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Human Behaviour
and Environment
Topic 6: What influences whether people
take action on the environment? PART 1
Kathryn Williams
Aims: Topic 6
By the end of this topic (completed over Week 6-8) you should be able
to:
• Define key concepts of environmental behaviour, including
behaviour, intention, attitude, subjective norms, behavioural
control, values, beliefs, personal norms
• Explain models of behaviour including Theory of Planned Behaviour,
Norm Activation Model, and Value-Beliefs Norms model. Explain the
range of external and internal factors that shape action
• Discuss the circumstances under which environmental concerns are
likely to be aligned with action
Images generated using Microsoft Designer, 2024. All characters and scenarios are fictional, but inspired by real events.
Topic 6 Application
question
Reflect on the reasons you
travel to university classes
in the way you do. Explain
these reasons with
reference to theory and
research on pro-
environmental behaviour.
UOM
SUSTAINABILITY
PLAN 2030
Active transport
(Important note: not referring to cellular biology, but human
mobility)
• Transport that involves physical
activity as a means of transport:
• Includes:
• Walking
• Cycling
• Non-motorised vehicles
• Public transport where involves
walking or cycling for pick up/
drop off.
Environmentally significant
behaviour
Contrasting definitions:
Impact: “behaviour that changes the availability
of materials of energy from the environment or
alters the structure and dynamics of ecosystems
or the biosphere itself.”
Intention: “behaviour that consciously
undertaken to change (normally, to benefit) the
environment.”
Stern (2000) Toward a coherent theory of
environmentally significant behaviour, Journal of
Social Issues, 56, 407-424.
Individual action and climate change
Chapter 5 of IPCC AR6 WGIII: Demand,
services and social aspects of
mitigation
• Demand-side strategies have
potential to reduce emission 50-70%,
with greatest contributions including
• Avoiding emissions: reducing long-haul
aviation and providing short-distance
low carbon urban infrastructure
• Shift: shift to plant-based diets
• Improve: building sector energy
efficient technologies and passive
housing
IPCC AR6 Working Group III – Fact Sheet, Demand and Social Aspects
Individual action and climate
change
Chapter 5 of IPCC AR6 WGIII:
Demand, services and social aspects
of mitigation
• Greatest impact via car-free mobility
– walking, cycling, electric
technology
• High potential through:
• reducing air travel,
• cooling setpoint adjustments,
• reduced appliance use
• shifts to public transit
• shifting consumption to plant-based
diets
IPCC AR6 Working Group III – Fact Sheet, Demand and Social Aspects
University of
Melbourne
2022
Sustainability
engagement
Survey report.
Understanding behaviour in order to
encourage positive change (Schultz 2013)
1. Identify a specific target behaviour
2. Identify the barriers and benefits to the
target behaviour
3. Program development – matching tools
to the barriers and benefits.
4. Pilot testing
5. Implementation and evaluation
Required reading Week 12: Schultz, P. W. (2014). "Strategies for Promoting
Proenvironmental Behavior." European Psychologist 19(2): 107-117.
Behaviour - all levels of society
Individual: e.g. purchase energy efficient light globes
Community/local organisations: e.g. actions that change availability and
awareness of energy efficient light globes
State/national: e.g. policies to phase out inefficient incandescent light bulbs
Global: e.g. international agreements
Types of pro-environmental behaviour (Stern 2005)
Private Sphere behaviours
• Personal – e.g. purchase, use and disposal of personal and household hold
products that have environmental impact
• Organisational behaviour – e.g. private behaviours that influence what
others do – e.g. changing policy for company, designing a more sustainable
process
Public sphere behaviours
• Activism – active involvement in organisations and political demonstrations
relevant to environmental issues
• Non-activist - financial support for organisations, signing a petition, writing
to politician about environmental issues
Types of pro-environmental behaviour:
Curtailment behaviour (Clayton and Myers 2009)
Curtailment behaviour
• Involves changes in routine or habit to reduce consumption
• Change re-occurring behaviours to bring about a reduction in
consumption
• Examples:
• Turning off lights when leaving a room
• Turning down heating; turning up cooling
• Taking shorter showers
• Recycling packaging
• Behaviour implications:
• Perceived as requiring personal sacrifice
• Requires repeated behaviour, habit changes
http://www.independent.co.uk/i
ncoming/article9078681.ece/alt
ernates/w620/web-heating-fit-
rex.jpg
Clayton, S. and G. Myers (2009). Conservation psychology: understanding and promoting
human care for nature, John Wiley & Sons.
Types of pro-environmental behaviour:
Efficiency behaviours (Clayton and Myers 2009)
Technology choices
• Once off behaviours that reduce consumption
• Examples:
• Choosing to live near your work
• Purchasing more efficient household appliance
• Installing home insulation
• Living in a smaller house (average house size in Australia increasing)
• Behaviour implications:
• Does not require repeated behaviour
• Perceived as improving quality of life rather than sacrifice
• But can be expensive, requires financial outlay
• Possible rebound effects – gives ‘permission’ to engage other
behaviours
http://www.allinoneexterior.com/insu
lation.html
Types of pro-environmental behaviour:
Behavioural choice (Clayton and Myers 2009)
Behavioural choices
• Choice between different types of behaviour
• Examples:
• Transport choices – walk, cycle, public transport, car
• Food choices – organic or non-organic, imported/locally grown
• Purchasing – new or ‘pre-loved’
• Behaviour implications:
• Focus is not on making do with less, but on doing things
differently
• Need to be done repeatedly, need to change habits
Understanding behaviour in order to
encourage change (Schultz 2013)
1. Identify a specific target behaviour:
• Has a direct impact on the environmental outcome
• A single, indivisible behaviour
• Encourages promoting positive behaviour choice
• Individual within communities – recognising influence
2. Identify the barriers and benefits to the target
behaviour
3. Program development
4. Pilot testing
5. Implementation and evaluation
Understanding behaviour in order to
encourage positive change (Schultz 2013)
1. Identify a specific target behaviour
2. Identify the barriers and benefits to the
target behaviour
3. Program development
4. Pilot testing
5. Implementation and evaluation
Multiple theories suggest likely barriers
and benefits of environmentally
significant behaviour
Topic 6: What influences whether people take action on the environment?
Overview of pro-environmental behaviour
Theory of planned behaviour
Norm activation model
Value-belief-norm theory
This week
Next week
Reflection
Open: https://unimelb.padlet.org/kjhw/travel
• How do you travel to University campus?
• What are the main reasons for this choice?
Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB)
(Ajzen 1985, 1991)
Three elements make up the intention to act:
1. Attitudes towards the behaviour, a product of:
(a) Belief that performing the behaviour will lead to a predicted outcome
(b) A positive evaluation of that outcome
2. Perception of social pressure (subjective norms) for
behaviour; a product of:
• (a) Belief that important people think the behaviour should/should not be done, and
• (b) Desire to comply with those expectations
3. Perception one has the ability to perform the behaviour
• Product of beliefs about personal control over behaviour and actual control
Theory of planned behaviour (Azjen 1991)
Attitude
Intentions BehaviourSubjective norm
Perceived
behavioural
control
Positive or negative
evaluation of the
specific behaviour
Belief that important
others would
approve or
disapprove
Perceived possibility
to perform the
behaviour
Steg and Nordlund, 2018 Models to
explain Environmental Behaviour. In
Environmental Psychology: An
Introduction.
Theory of planned behaviour (Azjen
1991)
Attitude
Intentions BehaviourSubjective norm
Perceived
behavioural
control
e.g. eating meat is
delicious…. harms
animals… depends
on clearing land for
pasture….
e.g. my family all eat
meat, but a lot of my
friends don’t
e.g. I don’t know how
to cook nice meals
without meat
Steg and Nordlund, 2018 Models to
explain Environmental Behaviour. In
Environmental Psychology: An
Introduction.
e.g. I am going to cut
back and eat meat
only twice a week
observed meat
consumption e.g.
number of meals
involving meat
Theory of planned behaviour (Azjen
1991)
Attitude
Intentions BehaviourSubjective norm
Perceived
behavioural
control
Steg and Nordlund, 2018 Models to
explain Environmental Behaviour. In
Environmental Psychology: An
Introduction.
• Applied to predict and explain a
wide range of environmental
behaviours e.g. recycling, activism,
a wide range of
purchasing/consumer behaviours,
travel behaviour
• Predictive capacity can be improved
by including other variables e.g.
social identity, personal norms
• Predicts intention to act – does not
account for a range of other factors
that influence actual behaviour
Theory of planned behaviour
predicting air travel behaviour
• Air travel one of highest contributions
to carbon emissions globally
• Significant scope for change,
particularly among wealthy people
• Little evidence of reduced flights
globally (until COVID-19)
Morten et al. Staying grounded? Applying the theory of planned
behaviour to explore motivations to reduce air travel.
Transportation Research Part F 55 (2018) 297–305
Theory of planned behaviour
predicting air travel behaviour
Aims
• Do core TPB constructs of attitudes, subjective
norms and perceived behavioural control
predict intentions to reduce the number of
flights taken for leisure, holidays or to visit
family or friends?
• Does self-identity contribute to predicting
behaviour, over and above TPB components?
• behaviour specific self-identity (as the type of
person who would reduce the number of flights
taken)
• generic pro-environmental self-identity
Morten et al. Staying grounded? Applying the theory of planned behaviour to explore motivations
to reduce air travel. Transportation Research Part F 55 (2018) 297–305
Theory of planned behaviour
predicting air travel behaviour
Methods
• Survey of UK residents who had flown
at least once in last 12 months
• 194 participants
• Measures included all
• TPB and self-identity constructs
• Past and intended behaviour
Morten et al. Staying grounded? Applying the theory of planned behaviour to explore motivations
to reduce air travel. Transportation Research Part F 55 (2018) 297–305
Theory of planned behaviour
predicting air travel behaviour
Morten et al. Staying grounded? Applying the theory of planned behaviour to explore motivations to reduce air travel. Transportation Research Part F 55 (2018) 297–305
Examples of questions (7-point scales for statement or word pair)Concept
For me to reduce the number of flights I take for leisure, holidays or visiting family or friends
over the next 12 months would be: bad-good, harmful-beneficial, worthless-valuable,
unpleasant-pleasant, unenjoyable-enjoyable
Attitudes
The people in my life whose opinions I value would disapprove of my reducing the number of
flights I take for leisure, holidays or visiting family
or friends over the next 12 months
Subjective norm
For me to reduce the number of flights I take for leisure, holidays or visiting family or friends
over the next 12 months would be: impossible-possible
Perceived behavioural
control
I will try to reduce the number of flights I take for leisure, holidays or visiting family
or friends over the next 12 month
Intention
Behaviour specific: I am not the type of person who would reduce the number of flights I take
for leisure, holidays or visiting family or friend
Generic environmental identity: think of myself as someone who is very concerned with
environmental issues
