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Journal Article•DOI•

It is a moral issue: The relationship between environmental self-identity, obligation-based intrinsic motivation and pro-environmental behaviour

Ellen van der Werff, Linda Steg, Kees Keizer
01 Oct 2013-Global Environmental Change-human and Policy Dimensions (ELSEVIER SCI LTD)-Vol. 23, Iss: 5, pp 1258-1265
TL;DR: This paper found that environmental self-identity is related to one's obligation-based intrinsic motivation (that is, feelings of moral obligation) to act pro-environmentally, which in turn affects proenvironmental actions.
Abstract: In order to effectively mitigate climate change, people need to adopt environmentally-friendly actions. We argue that some people act in an environmentally-friendly manner without external incentives to do so, but rather because they are intrinsically motivated to do so. There is some initial evidence to suggest that this is particularly likely for people with a strong environmental self-identity. However, not much is known about how environmental self-identity influences pro-environmental actions. In this research, we aimed to test whether, and if so, via which process environmental self-identity is related to environmentally-friendly behaviour. We conducted three studies to test our hypotheses. In the first study, our hypotheses were confirmed in a sample of the general population using a correlational design. In the second study, we replicated our findings with a different indicator of moral obligation and with a different dependent variable. In the third study, we tested our model in an experimental design. Again, we found support for our hypotheses that environmental self-identity is related to one's obligation-based intrinsic motivation (that is, feelings of moral obligation) to act pro-environmentally, which in turn affects pro-environmental actions. As expected, the obligation-based intrinsic motivation mediates the relationship between environmental self-identity and environmentally-friendly behaviour. Our findings suggest that strengthening environmental self-identity may be a cost-effective way to promote pro-environmental actions, as people with a strong environmental self-identity are likely to act in an environmentally-friendly manner without an external incentive to do so.

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University of Groningen
It is a moral issue
van der Werff, Ellen; Steg, Linda; Keizer, Kees
Published in:
Global Environmental Change
DOI:
10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2013.07.018
IMPORTANT NOTE: You are advised to consult the publisher's version (publisher's PDF) if you wish to cite from
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Publication date:
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Link to publication in University of Groningen/UMCG research database
Citation for published version (APA):
van der Werff, E., Steg, L., & Keizer, K. (2013). It is a moral issue: The relationship between environmental
self-identity, obligation-based intrinsic motivation and pro-environmental behaviour.
Global Environmental
Change
,
23
(5), 1258-1265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2013.07.018
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Download date: 09-08-2022
Citations
More filters
Journal Article•
The theory of planned behaviour: Self identity, social identity, and group norms

[...]

Deborah J. Terry, Michael A. Hogg, Katherine M. White
01 Jan 1999-Centre for Health Research; Faculty of Health; Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the combined effects of self-identity and social identity constructs on intention and behaviour, and examined the effect of selfidentity as a function of past experience of performing the behaviour.
Abstract: The aim of the present study was to examine further the role that self-identity plays in the theory of planned behaviour and, more specifically, to: (1) examine the combined effects of self-identity and social identity constructs on intention and behaviour, and (2) examine the effects of self-identity as a function of past experience of performing the behaviour. The study was concerned with the prediction of intention to engage in household recycling and reported recycling behaviour. A sample of 143 community residents participated in the study. It was prospective in design: measures of the predictors and intention were obtained at the first wave of data collection, whereas behaviour was assessed two weeks later. Selfidentity significantly predicted behavioural intention, a relationship that was not dependent on the extent to which the behaviour had been performed in the past. As expected, there was also evidence that the perceived norm of a behaviourally relevant reference group was related to behavioural intention, but only for participants who identified strongly with the group, whereas the relationship between perceived behavioural control (a personal factor) and intention was strongest for low identifiers.

955 citations

Journal Article•DOI•
An Integrated Framework for Encouraging Pro-environmental Behaviour: The role of values, situational factors and goals

[...]

Linda Steg, Jan Willem Bolderdijk, Kees Keizer, Goda Perlaviciute
01 Jun 2014-Journal of Environmental Psychology
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose an integrated theoretical framework for understanding behavior change that identifies two routes to encourage pro-environmental behaviour: reducing the (hedonic and gain) costs of environmental choices and strengthening normative goals.

802 citations

Cites background from "It is a moral issue: The relationsh..."

  • ...…nature and the environment, but not see themselves as a person who acts pro-environmentally, for example because they do not acknowledge environmental problems, or because they do not believe that these problems could or should be mitigated via individual actions (Van der Werff et al., 2013c)....

    [...]

  • ...…one is a pro-environmental person (e.g., when the behaviour is unique or difficult), while it was weakened when people were reminded of previous environmentally-harmful actions (Cornelissen, Dewitte, Warlop, & Yzerbyt, 2007; Cornelissen, Warlop, & Dewitte, 2008; Van der Werff et al., 2013a, 2013b)....

    [...]

  • ...…environmental self-identity appeared to be influenced by previous environmental actions: the environmental self-identity is stronger among those who did engage in pro-environmental actions, and weaker among those who did engage in environmentally-harmful actions (Van der Werff et al., 2013a)....

    [...]

  • ...Hence, identity mediates the relationship between values and behaviour (Van der Werff et al., 2013a, 2013c; Whitmarsh & O’Neill, 2010)....

    [...]

Journal Article•DOI•
Reflections on climate change communication research and practice in the second decade of the 21st century: what more is there to say?

[...]

Susanne C. Moser
01 May 2016-Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Climate Change
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a review of the state of the art in the field of climate change communication, highlighting significant advances, emerging trends and topics, and chart critical needs and opportunities going forward.
Abstract: Appreciable advances have been made in recent years in raising climate change awareness and enhancing support for climate and energy policies. There also has been considerable progress in understanding of how to effectively communicate climate change. This progress raises questions about the future directions of communication research and practice. What more is there to say? Through a selective literature review, focused on contributions since a similar stock-taking exercise in 2010,1 the article delineates significant advances, emerging trends and topics, and tries to chart critical needs and opportunities going forward. It describes the climate communication landscape midway through the second decade of the 21st century to contextualize the challenges faced by climate change communication as a scientific field. Despite the important progress made on key scientific challenges laid out in 2010, persistent challenges remain (superficial public understanding of climate change, transitioning from awareness and concern to action, communicating in deeply politicized and polarized environments, and dealing with the growing sense of overwhelm and hopelessness). In addition, new challenges and topics have emerged that communication researchers and practitioners now face. The study reflects on the crucial need to improve the interaction between climate communication research and practice, and calls for dedicated science-practice boundary work focused on climate change communication. A set of new charges to climate communicators and researchers are offered in hopes to move climate change communication to a new place—at once more humble yet also more ambitious than ever before, befitting to the crucial role it could play in the cultural work humanity faces with climate change. WIREs Clim Change 2016, 7:345–369. doi: 10.1002/wcc.403 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.

299 citations

Journal Article•DOI•
A Social Identity Analysis of Climate Change and Environmental Attitudes and Behaviors: Insights and Opportunities.

[...]

Kelly S. Fielding1, Matthew J. Hornsey1•
University of Queensland1
11 Feb 2016-Frontiers in Psychology
TL;DR: This paper reviews literature showing, how conceiving of oneself in terms of a particular social identity influences the authors' environmental attitudes and behaviors, how relations between groups can impact on environmental outcomes, and how the content of social identities can direct group members to act in more or less pro-environmental ways.
Abstract: Environmental challenges are often marked by an intergroup dimension. Political conservatives and progressives are divided on their beliefs about climate change, farmers come into conflict with scientists and environmentalists over water allocation or species protection, and communities oppose big business and mining companies that threaten their local environment. These intergroup tensions are reminders of the powerful influence social contexts and group memberships can have on attitudes, beliefs, and actions relating to climate change and the environment more broadly. In this paper, we use social identity theory to help describe and explain these processes. We review literature showing, how conceiving of oneself in terms of a particular social identity influences our environmental attitudes and behaviors, how relations between groups can impact on environmental outcomes, and how the content of social identities can direct group members to act in more or less pro-environmental ways. We discuss the similarities and differences between the social identity approach to these phenomena and related theories, such as cultural cognition theory, the theory of planned behavior, and value-belief-norm theory. Importantly, we also advance social-identity based strategies to foster more sustainable environmental attitudes and behaviors. Although this theoretical approach can provide important insights and potential solutions, more research is needed to build the empirical base, especially in relation to testing social identity solutions.

288 citations

Cites methods from "It is a moral issue: The relationsh..."

  • ...A simple demonstration of the latter approach is provided in research by Van der Werff et al. (2013, 2014) although their focus is on making salient selfidentity rather than a group identity....

    [...]

Journal Article•DOI•
Understanding the human dimensions of a sustainable energy transition

[...]

Linda Steg1, Goda Perlaviciute1, Ellen van der Werff1•
University of Groningen1
17 Jun 2015-Frontiers in Psychology
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a general framework to understand and encourage sustainable energy behaviors, comprising four key issues: identifying which behaviors need to be changed, understanding which factors underlie these changes, and testing the effects of interventions aimed to promote sustainable energy behaviours.
Abstract: Global climate change threatens the health, economic prospects, and basic food and water sources of people. A wide range of changes in household energy behavior is needed to realize a sustainable energy transition. We propose a general framework to understand and encourage sustainable energy behaviors, comprising four key issues. First, we need to identify which behaviors need to be changed. A sustainable energy transition involves changes in a wide range of energy behaviors, including the adoption of sustainable energy sources and energy-efficient technology, investments in energy efficiency measures in buildings, and changes in direct and indirect energy use behavior. Second, we need to understand which factors underlie these different types of sustainable energy behaviors. We discuss three main factors that influence sustainable energy behaviors: knowledge, motivations, and contextual factors. Third, we need to test the effects of interventions aimed to promote sustainable energy behaviors. Interventions can be aimed at changing the actual costs and benefits of behavior, or at changing people's perceptions and evaluations of different costs and benefits of behavioral options. Fourth, it is important to understand which factors affect the acceptability of energy policies and energy systems changes. We discuss important findings from psychological studies on these four topics, and propose a research agenda to further explore these topics. We emphasize the need of an integrated approach in studying the human dimensions of a sustainable energy transition that increases our understanding of which general factors affect a wide range of energy behaviors as well as the acceptability of different energy policies and energy system changes.

280 citations

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Journal Article•DOI•
Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being.

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Richard M. Ryan1, Edward L. Deci•
University of Rochester1
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TL;DR: Research guided by self-determination theory has focused on the social-contextual conditions that facilitate versus forestall the natural processes of self-motivation and healthy psychological development, leading to the postulate of three innate psychological needs--competence, autonomy, and relatedness.
Abstract: Human beings can be proactive and engaged or, alternatively, passive and alienated, largely as a function of the social conditions in which they develop and function. Accordingly, research guided by self-determination theo~ has focused on the social-contextual conditions that facilitate versus forestall the natural processes of self-motivation and healthy psychological development. Specifically, factors have been examined that enhance versus undermine intrinsic motivation, self-regulation, and well-being. The findings have led to the postulate of three innate psychological needs--competence, autonomy, and relatednesswhich when satisfied yield enhanced self-motivation and mental health and when thwarted lead to diminished motivation and well-being. Also considered is the significance of these psychological needs and processes within domains such as health care, education, work, sport, religion, and psychotherapy. T he fullest representations of humanity show people to be curious, vital, and self-motivated. At their best, they are agentic and inspired, striving to learn; extend themselves; master new skills; and apply their talents responsibly. That most people show considerable effort, agency, and commitment in their lives appears, in fact, to be more normative than exceptional, suggesting some very positive and persistent features of human nature. Yet, it is also clear that the human spirit can be diminished or crushed and that individuals sometimes reject growth and responsibility. Regardless of social strata or cultural origin, examples of both children and adults who are apathetic, alienated, and irresponsible are abundant. Such non-optimal human functioning can be observed not only in our psychological clinics but also among the millions who, for hours a day, sit passively before their televisions, stare blankly from the back of their classrooms, or wait listlessly for the weekend as they go about their jobs. The persistent, proactive, and positive tendencies of human nature are clearly not invariantly apparent. The fact that human nature, phenotypically expressed, can be either active or passive, constructive or indolent, suggests more than mere dispositional differences and is a function of more than just biological endowments. It also bespeaks a wide range of reactions to social environments that is worthy of our most intense scientific investigation. Specifically, social contexts catalyze both within- and between-person differences in motivation and personal growth, resulting in people being more self-motivated, energized, and integrated in some situations, domains, and cultures than in others. Research on the conditions that foster versus undermine positive human potentials has both theoretical import and practical significance because it can contribute not only to formal knowledge of the causes of human behavior but also to the design of social environments that optimize people's development, performance, and well-being. Research guided by self-determination theory (SDT) has had an ongoing concern with precisely these

29,115 citations

Book Chapter•
Summary for Policymakers

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Thomas B. Johansson, Nebojsa Nakicenovic, Anand Patwardhan, Luis Gomez-Echeverri, Wim Turkenburg 
01 Jan 2012
TL;DR: The Global Energy Assessment (GEA) as mentioned in this paper identifies strategies that could help resolve the multiple challenges simultaneously and bring multiple benefits, including sustainable economic and social development, poverty eradication, adequate food production and food security, health for all, climate protection, conservation of ecosystems, and security.
Abstract: Energy is essential for human development and energy systems are a crucial entry point for addressing the most pressing global challenges of the 21st century, including sustainable economic and social development, poverty eradication, adequate food production and food security, health for all, climate protection, conservation of ecosystems, peace and security. Yet, more than a decade into the 21st century, current energy systems do not meet these challenges. A major transformation is therefore required to address these challenges and to avoid potentially catastrophic future consequences for human and planetary systems. The Global Energy Assessment (GEA) demonstrates that energy system change is the key for addressing and resolving these challenges. The GEA identifies strategies that could help resolve the multiple challenges simultaneously and bring multiple benefits. Their successful implementation requires determined, sustained and immediate action.

13,413 citations

Summary for Policymakers

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T. Barker, I. Bashmakov, Lenny Bernstein, J Bogner, Peter Bosch, Rutu Dave, Ogunlade Davidson, Brian Fisher, M. Grubb, Sunil Gupta, Kirsten Halsnæs, Bertjan Heij, S. Kahn Ribeiro, Shingo Kobayashi, Mark D. Levine, Daniel Martino, O Masera Cerutti, Bert Metz, Leo Meyer, Gert-Jan Nabuurs, Adil Najam, N Nakicenovic, Hans-Holger Rogner, Joyashree Roy, J. Sathaye, R.N. Schock, P.R. Shukla, Ralph E.H. Sims, Pete Smith, Rob Swart, Dennis Tirpak, Diana Ürge-Vorsatz, Z. Dadi 
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Journal Article•DOI•
Mediation in experimental and nonexperimental studies: New procedures and recommendations.

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Patrick E. Shrout1, Niall Bolger1•
University of York1
01 Dec 2002-Psychological Methods
TL;DR: Efron and Tibshirani as discussed by the authors used bootstrap tests to assess mediation, finding that the sampling distribution of the mediated effect is skewed away from 0, and they argued that R. M. Kenny's (1986) recommendation of first testing the X --> Y association for statistical significance should not be a requirement when there is a priori belief that the effect size is small or suppression is a possibility.
Abstract: Mediation is said to occur when a causal effect of some variable X on an outcome Y is explained by some intervening variable M. The authors recommend that with small to moderate samples, bootstrap methods (B. Efron & R. Tibshirani, 1993) be used to assess mediation. Bootstrap tests are powerful because they detect that the sampling distribution of the mediated effect is skewed away from 0. They argue that R. M. Baron and D. A. Kenny's (1986) recommendation of first testing the X --> Y association for statistical significance should not be a requirement when there is a priori belief that the effect size is small or suppression is a possibility. Empirical examples and computer setups for bootstrap analyses are provided.

8,940 citations

Journal Article•DOI•
Reconsidering Baron and Kenny: Myths and Truths about Mediation Analysis

[...]

Xinshu Zhao1, John G. Lynch2, John G. Lynch3, Qimei Chen4•
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill1, Duke University2, University of Colorado Boulder3, University of Hawaii at Manoa4
15 Feb 2010-Journal of Consumer Research
TL;DR: Baron and Kenny's procedure for determining if an independent variable affects a dependent variable through some mediator is so well known that it is used by authors and requested by reviewers almost reflexively.
Abstract: Baron and Kenny’s procedure for determining if an independent variable affects a dependent variable through some mediator is so well known that it is used by authors and requested by reviewers almost reflexively. Many research projects have been terminated early in a research program or later in the review process because the data did not conform to Baron and Kenny’s criteria, impeding theoretical development. While the technical literature has disputed some of Baron and Kenny’s tests, this literature has not diffused to practicing researchers. We present a nontechnical summary of the flaws in the Baron and Kenny logic, some of which have not been previously noted. We provide a decision tree and a step-by-step procedure for testing mediation, classifying its type, and interpreting the implications of findings for theory building and future research.

8,032 citations

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