IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v15y2023i20p14773-d1257902.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Environmental Information: Different Sources Different Levels of Pro-Environmental Behaviours?

Author

Listed:
  • Renata Dagiliūtė

    (Department of Environmental Sciences, Vytautas Magnus University, LT-53361 Kaunas, Lithuania)

Abstract

The role of final consumers for reaching different environmental policy targets is crucial. Therefore, raising awareness and fostering pro-environmental behaviours is of importance. However, there are a variety of sources for environmental information which can influence the activities undertaken. The study aims to analyse the relationship between different environmental information sources/channels and pro-environmental behaviours indicated by EU citizens. Based on a Eurobarometer survey covering all EU member states of that time, results revealed that television news remains the dominant source of environmental information (69.3%), followed by internet sources (36.7%) and newspapers (29.1%). On average, respondents perform 4.2 of 14 analysed pro-environmental behaviours. Those who indicate books and scientific literature as a source of environmental information on average perform 5.99 activities, compared to 4.8 activities by those receiving information from the internet, and 4.7 activities when information is received from newspapers. Though scientific literature is a source of environmental information for only 6.8% of EU citizens, regression analysis indicates that usage of books or scientific papers is significantly related to the number of actions performed. Internet sources (websites, blogs, forums), newspapers, and films and documentaries on television are other rather strong predictors of pro-environmental behaviour. Though all sources might be of importance for environmental information provision, less employed ones should be promoted and used to raise awareness of environmental issues and corresponding behaviours.

Suggested Citation

  • Renata Dagiliūtė, 2023. "Environmental Information: Different Sources Different Levels of Pro-Environmental Behaviours?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-14, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:20:p:14773-:d:1257902
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/20/14773/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/20/14773/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Han, Heesup & Hyun, Sunghyup Sean, 2018. "What influences water conservation and towel reuse practices of hotel guests?," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 87-97.
    2. Liobikienė, Genovaitė & Miceikienė, Astrida, 2022. "The role of financial, social and informational mechanisms on willingness to use bioenergy," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 194(C), pages 21-27.
    3. Tommaso Luzzati & Ilaria Tucci & Pietro Guarnieri, 2022. "Information overload and environmental degradation: learning from H.A. Simon and W. Wenders," Papers 2209.01039, arXiv.org.
    4. Wang, Jianxiong & Zhou, Yonghong, 2021. "Impact of mass media on public awareness: The “Under the Dome” effect in China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 173(C).
    5. Tu, Meng & Zhang, Bing & Xu, Jianhua & Lu, Fangwen, 2020. "Mass media, information and demand for environmental quality: Evidence from the “Under the Dome”," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    6. Luzzati, Tommaso & Tucci, Ilaria & Guarnieri, Pietro, 2022. "Information overload and environmental degradation: Learning from H.A. Simon and W. Wenders," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).
    7. Noah J. Goldstein & Robert B. Cialdini & Vladas Griskevicius, 2008. "A Room with a Viewpoint: Using Social Norms to Motivate Environmental Conservation in Hotels," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 35(3), pages 472-482, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Zhou, Bo & Ding, Hao, 2023. "How public attention drives corporate environmental protection: Effects and channels," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    2. Heesup Han & Myong Jae Lee & Wansoo Kim, 2018. "Promoting towel reuse behaviour in guests: A water conservation management and environmental policy in the hotel industry," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(8), pages 1302-1312, December.
    3. Shashi, & Centobelli, Piera & Cerchione, Roberto & Jhamb, Deepika, 2023. "Double-edged circularity: Comparative assessment of circular and non-circular consumers," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    4. Yoon-Jung Jang & Eojina Kim, 2023. "Social and Personal Norms in Shaping Customers’ Environmentally Sustainable Behavior in Restaurants’ Social Media Communities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-14, April.
    5. Carlos Rodríguez & Marta Jacob & Carmen Florido, 2020. "Socioeconomic Profile of Tourists with a Greater Circular Attitude and Behaviour in Hotels of a Sun and Beach Destination," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(24), pages 1-28, December.
    6. Maria-Ana Georgescu & Emilia Herman, 2020. "Are Young People Ready to Have a Pro-Environmental Sustainable Behaviour as Tourists? An Investigation of Towel Reuse Intention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-20, November.
    7. Maria Torres-Bagur & Anna Ribas & Josep Vila-Subirós, 2019. "Incentives and Barriers to Water-Saving Measures in Hotels in the Mediterranean: A Case Study of the Muga River Basin (Girona, Spain)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-16, June.
    8. Cozzio, Claudia & Volgger, Michael & Taplin, Ross & Woodside, Arch G., 2020. "Nurturing tourists’ ethical food consumption: Testing the persuasive strengths of alternative messages in a natural hotel setting," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 268-279.
    9. Kettle, Keri L. & Mantonakis, Antonia, 2024. "Look for the signature: Using personal signatures as extrinsic cues promotes identity-congruent behavior," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 170(C).
    10. Todd D. Gerarden & Richard G. Newell & Robert N. Stavins, 2017. "Assessing the Energy-Efficiency Gap," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 55(4), pages 1486-1525, December.
    11. Alpízar, Francisco & Martinsson, Peter, 2010. "Don’t Tell Me What to Do, Tell Me Who to Follow! - Field Experiment Evidence on Voluntary Donations," Working Papers in Economics 452, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    12. Asuamah Yeboah, Samuel, 2023. "Sustaining Change: Unravelling the Socio-cultural Threads of Sustainable Consumption," MPRA Paper 117981, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 10 Jun 2023.
    13. Nathaniel Geiger, 2022. "Perceptions of Self-Motives and Environmental Activists’ Motives for Pro-Environmental Behavior," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-12, August.
    14. Ajla Cosic & Hana Cosic & Sebastian Ille, 2018. "Can nudges affect students' green behaviour? A field experiment," Journal of Behavioral Economics for Policy, Society for the Advancement of Behavioral Economics (SABE), vol. 2(1), pages 107-111, March.
    15. Sarah Verdonk & Keri Chiveralls & Drew Dawson, 2017. "Getting Wasted at WOMADelaide: The Effect of Signage on Waste Disposal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-17, February.
    16. Wang, Le & Luo, Xin (Robert) & Li, Han, 2022. "Envy or conformity? An empirical investigation of peer influence on the purchase of non-functional items in mobile free-to-play games," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 308-324.
    17. Bartels, Lara & Kesternich, Martin, 2022. "Motivate the crowd or crowd- them out? The impact of local government spending on the voluntary provision of a green public good," ZEW Discussion Papers 22-040, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    18. Le Thi Dieu Hien & Khuu Ngoc Huyen & Thi Hong Loc Hoang, 2023. "Factors Affecting Energy-Saving Intentions among Youth in Vietnam," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 13(6), pages 603-609, November.
    19. Ingo Balderjahn & Dennis Appenfeller, 2023. "A Social Marketing Approach to Voluntary Simplicity: Communicating to Consume Less," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-17, January.
    20. Gwen-Jiro Clochard & Guillaume Hollard & Julia Wirtz, 2022. "More effort or better technologies? On the effect of relative performance feedback," Bristol Economics Discussion Papers 22/767, School of Economics, University of Bristol, UK.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:15:y:2023:i:20:p:14773-:d:1257902. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.