the reliability of the 2-MEV Scale and its bi-dimensionality in a non-industrialised country, such as Nepal, is unexplored. Nepal lies within the monsoon region, which triggers extreme environmental crises such as floods. As environmental values and attitudes are related to pro-environmental/adaptive behaviour, this study analyses not only the values and attitudes of children but also the validity of the 2-MEV Scale in a different geographic and socioeconomic setting. Therefore, the items of the 2-MEV Scale were modified, translated, and validated in two rounds with 200 and 201 children. Results were examined using principal component analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, respectively. The findings validated the two constructs of environmental values (Preservation and Utilisation) with a correlation of −0.93, but the attitude’s pattern varied from that found in industrialised countries. Finally, the rural Nepalese version of the 2-MEV was used to measure environmental values. Most children (78.62% from n = 379) show an inclination towards Preservation, 0.26% towards Utilisation, 20.05% towards both values partially, and 1.05% were neutral. In general, the children held pro-environmental values and attitudes.

Green Cartoons: Toward a Pedagogy of the Animated Parable

The use of short animated films to address important social issues and societal needs has a rich tradition. These cartoons follow a stream of ecological propaganda in a variety of films that promote pro-environmental values and beliefs. After surveying films for both the cinema and television, the authors focus on exploring short animated films as pedagogical texts that teach pro-environmental beliefs and encourage ordinate behaviors in entertaining ways. They then discuss the application of the entertainment–education communication strategy through animated films as a means to advance environmental education. In particular, they view short animated films as pedagogical tools that function as exemplary or revelatory parables.

PRÁTICAS DE EDUCAÇÃO AMBIENTAL NA FORMAÇÃO DE PROFESSORES DE EDUCAÇÃO FÍSICA

O estudo busca ressignificar as práticas de educação ambiental na formação e atuação dos professores de Educação Física partir de uma revisão de literatura e avaliar a formação dos professores de Educação Física da região CRAJUBAR do Cariri Cearense para atuação com a Educação Ambiental. Destacado os desafios na formação de professores de Educação Física, as possibilidades, ações e estratégias de ensino em atividades ligadas as práticas corporais como um elo na promoção de uma construção de novos valores pró-ambientais, capazes de gerar novas sensibilidades para a relação entre homem e meio ambiente.

Sustainability for ecotourism: work identity and role of community capacity building

ABSTRACTThis research sheds light on community organisations and how they can shape the landscape for ecotourism sustainability. It identifies work identity attributes that involve pro-environmental behaviours for achieving institutional challenges to meet sustainability for ecotourism goals. First, a framework on managing community organisations and its impact is proposed and empirically tested, which includes theoretical perspectives of work identity attributes like pro-environmental behaviours, community values and involvement for building community capacity. A conceptual model was developed to guide this study. A mixed-method study has been designed involving 28 interviews, followed by testing 266 responses, analysed through Structural Equation Modelling and Cluster Analysis. Through identifying clusters of individuals based on their demographics, behaviours and perceived individual effectiveness for supporting eco-tourism the research demonstrates that individuals with pro-environmental behaviour can act as agents of change for realising ecotourism and sustainable development goals. The research highlights that work identities require specific personal attributes to influence the change process through sustainability for ecotourism. By examining these attributes on community values and involvement, this study offers insights for institutional change processes that meet the central tenets of sustainability for ecotourism.

A Race We Can Win

A Race We Can Win

Let's Do The Fracking Talk: An Experimental Approach To Understanding Legitimacy Perceptions

The literature on legitimacy has established that to form legitimacy judgments, individual evaluators process two perceptual inputs. They interpret the behavior of the entity under scrutiny and benchmark it to their personal sets of norms, values, and beliefs, and they interpret the judgments of legitimacy awarding institutions through the validity cues that these institutions convey. Building on the literatures on legitimacy perception, on independence and pro-environmental values, we offer an evaluation model of legitimacy judgment formation and test this model on 5,928 assessments about the use of a new technology of fracking made by 247 observers. We find that variance in legitimacy evaluations depends both on the validity cues from legitimacy awarding institutions, on evaluators’ basic values, and the interaction between the two. Specifically, we observe that four validity cues - public support, economic impact, regulations, and longevity - are used simultaneously and have significant effects on the legitimacy judgment but also that regulations bolster the effects of the other cues. Lastly, we find that differences in evaluators’ basic values moderate the effect of the validity cues on legitimacy judgments. Particularly, higher pro-environmental values of evaluators suggest less favorable perceptions of high economic impact; higher pro-environmental values suggest more favorable perceptions when public support is high. Intriguingly, the higher the pro-environmental values as well as the higher the level of independence, an established venture is perceived as more legitimate than a new venture.

Are pro-ecological values enough? Determining the drivers and extent of participation in citizen science programs

ABSTRACTCitizen science programs provide an opportunity for the public to reconnect with nature; however, pro-environmental values may not necessarily result in a high level of participation. This study assessed the values and attitudes toward ecology and conservation of 482 people, including 231 citizen scientists participating in two programs requiring either a ‘complex’ or ‘simple’ level of participation. Positive attitudes toward urban wildlife were positively associated with increased participation in citizen scientist programs; however, a pro-ecological attitude was not always associated with an increasing level of participation. Young adults were more likely to participate in the simple data submitting a program or via social media, while middle-aged and older adults from vegetated suburbs were more likely to participate in the complex data collecting multi-species focused program. These results have implications for strategic design and targeting of citizen science programs to maximize participation rates.

Promoting adoption while avoiding rebound: integrating disciplinary perspectives on market diffusion and carbon impacts of electric cars and building renovations in Austria

BackgroundMany countries state ambitious targets for reducing carbon emissions. Their policy strategies emphasize energy efficiency by means of technological innovations. However, these strategies are at risk of severe rebound effects, as savings from more efficient products and facilities may be (over-)compensated by rearrangements in consumer behavior. While rebound effects are widely acknowledged, it is less clear how they arise from the complex interactions between market actors, consumer preferences, and policy initiatives.ResultsWe propose a simplified representation of these complex dynamics, in order to point out levers for counteracting rebound effects. A pathway mapping integrates results from fuzzy cognitive mapping of expert knowledge, from a household survey on adoption and use and from macroeconomic modelling of energy efficiency policies. Core drivers identified across all methods are joined to a cause-and-effect diagram. The respective strengths of influence are standardized to effect coefficients. By tracing policy impulses through the web of interlinked drivers, the pathway mapping illustrates direct, mediated, and unintended impacts on market diffusion, rebound, and carbon emission reductions of energy-efficient technologies. Pathway mapping is demonstrated as an approach for integrating diverse disciplinary methods into a joint narrative illustrating overarching dynamics.ConclusionsApplying this methodology to building renovations and electric cars in Austria, the need to balance technology adoption and use becomes apparent. Convergent drivers stimulate the market uptake of the energy-efficient technology and simultaneously constrain rebound effects. For instance, educating customers on product features and activating their pro-environmental values, encourages technology adoption as well as ecological use. Contrastingly, divergent drivers have opposing effects on adoption and use. For example, fuel taxes counteract rebound, but also hinder adoption by increasing lifetime costs. Higher income enables adopters to carry upfront investment costs, but also increases spending in other, carbon-intensive consumption domains. The pathway maps show that market-oriented instruments promote the adoption of energy-efficient technologies but also the rebound effect in their subsequent use. Policy interventions should be carefully designed to leverage convergent and to circumnavigate divergent drivers in order to address multiple impact paths. Climate strategies should not underestimate the role of socio-psychological characteristics and key actors.

Understanding AWE: Can a Virtual Journey, Inspired by the Overview Effect, Lead to an Increased Sense of Interconnectedness?

Immersive technology, such as virtual reality, provides us with novel opportunities to create and explore affective experiences with a transformative potential mediated through awe. The profound emotion of awe, that is experienced in response to witnessing vastness and creates the need for accommodation that can lead to restructuring of one's worldview and an increased feeling of connectedness. An iconic example of the powers of awe is observed in astronauts who develop instant social consciousness and strong pro-environmental values in response to the overwhelming beauty of Earth observed from space. Here on Earth, awe can also be experienced in response to observing vast natural phenomenon or even sometimes in response to some forms of art, presenting vast beauty to its audience. Can virtual reality provide a new powerful tool for reliably inducing such experiences? What are some unique potentials of this emerging medium? This paper describes the evaluation of an immersive installation "AWE" – Awe-inspiring Wellness Environment. The results indicate that the experience of being in "AWE" can elicit some components of awe emotion and induce minor cognitive shifts in participant's worldview similar to the Overview Effect, while this experience also has its own attributes that might be unique to this specific medium. Comparing the results of this study to other virtual environments designed to elicit Overview Effect provides insights on the relationship between design features and participant's experience. The qualitative results highlight the importance of perceived safety, personal background and familiarity with the environment, and the induction of a small visceral fear reaction as a part of the emotional arc of the virtual journey – as some of the key contributers to the affective experience of the immersive installation. Even though the observed components of awe and a few indications of cognitive shift support the potential of Virtual Reality as a transformative medium, many more iterations of the design and research tools are required before we can achieve and fully explore a profound awe-inspiring transformative experience mediated through immersive technologies.

Sustainability and the common good: Catholic Social Teaching and \u2018Integral Ecology\u2019 as contributions to a framework of social values for sustainability transitions

It is widely acknowledged that the large-scale and long-term transitions needed to mitigate climate change and to implement policies for sustainable development within planetary boundaries require significant shifts in values and behaviours. Consequently, there is increasing interest in the processes through which major societal transitions for sustainability can occur through peaceful cooperation and widespread embrace of pro-environmental values, and the values associated with the broad concept of sustainability such as care for the interests of future generations and concern for the poor. This encompasses the search for compelling narratives to frame the process and goals of change and the need for the fostering of virtues and ethical frameworks of identity and practice that can underpin advocacy and change for sustainability. This requires drawing on richer sources of values and ethics. We suggest that important resources can be found in religious, as well as secular traditions of social values and ethical analysis. While major religions have begun to reflect environmental concerns and sustainability goals in their theology and praxis, with immense potential and actual influence over value and behaviours, little research has explored the impacts and implications of this development; nor indeed, the intellectual stimulus and social capabilities they can offer to secular thinkers and practitioners in sustainable development. In particular, we argue that there is a need to consider the affinities between secular sustainability frameworks for ethics and policy and the concepts of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) on the Common Good, recently updated by Pope Francis to integrate ecological concern and a call for universal ‘ecological conversion’ and cooperation. We outline the key features of CST and the Pope’s new ‘Integral Ecology’ framework and identify affinities, in particular, with Elinor Ostrom’s system of design principles for sustainable management of commons. We conclude with suggestions for research to investigate the interrelationships of the Integral Ecology reframing of CST with initiatives for transformational change in values and practices for sustainability.

Teaching Pro-Environmental Behavior: A Challenge in Indonesian Schools

Although most researchers agree that environmental education is very important to develop pro-environmental behavior (PEB) in children, it is uncertain whether environmental education has positive outcomes, especially in Indonesian schools. This study tried to get some insight into whether green school students will have a higher nature relatedness and thus will behave more environmentally friendly, compared with students from schools with a regular national curriculum. In this study, 304 elementary public schools’ students and 229 green schools’ students participated. Data were collected through self-report scale, behavioral observation and Focus Group Discussion (FGD). The result shows that green school student’s, as well as children from public school, do not differ in their appreciation and understanding of their interconnectedness with all other living things on the earth. In other words, their nature relatedness (NR) are relatively similar. As hypothesized, if faced with the choice to act environmentally friendly, the PEB of green school students were significantly higher than public school students. But interestingly, information from FGD reveals that green school children PEB is not based on knowledge or concern for the environment, but rather a result of habituation and social modelling of their friends. On the other hand, public schools students have the knowledge, but they do not implement it in daily lives because they are not used to do it. It is concluded that environmental education curriculum does have a role in shaping students PEB, but to develop a sustainable PEB in young children, schools should focus on environmental knowledge, to develop and internalized pro-environmental value, and they should also develop ways to habituate PEB.

Identifying the determinants of and barriers to landowner participation in reforestation in Costa Rica

Reforestation programs are being implemented across the globe to address the decline in global forest cover. This research examines the role of motivations, external support, and barriers on farmer participation in reforestation in the tropics. Eighty-five household surveys and 18 in-depth interviews were conducted with farmers and organizations in Costa Rica. To measure motivations, we asked farmers’ their perceptions of environmental, social and financial outcomes of reforestation. External support was measured as perceived support from conservation organizations. Regression models were used to determine the significance of motivations and external support, controlling for household and biophysical characteristics, on reforestation behaviors. External support and environmental motivations both had a positive and statistically significant effect on reforestation. Farm size and the number of years spent on the property also positively influenced the decision to plant trees. Farmers identified instrumental pro-environmental values, such as water regulating ecosystem services, as their primary motivations for planting trees. Barriers to reforestation included a lack of technical skills for planting trees, unsuccessful past experiences, a lack of trust in external organizations and initial reforestation costs. Overall, this research indicates that environmental motivations influence the decision to participate in reforestation, but that external support is critical for overcoming initial participation barriers.

What Drives People to Complain about Environmental Issues? An Analysis Based on Panel Data Crossing Provinces of China

Strengthening public participation has often proven essential for achieving environmental sustainability goals. The “Xinfang”system, through complaint visits and letters, offers institutional channels through which the public’s grievances can be addressed, and where court judgments can be challenged by filing complaints about environmental problems to Environmental Protection Bureaus. Operating under the monopoly of the state Party, the “Xinfang” system provides the political opportunity for pro-environmental values and interests to be voiced and heard by governments. Importantly, comprehending the evolution of public complaints over a prolonged period of time sheds light on various determinants of this public participation program. This paper seeks to better understand environmental degradation caused by unbridled economic growth in China and the efforts that civic environmentalism has made to reduce the problem. More specifically, it uses panel data on 31 Chinese provincial/first level administrative units, collected over a decade, from 2003 to 2015, to analyze how socioeconomic status in the general public and the political and policy structures have shaped civic environmentalism. We use two Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) models to explore how these actors have propelled the public to protect their environment from discharged industrial wastewater, industrial waste gas, and solid wastes.

Unlikely alliances? Knowledge, power and the collaborative governance of Irish peatlands

This paper uses Q methodology to analyse multiple environmentalities underlying professionals’ legitimacy discourses on implementation of contested peatlands regulation under the European Habitats Directive. This approach advances the literature on multiple environmentalities by providing a lens on the enactment of power-knowledge relations between stakeholders in collaborative environmental governance. The empirical results illustrate the significance of power-knowledge in the dominant discourse coalition emphasising a sovereign-neoliberal environmentality in a one-size-fits-all approach to compensation. This paper also provides insights into the strategic alliance reinforcing technocratic rationalities and agricultural priorities at a key stage in the policy process. An emergent, albeit marginalised, ‘truth environmentality’ underlying a pragmatic, site-specific approach to implementation is also evident. Policy outcomes illustrate the abandonment of sovereign environmentality over highly contested areas, and the reconstruction of scientific legitimacy and norms under Article 6 of the Habitat Directive, to converge with broader neoliberal socio-economic priorities and cost-effectiveness. The analysis reveals how power-knowledge interactions within and between socio-economic and environmental-ecological sectors contribute to policy discourses and to conflict on implementation. The research also reveals the power of the State to steer collaborative governance towards contradictory outcomes, relative to the environmentalities expressed by professional actors, a position which potentially undermines the cultivation of pro-environmental values at local level.

When does self-identity predict intention to act green? A self-completion account relying on past behaviour and majority-minority support for pro-environmental values

“Green” self-identity, that is, how much individuals view themselves as environmentalists, generally predicts pro-environmental intentions and behaviour. Factors moderating the strength of this link are, however, not clear yet. In the present paper, we examine how past green behaviour and majority/minority support for environmental values conjointly moderate the effect of an aspired-to green self-identity on pro-environmental intention. We rely on self-completion theory as an overall framework and propose that self-identity would mainly predict future action to the extent that the self is perceived as incomplete. We report four experimental studies (N = 1078) that assessed green self-identity and measured or manipulated past green versus non-green behaviour, and majority versus minority support for environmental values. Results revealed an overall positive link between self-identity and pro-environmental intention that was cancelled specifically at high levels of past green behaviour when a majority supported the participant's pro-environmental values (i.e., when the self was complete).

Convenience, savings, or lifestyle? Distinct motivations and travel patterns of one-way and two-way carsharing members in Vancouver, Canada

Carshare membership in North America has grown approximately 25% per year over the past decade. Some have attributed this to pro-environmental values and low-impact lifestyles of millennials, the primary users of carsharing. Many municipal governments have adopted this belief and support carsharing through various accommodations and subsidies. Results from a survey in Vancouver, Canada (which has the highest level of carsharing in North America) showed that one-way and two-way carsharing members have different motivations for carsharing and travel patterns. One-way members, primarily millennials, self-report that they carshare for convenience, using shared vehicles twice as frequently and private vehicles three times as frequently as two-way members. Two-way members choose carsharing for financial savings and a more efficient lifestyle. They tend to walk and bike more often than one-way members and the overall Vancouver population. These trip mode and frequency differences are consistent across age, gender, income, and geography. Perhaps as a consequence of the above, we also found that while one-way members are on average younger and wealthier, two-way members self-report as having more affordable lifestyles. These findings point to two-way carsharing members adhering to more efficient, sustainable lifestyles. Municipalities may consider these differences in motivations and trip patterns between one-way and two-way members of relevance in their carsharing policies.

Do pro-environmental values, beliefs and norms drive farmers' interest in novel practices fostering the Bioeconomy?

A transition towards a bio-based economy is accompanied by a growing demand for biomass resources as fossil fuels need to be replaced for the more sustainable production of consumer goods, chemicals and energy. To increase the supply of renewable biomass and avoid a conflict with food production, currently underutilized by-products (i.e. leaves, stems) from horticultural production could be valorised as feedstock. The success of this approach depends on farmers' willingness to adopt novel practices like the collection and treatment of plant leaves. However, literature on factors influencing farmers' decisions to adopt novel practices aimed to foster the Bioeconomy is limited. This paper addresses this gap by exploring drivers of farmers' interest in the valorisation of by-products. To this aim, the Value-Belief-Norm theory was used and expanded by contextual factors, such as the perceived market demand for biomass and future environmental policies. A survey with German fruit and vegetable farmers (N = 96) has been carried out and data have been analysed with a Structural Equation Model. Findings suggest that the Value-Belief-Norm theory is a relevant framework for the agricultural domain to predict farmers' interest in the valorisation of horticultural by-products. Results further indicate that an internal ecological worldview is potentially relevant for farmers' perception of contextual conditions aimed to foster the Bioeconomy. These outcomes could have managerial and policy implications associated with the identification of potential lead users to trigger the diffusion of innovative sustainable practices and generally foster the Bioeconomy.

Building employees’ organizational citizenship behavior for the environment

PurposeMechanisms behind employees’ pro-environmental behaviors have increasingly been attracting scholarly attention. The purpose of this study is to examine how environmentally specific servant leadership contributes to employees’ organizational citizenship behavior for the environment (employee OCBE).Design/methodology/approachIn this research, employees from resort hotels in Central Vietnam were selected as participants. The data analysis was conducted through structural equation modeling and bootstrapping test.FindingsEnvironmentally specific servant leadership exhibited the positive association with employee OCBE through employee environmental engagement as a mediator. Two moderation mechanisms – organizational support for green behaviors and person-group fit – were also found to serve as enhancers for the effect of environmentally specific servant leadership on employee OCBE.Practical implicationsThe research results provide hospitality organizations with a premise for the focus of servant leadership and organizational support around pro-environmental values. It is also vital for practitioners to build the fit between employees and the organization’s pro-environmental values so as to further promote their positive reaction to environmentally specific servant leadership and engagement in pro-environmental behaviors.Originality/valueThe present study marks the confluence between environmentally specific servant leadership and employee OCBE research streams and provides a moderated mediation mechanism to shed light on such a relationship.

Can Marketing Communication Prime You to Act ‘Green’?

Abstract As popularity of eco-friendly products has increased over the past decade, brands utilize green advertising and position their products as green to appeal to the taste of environmentally conscious customers. Even though many customers are concerned about the state of environment, they are discouraged from purchasing eco-friendly products and engaging in other sustainable behaviors due to economic and social barriers. This research poses a question how marketing communication can capitalize on environmental concern to promote desired green behaviors by priming customers to think about their proenvironmental values and motivations to act green. To answer this question, we analyze over 1500 customer responses to marketing communications on social media. In this content analysis study we utilize logistic regression to discover which primers are the most effective at activating green behaviors. This research provides managerial implications helping marketing communicators employ effective primers that will generate desired customer behaviors.

The psychology of rebound effects: Explaining energy efficiency rebound behaviours with electric vehicles and building insulation in Austria

Rebound effects may undermine current energy policy pathways centred on more energy efficient technologies. The present study analyses why household-level rebound occurs after purchasing an electric vehicle or installing building insulation. Direct and indirect rebound behaviour are operationalised as rearrangements of consumption patterns over time, drawing on concepts of mental accounting and compensatory behaviours. Structural equation modelling is applied to cross-sectional survey data on adopters of electric cars (n = 575) and building insulation (n = 1455) in Austria. A complementary longitudinal sample of adopters of electric bicycles (n = 111) validates the findings. Pro-environmental values and, albeit more weakly, personal norms for environmentally conscious consumption counteract rebound behaviour. Social norms for environmentally conscious consumption increase rebound. Values of frugality and modesty show no discernible impact. These drivers apply similarly to all energy efficiency technologies investigated. In the case of building insulation, low-income and energy-poor households are more liable to rebound; moreover, habitual heating practices increase rebound. Policy design could leverage the drivers studied here to combat rebound, for instance by prioritising consumer segments with a lower risk of rebound, or by supporting rebound-averse mindsets in public communication. Future research should conduct longitudinal studies to strengthen causal inferences about changes in consumption patterns over time.