Special Issue "Pro-environmental Behavior – Social and Cultural Aspects"

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2022.

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Genovaitė Liobikienė
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Environmental Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, Donelaicio str. 28, LT-44404 Kaunas, Lithuania
Interests: pro-environmental behavior; environmental awareness; values; cultural analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The promotion of pro-environmental behavior is particularly important in seeking to solve environmental problems and achieve the goals of sustainability. Pro-environmental behavior encompasses a vast array of behaviors, such as private sphere behaviors including green purchasing, resource saving, waste management behavior, and urban transport usage; as well as public sphere behaviors, referring to environmental citizenship as well as the support of public policies. Therefore, research analyzing the determinants of pro-environmental behavior in general and of separate types of behavior is very important. By applying various theories, such as value-belief-norm, theory of planned behavior, Campbell paradigm, etc., the determinants of pro-environmental behavior could be defined. Research works on new and expanded theories considering pro-environmental behavior are also requested for this Special Issue. The analysis of changes in the level of pro-environmental behavior, particularly in the Covid-19 pandemic context, is very important as well.

Furthermore, the tools which are usually suggested by researchers to promote pro-environmental behavior (e.g., environmental education, information, financial initiatives) should also be analyzed. These studies could provide new insight for policy makers on how to more effectively enhance environmentally friendly behavior. We also encourage the submission of studies revealing the efficiency of implementing environmental programs to this Special Issue.

Social and cultural aspects are also very important considering pro-environmental behavior. Comparative analyses of pro-environmental behavior among countries and cultures could reveal the specificities of particular countries and particular tools, which would be more suitable to enhance the pro-environmental behavior. The willingness to behave in more environmentally friendly ways could differ among generations as well.

Therefore, this Section of the journal encourages the submission of articles related to:

  • Pro-environmental behavior (in general and for separate types of behaviors);
  • Changes in pro-environmental behavior;
  • The impact of environmental education (information) on pro-environmental behavior;
  • Environmental policy tools implication for pro-environmental behavior;
  • Cross-culture and cross-generation analysis;
  • Implications of Covid-19 for changes in pro-environmental behavior.

Both research and review papers on these topics are welcome.

Dr. Genovaitė Liobikienė
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • pro-environmental behavior
  • environmental education
  • information
  • environmental awareness
  • cross-culture
  • cross-generation analysis

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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Article
Socio-Cultural Determinants and the Moderating Effect of Gender in Adopting Sustainable Consumption Behavior among University Students in Iran and Japan
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 8955; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13168955 - 10 Aug 2021
Viewed by 384
Abstract
This article explores the underlying factors of sustainable consumption behavior. Survey data are employed to test the impacts of environmental attitude, knowledge, social awareness, perceived credibility of information sources, self-efficacy and gender on sustainable consumption patterns among samples of university students in Iran [...] Read more.
This article explores the underlying factors of sustainable consumption behavior. Survey data are employed to test the impacts of environmental attitude, knowledge, social awareness, perceived credibility of information sources, self-efficacy and gender on sustainable consumption patterns among samples of university students in Iran and Japan. This contributes to the scientific search for valid explanatory models that could be employed to foster lifestyle transformations towards sustainability. Our findings confirm positive relationship between self-efficacy, social awareness and sustainable consumption in both Japanese and Iranian samples. Other predicators did not have a consistent effect in both samples. This article also presents the results of moderated regression and discusses which impacts were moderated by gender. The discussion presents with interpretation of the findings and proposes possible alternative explanations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pro-environmental Behavior – Social and Cultural Aspects)
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Article
The Influence of Media Usage on Iranian Students’ Pro-Environmental Behaviors: An Application of the Extended Theory of Planned Behavior
Sustainability 2021, 13(15), 8299; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158299 - 25 Jul 2021
Viewed by 510
Abstract
The current study attempted to understand factors influencing students’ pro-environmental intentions and behaviors in a developing nation, namely Iran. To do so, a theoretical research model was established by adding media use and environmental knowledge into the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Data [...] Read more.
The current study attempted to understand factors influencing students’ pro-environmental intentions and behaviors in a developing nation, namely Iran. To do so, a theoretical research model was established by adding media use and environmental knowledge into the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire survey from a sample of 327 Iranian students and analyzed with the help of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). The results supported the applicability of including additional constructs in the TPB, as it has improved the predictive utility of the proposed model. The results indicated that perceived behavioral control, subjective norms, and environmental knowledge were positively associated with pro-environmental intentions. Furthermore, pro-environmental intentions, perceived behavioral control, and environmental knowledge were related to pro-environmental behaviors. Perceived behavioral control and environmental knowledge were also indirectly related to pro-environmental behaviors through pro-environmental intentions. Notably, media use was directly related to pro-environmental behaviors and indirectly related to pro-environmental intentions through perceived behavioral control and environmental knowledge. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are highlighted. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pro-environmental Behavior – Social and Cultural Aspects)
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Article
Understanding Pro-Environmental Behavior of Citizen Science: An Exploratory Study of the Bird Survey in Taoyuan’s Farm Ponds Project
Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 5126; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13095126 - 03 May 2021
Viewed by 797
Abstract
This exploratory study aims to fill the gap by adopting Hirose’s two-phase decision-making model with the theory of social networks to explore the environmentally friendly attitudes and environmental behavioral intentions toward pro-environmental behaviors of the citizen scientists who participated in the Bird Survey [...] Read more.
This exploratory study aims to fill the gap by adopting Hirose’s two-phase decision-making model with the theory of social networks to explore the environmentally friendly attitudes and environmental behavioral intentions toward pro-environmental behaviors of the citizen scientists who participated in the Bird Survey in Taoyuan’s Farm Ponds Project. The Bird Survey in Taoyuan’s Farm Ponds Project is a systematic citizen science project founded in 2003 with the aim to identify existing and potential irrigation ponds that are important to creating waterbird refuges to secure habitats for wintering waterbirds in anthropogenically influenced areas. The participation in this project itself can be considered as a form of pro-environmental behavior. A total of 24 in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants of the Bird Survey in Taoyuan’s Farm Ponds Project. Qualitative data showed that participants mentioned six variables (i.e., perceived seriousness, ascription of responsibility, belief in the effectiveness, feasibility evaluation, cost–benefit evaluation, and social norms evaluation) of the two-phase decision-making model in relation to environmentally friendly attitudes and environmental behavioral intention. Findings also revealed three key variables (i.e., social networks, learning and growth, and belonging and contribution) in the theory of social networks that are associated with environmentally friendly attitudes and environmental behavioral intention. Based on the findings, it is proposed that the social needs variables are incorporated as an extension to the two-phase decision-making model to offer a more comprehensive explanation of pro-environmental behavior. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pro-environmental Behavior – Social and Cultural Aspects)
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Review

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Review
The Impact of Social Norms on Pro-Environmental Behavior: A Systematic Literature Review of The Role of Culture and Self-Construal
Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 5156; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13095156 - 05 May 2021
Viewed by 688
Abstract
This paper documents state-of-the-art research on the impact of social norms on pro-environmental consumer behavior. Our aim was to identify possible research gaps, in particular in terms of the moderating role of culture and self-construal, and to suggest potentially fruitful research avenues. To [...] Read more.
This paper documents state-of-the-art research on the impact of social norms on pro-environmental consumer behavior. Our aim was to identify possible research gaps, in particular in terms of the moderating role of culture and self-construal, and to suggest potentially fruitful research avenues. To achieve these objectives, we conducted a systematic review of the literature on the impact of social norms on sustainability over the past 20 years, placing emphasis on the role of culture and self-construal. Altogether, we collected over 16,000 papers via Web of Science and subsequently used NVivo 12 for a fine-grained qualitative analysis. Our findings provide several new insights. First, we identified the most popular research areas, top journals and leading authors in the field of social norms and pro-environmental sustainability. Second, we pinpointed the most popular research topics in the context of the norm–sustainability relationship. Third, we revealed how culture and self-construal have been addressed when researching the connection between social norms and pro-environmental behavior, identified managerial implications, and offered future research directions on the moderating effects of culture and self-construal. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Pro-environmental Behavior – Social and Cultural Aspects)
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