The Intrinsic Route to Pro-Environmental Behaviour

Engaging in pro-environmental behaviours is oftentimes associated with some personal costs. Despite this, many people do engage in different types of pro-environmental behaviours. Why is this the case? In this dissertation, we propose that people engage in pro-environmental behaviours because they are intrinsically motivated to do so. Across four empirical chapters, we, indeed, found a strong and consistent relationship between intrinsic motivation and different pro-environmental behaviours. Importantly, we found that intrinsic motivation remains an important factor encouraging pro-environmental behaviour, even after controlling for the perceived personal costs associated with the behaviour. Furthermore, intrinsic motivation is not weakened in the presence of a financial incentive, and it can be strengthened by frequent environmental information provision to further promote pro-environmental behaviour change

The effects of a financial incentive on motives and intentions to commute to work with public transport in the short and long term

The present research aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of a three-week free public transport card in encouraging people to commute to work using public transport both in the short term (while the incentive is in place) and long term (after the incentive is removed). Moreover, we tested effects of the free public transport card on motivations to use public transport. Findings from our longitudinal field study showed that participants had strong intentions to use public transport while the incentive was in place, but intentions to commute to work using public transport decreased in the long-term, suggesting that the incentive was effective while in place, but not when it was removed. Moreover, participants rated the financial motives to commute to work using public transport as less important after the incentive was removed, suggesting that financial incentives provide people with a temporary motive to engage in the desired behaviour, which may explain the short-term effectiveness of the incentive. We did not observe that the free public transport card crowded out participants’ intrinsic motivation to travel by public transport. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed

The Normative Route to a Sustainable Future:Examining Children's Environmental Values, Identity and Personal Norms to Conserve Energy

Environmental problems could be reduced if individuals act pro-environmentally. Typically, studies have examined factors explaining pro-environmental behavior among adults, but not among children. As children are the future generations that must meet the targets set by the 2015 Paris climate agreement, it is important to understand which factors influence their engagement in pro-environmental behaviors, such as their energy saving behavior. In two correlational studies among primary and secondary school children (n(study1)= 69,n(study2)= 958), we tested if normative considerations proposed by the Value-Identity-Personal Norm (VIP) model can explain children's self-reported energy-saving behaviors. Our results revealed that in line with research among adults, children's biospheric values were related to their energy-saving self-identity, in turn associated with their personal norms to save energy. Furthermore, we found partial support for the proposed relationship between the variables of the VIP model and a range of self-reported energy-saving behaviors

Twenty questions about design behavior for sustainability, report of the International Expert Panel on behavioral science for design

How behavioral scientists, engineers, and architects can work together to advance how we all understand and practice design—in order to enhance sustainability in the built environment, and beyond.https://www.nature.com/documents/design_behavior_for_sustainability.pdfPublished versio