A Study on Public Environmental Risk Perception and Environmental Behavior of Urban Space - A Case Study of the East District of Taichung City

Hypotheses were tested that greater perception of environmental risk and stronger world-minded value orientation are associated with more pro-environmental behavior among samples of British ( n = 96) and U.S. ( n = 119) college students. Risk perception was assessed in terms of emotional and cognitive aspects. Behavior was assessed in terms of present action and commitment to future action. The hypotheses were generally supported for both samples, with emotionality in risk perception tending to be more strongly related to pro-environmental behavior. Greater perceptions of risk and activism were also related to stronger world-mindedness. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of emotionality in pro-environmental activism and an hypothesis about superordinate goals.

Download Full-text

A Comparative Study of the Role of Interpersonal Communication, Traditional Media and Social Media in Pro-Environmental Behavior: A China-Based Study

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17061883 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (6) ◽

pp. 1883 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Ruixia Han ◽

Jian Xu

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Risk Perception ◽

Interpersonal Communication ◽

Environmental Risk ◽

Environmental Behavior ◽

Traditional Media ◽

Different Types ◽

Information Exposure ◽

Environmental Risk Perception ◽

Types Of Information

Previous studies have confirmed that information exposure affects pro-environmental behavior. With the rise of social media, new questions emerge in terms of whether different types of information exposure affect pro-environmental behavior differently. Based on a survey of 550 people that was carried out in China, this study aims to compare the different roles of interpersonal communication, traditional media, and social media in affecting the relationships between people’s environmental risk perception, willingness to contribute to the environment, environmental knowledge, environmental concerns, and pro-environmental behavior. Our research discovered that: (1) traditional media has almost no effect on pro-environmental behavior; (2) interpersonal communication can affect pro-environmental behavior through significantly affecting environmental risk perception; (3) social media affects pro-environmental behavior mainly by strengthening the effects of interpersonal communication. The research reveals that while different types of information exposure affect pro-environmental behavior differently, interpersonal communication plays a central role. Concerning the mutual influence between social media and interpersonal communication, we propose that we could promote pro-environmental behavior by activating social media communication.

Download Full-text

Consumer knowledge in pro-environmental behavior

World Journal of Science Technology and Sustainable Development ◽

10.1108/wjstsd-01-2016-0004 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 328-352 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Naz Onel ◽

Avinandan Mukherjee

Keyword(s):

Risk Perception ◽

Environmental Risk ◽

Environmental Behavior ◽

Environmental Behaviors ◽

Content Type ◽

Subjective Knowledge ◽

Types Of Knowledge ◽

Different Types ◽

Environmental Risk Perception ◽

Scientific Facts

Purpose Environmental behavior studies suggest that knowledge, in addition to other psychological and social factors, can play an important role in consumers’ environmental behavior change. The purpose of this paper is to understand the relationship between knowledge and various psychological factors which encourage consumers’ participation in pro-environmental behaviors. The relationships that link an individual’s attitudes toward science, environmental values, different types of knowledge (i.e. scientific facts, environmental facts, and subjective environmental knowledge), environmental risk perception, and willingness to pay (WTP) for the environment with pro-environmental behavior were examined. Design/methodology/approach Theoretically guided hypotheses and model were formulated and tested with multiple linear regression models. The study was based on measures and data obtained from the large-sample secondary database of the 2010 General Social Survey (n=2,044). Findings Results indicated that while attitudes toward science had direct effects on knowledge of scientific facts and knowledge of environmental facts, environmental values showed effects on knowledge of environmental facts and subjective knowledge on environmental issues. The results also indicated that from different types of knowledge, subjective knowledge on environmental issues had effects on both environmental risk perception and WTP for the environment. Knowledge on environmental facts, on the other hand, was able to predict only environmental risk perception. The scientific factual knowledge did not show an effect on mediator of pro-environmental behavior. Also, subjective knowledge indicated indirect effects on pro-environmental behavior through environmental risk perception and WTP for the environment. Originality/value Although research on understanding factors influencing pro-environmental behaviors and potential relations to individual knowledge has grown in recent years, there has been very little attempt at distinguishing between different types of knowledge and investigating their potential roles in the context of environmentally relevant behaviors. This study will help understand the functioning of different types of consumer environmental knowledge and their impacts on pro-environmental behaviors more in depth.

Download Full-text

Environmental Risk Perception, Risk Culture, and Pro-Environmental Behavior

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17051750 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (5) ◽

pp. 1750 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jingjing Zeng ◽

Meiquan Jiang ◽

Meng Yuan

Keyword(s):

Risk Perception ◽

Environmental Risk ◽

Online Survey ◽

Environmental Behavior ◽

Cultural Bias ◽

Ecological Civilization ◽

Chinese Youth ◽

Cultural Worldviews ◽

Environmental Risk Perception ◽

The Relationship

Mixed evidence exists regarding the relationship between environmental risk perception and pro-environmental behavior. This study uses an existing online survey conducted by the Center of Ecological Civilization (CEC) of China University of Geosciences from December 2015 to March 2016 and examines how cultural bias influences environmental risk perception and behavior. We found that an individual’s pro-environmental behavior is not only influenced by environmental risk perception, but also by his or her cultural worldviews. Built on culture theory (CT), our empirical results suggest that young Chinese people are more located in “high-group” culture, where egalitarian culture and hierarchical culture dominate. The higher scores of hierarchical and egalitarian cultures of Chinese youth, the more likely they are to protect the environment. Moreover, the relationship between cultural worldviews and pro-environmental behaviors are mediated by perceived environmental risks.

Download Full-text

Religious Identity and Public Pro-Environmental Behavior in China: The Mediating Role of Environmental Risk Perception

Religions ◽

10.3390/rel11040165 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 165 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sheng Zeng ◽

Lin Wu ◽

Tianyuan Liu

Keyword(s):

Risk Perception ◽

Environmental Risk ◽

Religious Identity ◽

Environmental Behavior ◽

Group Differences ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Environmental Risk Perception ◽

The Impact ◽

The Relationship

Although the positive relationship between religion and environmental behavior has aroused heated debate, empirical research on the relationship between religion and public pro-environmental behavior is still relatively insufficient. This paper aims to explore the group differences in the influence of religious identity on public pro-environmental behavior and the mediating role of environmental risk perception in religious identity and public pro-environmental behavior. Using the Chinese General Social Survey data of 2013 for empirical analysis, this study’s results show that there are group differences in the impact of religious identity on public pro-environmental behavior. Women with a religious identity are more willing to engage in public pro-environmental behavior than those without a religious identity. Additionally, people over the age of 45 with a religious identity are more willing to participate in public pro-environmental behavior than those without a religious identity. Furthermore, political participants with a religious identity are more willing to practice public pro-environmental behavior than those without a religious identity. In addition, we found that environmental risk perception can act as partial mediation in religion and public pro-environmental behavior. In other words, religious identities are deeply embedded in local political and social culture. In order to correctly understand the relationship between religion and public pro-environmental behavior, it is necessary to consider religious identity in a specific cultural background.

Download Full-text

Religious Beliefs and Public Pro-Environmental Behavior in China: the Mediating Role of Environmental Risk Perception

10.20944/preprints202001.0284.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Sheng Zeng ◽

Lin Wu ◽

Tianyuan Liu

Keyword(s):

Risk Perception ◽

Environmental Risk ◽

Religious Beliefs ◽

Environmental Behavior ◽

Group Differences ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Environmental Risk Perception ◽

The Impact ◽

The Relationship

Although the positive relationship between religion and environmental behavior is well-argued, empirical research about the relationship between religion and public pro-environmental behavior is relatively lacking. This paper aims to explore the group differences in the influence of religion on public pro-environmental behavior and the mediating role of environmental risk perception in religion and public pro-environmental behavior. Using the Chinese General Social Survey data in 2013 for empirical analysis, this study’s results show that there are group differences in the impact of religion on public pro-environmental behavior. Women with religious beliefs are more willing to engage in public pro-environmental behavior than those without religious beliefs. Religious believers over the age of 45 are more willing to participate in public pro-environmental behavior than those without religious beliefs. Political participants with religious beliefs are more willing to practice public pro-environmental behavior than those without religious beliefs. In addition, we found that environmental risk perception can act as partial mediation in religious and public pro-environmental behavior. In other words, religious beliefs are deeply embedded in local political and social culture. In order to correctly understand the relationship between religion and public pro-environmental behavior, it is necessary to consider religion in a specific cultural background.

Download Full-text