The primary drivers of private-sphere pro-environmental behaviour in five European countries during the Covid-19 pandemic

Factors affecting compliance with vehicular environmental laws and pro-environmental behavior in Lahore, Pakistan

Lahore, Pakistan, is considered the most polluted city in the world and is suffering from environmental injustice due to a lack of compliance with vehicular environmental laws and deficient observance of pro-environmental behavior. This study analyzes factors affecting public compliance with vehicular environmental laws among drivers in Lahore with an extended pro-environmental behavior approach. The study utilized several factors such as personal benefits prioritization (PBP), economic incentives perception (EIP), government system (IGS), perceived eco-policy effectiveness and enforcement (PEPEE), environmental knowledge and awareness (EKA), theory of planned behavior (TPB), and value belief norm theory (VBNT). Using purposive sampling in the data collection, two hundred fifty-one participants voluntarily answered the survey through a self-administered online questionnaire utilizing the partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Results showed that personal benefits prioritization (PBP) significantly affected economic incentive perception (EIP). EIP and perceived eco-policy effectiveness and enforcement (PEPEE) showed a significant direct relationship with environmental knowledge and awareness (EKA). Interestingly, the government system (IGS) has the highest direct significance with PEPEE. EKA significantly affected the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and the value belief norm theory (VBNT). Thus, this study can be a foundation for related sectors to enhance the air quality of Lahore, Pakistan, by enhancing vehicular environmental laws and ensuring compliance. Increasing awareness through improving education and enforcement strategies is expected to contribute to successful compliance among Lahore residents, eventually aligning with national ecological sustainability policies. Moreover, the paper provides a comprehensive roadmap for stakeholders to address the environmental challenges identified and contribute to a more sustainable and environmentally just future globally.

Future of nature, our future. A preregistered report on future time perspective, social value orientation, and pro-environmental outcomes based on data from Poland and Sweden

Introduction

The objective of the study was to examine the role of social value orientation and future time perspective to account for individual differences in pro-environmental behaviors, intentions, and opinions about the link between pro-environmental action and pandemic threat (three separate models) in Polish and Swedish samples expected to differ in rate of pro-environmental behaviors (higher in Sweden). We hypothesized that for Poland, future time perspective would be linked to pro-environmental outcomes only when social value orientation is average or high. In contrast, for Sweden, we expected a significant link between these variables regardless of social value orientation.

Methods

In total, 301 (150 Polish, 151 Swedish) participants completed online surveys via Prolific.co research panel. We controlled for individualizing/binding moral foundations, present time perspectives, and selected demographic variables in the analyses.

Results

In line with expectations, the individualizing moral foundations were a significant predictor across all three models. The data did not support our focal hypothesis regarding the interaction between future time perspective and social value orientation. For pro-environmental behaviors in the past 6 months, the future time perspective was a predictor only when social value orientation was low.

Discussion

The results suggest that when encouraging more competitive (compared to altruistic) people to behave in a green way, it might be crucial to underline the future consequences and benefits, consistent with the future time perspective. The pro-environmental campaigns could, therefore, highlight how green behavior may bring personal gains in the future, which are typically valued by individualistic people, such as savings or social status.