Can social organizations help the public actively carry out ecological environment supervision?

In order to improve the efficiency of ecological environment governance and strengthen the construction of an ecological civilization society, it is necessary to stimulate the efforts of all sectors of society, including social organizations. However, the previous literature has paid less attention to the importance of social organizations in stimulating public participation in ecological and environmental supervision. Therefore, from the perspective of “behavior demonstration” and “publicity and education,” based on the data of 1041 questionnaires from various provinces in China, this paper constructs a moderated mesomeric effect model to analyze the impact of environmental protection organizations, industry associations, schools, foundations and other social organizations on the willingness of public participation in ecological environmental supervision and conducts robustness tests and heterogeneity analysis. The research finds that: (1) The “behavior demonstration” and “publicity and education” incentive activities of social organizations significantly enhance the public’s willingness to participate in ecological environment supervision. (2) Environmental supervision cognition plays a part of intermediary effect in the relationship between the “behavior demonstration” and “publicity and education” incentive activities of social organizations and the public’s willingness to participate in ecological environment supervision. (3) In the regulatory effect, the impact of “behavior demonstration” and “publicity and education” activities of environmental protection organizations, schools and foundations and the “behavior demonstration” activities of industry associations on the public’s willingness to participate in ecological environment supervision are all regulated by environmental attitudes. The process of “publicity and education” activities of industry associations affecting the public’s willingness to participate in ecological environment supervision is not regulated by environmental attitudes. (4) The results of heterogeneity analysis show that the incentive activities of social organizations in coastal areas have a stronger effect on the public’s willingness to participate in ecological environment supervision than those in inland areas; the willingness of students, the government and the public in public institutions to participate in ecological environment supervision are generally higher than that of employees in enterprises and other professions; the analysis of heterogeneity in psychological preferences shows that the public with altruistic preferences is more willing to participate in ecological environment supervision under social organization incentives.