Gender and Socioeconomic Influences on Ten Pro-Environmental Behavior Intentions: A German Comparative Study

Paul Schulz (), Susanne Nicolai, Samuel Tomczyk, Silke Schmidt, Philipp Franikowski and Susanne Stoll-Kleemann
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Paul Schulz: Institute of Geography and Geology, Department of Sustainability Science and Applied Geography, University of Greifswald, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
Susanne Nicolai: Institute of Geography and Geology, Department of Sustainability Science and Applied Geography, University of Greifswald, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
Samuel Tomczyk: Institute of Psychology, Department of Health and Prevention, University of Greifswald, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
Silke Schmidt: Institute of Psychology, Department of Health and Prevention, University of Greifswald, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
Philipp Franikowski: The Institute for Educational Quality Improvement (IQB), Humboldt-University of Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany
Susanne Stoll-Kleemann: Institute of Geography and Geology, Department of Sustainability Science and Applied Geography, University of Greifswald, 17489 Greifswald, Germany

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 7, 1-15

Abstract: Pro-environmental behaviors (PEBs) such as climate-friendly mobility and eating habits hold great promise in terms of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and, thus, are important goals for addressing climate change from a population perspective. Yet, sociodemographic correlates and differences in PEB intentions have to be considered in designing messages and behavior change interventions. This study implemented a quota-sampling survey ( N = 979, 511 women, 468 men, age M = 50.4, SD = 17.2) of the German population and found that, overall, participants exhibit strong intentions to engage in various PEBs, with the exception of cycling and adopting a vegetarian diet. Moreover, women displayed higher intentions to engage in PEBs compared to men, particularly in adopting a vegetarian diet. The relationships between socioeconomic status (SES) and PEB intentions, as well as the combined effects of gender and SES, were inconsistent for different PEB intentions. We conclude that on a population level, intention-building interventions are necessary for vegetarianism and cycling, while for the other PEBs, interventions may focus on closing the intention–behavior gap. There is a need to further research the interplay of different PEBs in diverse groups and for interventional studies targeting the discrepancy in eating habits across genders.

Keywords: pro-environmental behavior (PEB); intentions; socioeconomic status (SES); vegetarianism; population-based sampling; gender (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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