Types, explanatory models and data based examples of environmental behaviour Masaryk University, Brno Audronė Telešienė 9th December, 2014 Structure of the lecture 1.Types of environmental behaviour 2.Explanations of environmental behaviour 3.Data based examples of env. behaviour in various countries TYPES OF ENVIRONMENTAL BEHAVIOUR •What kinds of environmental behaviour are there for us? Types of personal environmental behaviour (Stern, 2010) Environmentally significant behaviour Operational definition: environmental behaviour ISSP 2010 ISSP 2010 Level of involvement in environmental behaviour, % Passive % Active % Total % Private sphere behaviour 69.1 30.9 100 Public sphere behaviour 91.3 8.7 100 ISSP Environment, Lithuania, 2010, N=1023 Shift towards, since 1993 Hadler, M., & Haller, M. (2013). A shift from public to private environmental behavior: Findings from Hadler and Haller (2011) revisited and extended.International Sociology, 28(4), 484-489. Overall, Hadler and Haller (2013) had observed three trends that have occurred across 16 countries that participated in the ISSP: First, a homogenization in both public and private behaviors; Second, increasing prosperity, increasing international ties, and better political opportunity structures can have negative effects to behaviors; and third, the growing gap between the two behaviors seem to indicate a shift from public to private environmental behaviors. [Reyes, J. A. L. (2014). Environmental Attitudes and Behaviors in the Philippines. Journal of Educational and Social Research, 4(6), 87.] EXPLANATIONS OF ENVIRONMENTAL BEHAVIOUR •Why individuals behave as they do? PERSONAL ENVIRONMENTAL BEHAVIOUR FACTORS biographical situational worldview determinants normative determinants exogenous factors gender, age, education, income, marital status, etc. values, attitudes, beliefs, knowledge, concern, awareness norms, behavioral intentions, and habits Macro-level factors notion of everyday life-world thesis of biographical availability HEP-NEP theory Inglehart post-materialism VBN theory constrained behaviour theory Limitative/ operative determinants Affluence thesis Everyday life-world, Alfred Shutz Each individual’s worldview is different, because each individual has a unique life story, unique set of biographical situations. Thus previous experiences serve as guides for todays actions Biographical availability thesis •The absence of personal constraints that may increase the costs and risks of environmental behaviour (esp. movement participation). – –E.g. cutting back on driving a car à when having small children –E.g. participating in a movement à when not married and not in job, e.g. studying McAdam (1986) Environmental behaviour types by socio-demographic variables, % Private sphere environmental behaviour, % Public sphere environmental behaviour,% Active Passive p * Active Passive p * Total 30.8% 69.2% 8.7% 91.3% Gender .000 .515 Male 24.4% 75.6% 8.1% 91.9% Female 36.4% 63.6% 9.3% 90.7% Age .000 .103 17-24 19.4% 80.6% 12.9% 87.1% 25-39 25.6% 74.4% 8.9% 91.1% 40-54 31.0% 69.0% 8.2% 91.8% 55+ 41.9% 58.1% 6.5% 93.5% Education level .000 .000 Primary/ not completed primary 40.4% 59.6% .0% 100.0% Lower secondary 20.0% 80.0% 2.4% 97.6% Secondary 24.9% 75.1% 6.8% 93.2% Vocational/ technical 34.0% 66.0% 6.4% 93.6% College 33.3% 66.7% 8.3% 91.7% University degree 40.7% 59.3% 21.0% 79.0% Place of residencea .000 .000 Big city 27.0% 73.0% 9.9% 90.1% Small city or town 38.6% 61.4% 11.4% 88.6% Country village 27.1% 72.9% 1.9% 98.1% * Chi-square test, significance a.Questionnaire included categories “the suburbs or outskirts of a big city” and “a farm or home in the country”. We excluded these categories from our analysis because of small n ISSP Environment, Lithuania, 2010, N=1023 biographical situational Generalisation of influence of biographic situation (for Lithuanian case) •Active private sphere environmental behaviour is more common among –women –people aged 55+ –those with university degree –inhabitants of small towns. •Public sphere environmental activities are more common among –inhabitants of small city or town; –those with university degree. Correlations between private sphere behaviour, concern and knowledge ISSP Environment, Lithuania, 2010, N=1023 Environmental concerna Knowledge: causes of environmental problemsb Knowledge: solutions of environmental problemsc Private sphere environmental behaviour indexd -.325** -.118** -.176** Correlations between private sphere behaviour, concern and knowledge (Spearman rho) ** p < 0.01 a. Q: “Generally speaking, how concerned are you about environmental issues?”, answers from 1 – “not at all concerned” to 5 – “very much concerned” b. Q:”How much do you feel you know about the causes of environmental problems?”, answers from 1 – “nothing” to 5 – “very much” c. Q:”How much do you feel you know about the solutions of environmental problems?” answers from 1 – “nothing” to 5 – “very much” d. Scale from 1 – “very active” to 4 – “very passive” worldview determinants Associations between public sphere behaviour, concern and knowledge (Eta coeff.) ISSP Environment, Lithuania, 2010, N=1023 Environmental concern Knowledge: causes of environmental problems Knowledge: solutions of environmental problems Public sphere environmental behaviour (environmental activism) a 0.201** 0.195** 0.193** ** p < 0.01 a. dichotomous variable worldview determinants Generalisation of influence of env.worldview (for Lithuanian case) •Environmental concern has significant positive influence upon environmental behaviour. •Subjectively assessed knowledge about the causes and solutions of environmental problems has also significant influence upon environmental behaviour, though it is weaker than influence of environmental concern. VBN theory (Stern 2000) normative determinants worldview determinants + I.Ajzen. Theory of planned behaviour http://people.umass.edu/aizen/images/tpb.png http://people.umass.edu/aizen/tpb.diag.html#null-link normative determinants Integrated model image 36991652d6b39e50db4bf287d24f7cde Eshetu, G. (2011). The Complimentary Effects of Integrative Behavioral Prediction and Media Priming for Message Delivery in Changing Hand Washing Behavior of Primary School Children In Chandba: A study in North Gondar Zone. Limitative/operative determinants •Limitative determinants: – availability of infrastructure, technologies •Operative determinants: –having necessary tools to conduct a behavior, –governmental regulations, –community expectations. – •Societal level factors that make limiting or enabling contexts for individual behavior. e.g., Van der Meer (1981) Constrained behaviour thesis •Behaviour that is relatively more difficult to conduct is less likely in many populations. •Constrains might occur because of behavioral situational characteristics (e.g. lack of income or time) or context forces (e.g. lack of infrastructure, low community support). • Interestingly, Guagnano et al (1995) state that when contextual factors are strong and environmental behavior is constrained, e.g. difficult to conduct, time-consuming, expensive attitudinal and normative variables only weakly correlate with behaviour. M.Weber. Types of social action rational irrational Why individuals behave as they do? Linking theories thesis of biographical availability Inglehart post-materialism VBN theory constrained behaviour theory Limitative/ operative determinants Biographic situation 3. Inside - personal 2. Personal 1. Behind -personal External factors Affluence thesis HEP-NEP theory notion of everyday life-world DATA BASED EXAMPLES OF ENV. BEHAVIOUR IN VARIOUS COUNTRIES • Private sphere env. behaviour ISSP Environment, 2010, N=45199 Recycling behaviour*Country ISSP Environment, 2010, N=41786 Never Always Sometimes Often Cut back on driving a car*Country ISSP Environment, 2010, N=45199 Never Sometimes Public sphere env. behaviour ISSP Environment, 2010, N=45199 Signed a petition*Country ISSP Environment, 2010, N=44489 • Took part in protest*Country • ISSP Environment, 2010, N=44411 Cutting back on driving a car: behaviour explained Habit Normative determinant Other pro-environmental behaviour No alternatives; part of social status Knowledge and concern Norm reinforcing Worldview determinants, shaped by biography Reducing personal car usage Normative determinant EXAMPLE. ISSP 2010 Environment data for Lithuania + Qualitative research Why individuals act as they do? Cutting back on driving a car How to break the habit? • •Sports mega events: Sochi Olympic games • •Creative agency: Environmental Health Clinic • Examples xdesign logo http://www.newyorker.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/sochi-logos-1.jpeg Bike Messenger Image-bikes xdesign logo http://www.newyorker.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/sochi-logos-1.jpeg •Sports mega-events oblige for infrastructural and socio-cultural transformations of urban systems. •Surveys traced change in environmental practices and consumption in Sochi. P. O. Ermolaeva (2015) [unpublished] Recycling containers take the place of regular trash cans at the Sochi Winter Olympics. http://i.imgur.com/hP8JnZ0.jpg E.g household waste sorting containers, bike rental center, bike paths. Concluding remarks •Behaviour specific explanations recycling ≠ litter control ≠ car driving •Power of HABIT •Enabling/restraining contexts •Influencing worldviews •Reinforcing norms Types, explanatory models and data based examples of environmental behaviour Masaryk University, Brno Audronė Telešienė 9th December, 2014