Exploring Additional Determinants of Environmentally Responsible Behavior: The Influence of Environmental Literature and Environmental Attitudes

TLDR

It is often assumed that individuals who are knowledgeable and concerned about the environment will engage in environmentally responsible behavior (ERB). The study examines whether reading three classic environmental books—Walden, A Sand County Almanac, and Silent Spring—predicts engagement in ERB, hypothesizing that such literature is a stronger predictor than sociodemographic factors, general environmental attitudes, or specific environmental concerns. Data from a large-scale Web survey hosted on National Geographic’s website in 2001‑2002 were used to test this premise. Results showed that reading environmental literature predicts ERB better than background characteristics and the New Ecological Paradigm, but environmental concern predicts ERB even more strongly, prompting suggestions for environmental education and future research.

Abstract

It is often assumed that individuals who are knowledgeable and concerned about the environment will engage in environmentally responsible behavior (ERB). We use data from a large scale Web survey hosted on National Geographic’s Web site in 2001-2002 to investigate this premise. We examine whether reading three classic environmental books ( Walden, A Sand County Almanac, and Silent Spring) is associated with the likelihood of engaging in ERB. Conceptualizing this activity as a formative experience and a source of environmental knowledge, we hypothesized that reading such literature would be a stronger predictor of ERB than sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., gender, education, and political orientation), general environmental attitudes (as measured by the New Ecological Paradigm), and concern about specific environmental risks. The results indicated that while reading environmental literature was a stronger predictor of ERB than background characteristics and the NEP, environmental concern was an even stronger predictor. We offer reasons for these findings and make suggestions for environmental education and future research.