Moderating effects of social value orientation on determinants of proenvironmental behavior intention

• Published in: Journal of environmental psychology 2003-03, Vol.23 (1), p.1-9
• Main Authors: Gärling, Tommy, Fujii, Satoshi, Gärling, Anita, Jakobsson, Cecilia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Applied psychology; Biological and medical sciences; Engineering Psychology; Environment. Ecology; Environmental behaviour; Environmental psychology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Norm-activation theory; Proenvironmental behavior; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Social value orientation; Social values; Teknisk psykologi
• ISSN: 0272-4944; 1522-9610; 1522-9610
• DOI: 10.1016/S0272-4944(02)00081-6

A sample of 524 car owners living in a metropolitan area of Sweden answered survey questions measuring intention to perform collective proenvironmental behavior, awareness of egoistic, social-altruistic, and biospheric environmental consequences, personal norm, and ascribed responsibility. A measure derived from the survey responses was used to classify individuals in prosocial vs. proself value orientations. A structural model was estimated positing that proenvironmental behavior intentions are causally related to personal norm that in turn is causally related to ascribed responsibility and awareness of the different types of environmental consequences. Prosocials differed from proselfs in that to them social-altruistic consequences were more and egoistic consequences less salient.